Douglas County School District (DCSD), like all major school districts and most small/rural districts in Colorado, will offer free breakfasts and lunches to all students beginning this school year through a new statewide program approved by Colorado voters.

“The decision was made to participate in Healthy School Meals for All as it would benefit our students and families to have access to these nutritious meals every day,” said Jennifer Peifer, DCSD Nutrition Services Director.

The new program will help make sure that students experiencing food insecurity have access to nutritious food and take away a stigma associated with receiving free school meals.

“When all meals are provided at no cost, that stigma goes away as a large number of students access school meals,” said Peifer.  “We are helping to create a level playing field where all students have access to healthy meals.”

Data from 2021 shows that 47% of food insecure families in Douglas County did not qualify for free and reduced-price meals under the federal school meals program because they made too much money.

“We are expecting at least a 40 percent increase in the number of reimbursable meals served and have estimated and planned accordingly,” said Peifer.

Last year the district served 2.6 million lunches, all paid for by students.  During the 2021-2022 school year when the federal government covered the cost as part of the COVID-19 response, DCSD provided about 4.45 million free lunches.  Peifer expects to return to a similar level of participation for the upcoming school year.  With that significant increase in the number of meals served comes a need for more staff.

“We are doing everything we can to recruit and retain the amazing workers who help us make this happen,” Peifer said.

Elementary and charter school students can expect to see two options per day, plus a variety of fresh fruit and vegetables on harvest bars.  Middle school and high school students can expect to see at least six to eight entree options available per day, plus the same variety of fruits and vegetables.  Every student must select a half cup of fruit or vegetables for the meal to be free.  Any items they want on top of the meal such as a la carte items or additional entrees will cost money and require payment from the student’s meal account.

The Healthy School Meals for All will be funded by reducing state income tax deductions for households that bring in more than $300,000 per year.  To learn more about the program, visit https://www.cde.state.co.us/nutrition/healthy-school-meals-for-all-program.

To learn about job opportunities at DCSD’s Nutritional Services, visit  https://sites.google.com/dcsdk12.org/dcsd-nutrition-services/home.

By Mindy Stone