“Extending child nutrition waivers through the next academic year is good news for students, families, and schools,” says Davis.
Contact: Meredith Jorss, mjorss@strength.org
Washington, DC - This morning, the United States Department of Agriculture announced that it would extend a number of essential child nutrition waivers through the 2021-2022 school year. The following is a statement from Senior Vice President Lisa Davis:
"Share Our Strength applauds the USDA for this proactive extension of these essential child nutrition waivers through the upcoming academic year. This is welcome news for students and schools alike, as the nation continues to recover from economic, educational and health emergencies of the past year.
"At a time when millions of families continue to face financial strain, hunger and hardship, these waivers allow schools to reach more kids with the food they need. With them, schools are able to cut through red tape and allow kids to eat for free. They can also adapt meal programs to the needs of students and families. For example, in places where students are learning at home, they allow for meals to be dropped off at a student's home, or for parents to pick up multiple days' worth of meals. Today's announcement ensure that kids will continue to have consistent access to the nutrition they need to grow up healthy and strong as families and communities continue along the long path of recovery.
"Announcing this extension today also allows schools time to appropriately plan and budget for next year’s meal programs so they can operate effectively, efficiently and with the stability needed to support local economies.
"School and community meals work alongside programs like Pandemic-EBT, SNAP and summer meal programs to make sure children are able to get the food they need, when they need it. These waivers are a critical piece of the equation and extending them through next year is good for students, good for families and good for schools.”
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About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, 1 in 4 kids could face hunger this year. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty.