Visiting schools and talking with students was one of my favorite things to do when I was governor of Massachusetts. When talking to kids around the Commonwealth about what was most important to them, one topic always came up: school food. It's not surprising. Author Barbara Coloroso said it best: "Eating together, breaking bread together, is one of the oldest and most fundamentally unifying of human experiences." This deeply important human act echoes loudly in school lunchrooms, where children laugh, build friendships, and learn while they eat.
Yet a nourishing meal—the very cornerstone of both our social nature and our wellbeing—is often unattainable for many children, and Congress has put off doing something about it, again and again.
When COVID-19 hit in 2020 and keeping kids fed required new thinking, national decision makers stepped in with a smart and simple new policy: provide free meals for every child. School Meals for All eliminated the bureaucracy and stigma around free lunches, promoted a sense of community, and most important, assured that all kids got the nutrition they need to not just survive, but thrive.
Despite its success in providing more than 20 million daily free lunches, the program is now at risk of reverting to its old "red tape" ways that leave millions of children behind.
Earlier this year, Congress failed to renew the federal waivers that allow schools to provide free meals. The waivers were set to expire on June 30, but at the very last minute, members passed the Keep Kids Fed Act, which extended the waivers allowing for free meals through the summer.
This is unfortunately just a quick fix.
The future of school meal programs is called into question once again as we enter a new school year and this funding ends. In losing this program, we will lose a critical tool that helps all kids and working families in favor of old, well-intentioned yet unsuccessful attempts to address the devastating impacts of hunger.
Before the pandemic, free meal programs were available to students whose families met specific income requirements. But the guidelines that were in place required complex paperwork and set eligibility limits that were too low, excluding needy families who were either on the margins or overwhelmed by the effort needed to apply. In fact, many parents felt shame about needing to participate at all—and many students continued to go hungry.
Hunger is one of our greatest enemies when it comes to student outcomes. Research shows that access to school meals can lead to better grades in math and reading, and that hungry stomachs are a distraction from academics. This is particularly true for kids that come from families with lower incomes. Nourishment is key to making sure kids are focused on their studies, not where their next meal will come from.
By feeding all students, we give all kids a chance. It's a part of the infrastructure that enables Americans to keep up with worldwide student achievement standards and stay competitive across all sectors, particularly in math and science. Nourishing our children fuels the engine of American ingenuity in local communities and beyond. It should be an educational expectation, just like textbooks or desks in the classroom.
What happens in the cafeteria is important for a child's development. Being able to eat together is how people learn to relate, to see and share another's culture. For children growing up and learning about each other and the world, this social connection is critical. Every student ought to be able to participate on an equal footing.
School Meals for All gave students that chance. It's also a policy win—a people-centered approach with bipartisan appeal, achieved through simpler government. Our federal lawmakers must do more to come to a permanent agreement.
Legislators on both sides of the aisle must act, pushing through policy that makes this program permanent, and do it before the midterm elections.
When we secure free meals for all students we're investing in our children—inviting them to gather around the table and nourish their health, as well as their minds, their relationships and their future.
Deval Patrick served as governor of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
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