How Alamance Schools Feed Students, Address Lunch Debt and Equity

Alamance Burlington School System staff described how school meal programs are administered, the role of the United States Department of Agriculture, and how the Community Eligibility Provision, known as CEP, changes access for qualifying schools. Nutrition leaders said CEP allows an entire eligible school to offer free meals to all students, removing stigma and simplifying meal service. Harvey R. Newlin Elementary was cited as an example of a CEP school where almost all students receive free meals.

ABSS Nutrition staff including Spencer Brown, executive director of ABSS Nutrition, Lori Snow, and Charlene Pruitt explained eligibility rules, menu standards, and allergy procedures as part of the district overview. They outlined USDA requirements that shape menus and nutrition standards and described school level operations that ensure students with food allergies receive appropriate accommodations.

The district contrasted CEP schools with non CEP schools where students must pay for meals and can accumulate balances. Staff described operational and equity challenges when those balances grow. Lunch debt has tangible consequences in some cases, because unpaid school accounts can affect student participation in extracurricular activities and place administrative burdens on school offices and families already under financial strain.

ABSS also discussed year round feeding efforts. The district runs summer feeding programs aimed at sustaining access to meals when school is out of session. Local partners were highlighted, including Allied Churches of Alamance County which provides weekend food supports and backpacks for families in need. Those community efforts supplement what the school system provides and target food insecurity beyond the lunch hour.

Hunger has documented effects on learning and behavior, and staff emphasized that students who are hungry struggle to concentrate and participate. The district encouraged community members to help by donating to school meal funds and by contacting the district nutrition or finance offices to learn how to contribute toward student meal balances. For policymakers and residents, the situation underscores the link between nutrition policy, school administration, and student equity in Alamance County.