11% of Newton’s schoolchildren live in poverty – a 77% increase over the past 5 years. Children that qualify for free or reduced breakfast and lunch may lose those two meals during July and August
One such action could be applying for the children’s Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), brought to the attention of many of us by Tom Davis on two other threads, which is a federally funded, state administered grant program that feeds kids who qualify for reduced cost or free school lunches but go hungry in the summer.
SFSP eligibility can be determined by either of the following:
1.School Data- the community has a school at which at least 50% of these students are eligible for free or reduced price meals.
2.Census Data- the community has an area in which at least 50% of children under 19 are at or below 185% of the federal poverty level.
Six communities in Newton meet the second criteria. You can find them by scrolling down the eligibility website. Some sites in Waltham accept kids from Newton. Newton Wellesley Hospital helps support several Waltham sites.
Your thoughts?
Thanks for posting this, Marti. I hope we can generate some productive discussion, particularly among the many elected officials who routinely participate here. In addition to the stats that you’ve laid out, I’d like to add a few more.
In 2015 (the latest data I could find), every single day, Newton Public Schools had roughly 1,626 children who qualified for free or reduced price lunch. Furthermore, from 2012 through 2015 (the latest data I could find), the number of Newton Public Schools children in need of free or reduced price lunches grew at a rate of 1% each year. In other words, each year, more than 124 new students in the NPS system became poor enough to qualify for free or reduced priced lunches. Given that economic inequality only continues to grow, we are likely to soon have more than 2,000 children in the NPS system who qualify for free or reduced price lunch.
Notwithstanding the fact that no less than 1,626 of NPS students face food insecurity on a daily basis during the summer months, to the best of my knowledge, our local government has taken no action whatsoever to address this problem. In a city that has a greater number of residents who earn more than $1,000,000 per year than it does students who are categorized as “Economically Disadvantaged,” in my opinion, this should be intolerable.
However, regardless of past inaction, what matters now is forward progress. As such, it is my sincere hope that at least some of our elected officials will join this discussion to enlighten us in regard to action steps moving forward.
Given that communities like Waltham provide more than 14,000 free lunches during the summer months – and that tax-exempt institutions like Newton-Wellesley Hospital help subsidize such programs – surely we can do something, right?
Is no elected official going to respond? How about merely acknowledging how serious this problem is in Newton?
Relatedly, does anyone know where we can find meeting minutes that show whether a single one of our many elected officials has discussed this issue on the record?
As someone who was once one of the many of Newton’s children that has gone hungry because of failed leadership, I find the silence on this topic outrageous.
Tom, I have just (2;35 Wednesday Sept. 6) filed an item before the City Council asking that His Honor the Mayor report to the City Council and the School Committee on the feasibility of submitting an application to establish a Summer Food Service Program in Newton and if it it feasible, to submit such an application.” (All my colleagues are welcome to co-sponsor the item.) I would have filed sooner but the web site was not very helpful. I assume that the eligible areas you cite are the Census Tracts that are eligible for Community Development Block Grants, including one (3741?) in Upper Falls and several in Nonantum, Newton
Corner, and Newtonville.
(This item is sort of nostalgic for me. I was the Chair of the Upper Falls CDBG Advisory Committtee before I joined the Board of Aldermen, For decades, I was the Director of Planning and Program Development for Community Teamwork, Inc. , the Greater Lowell Community Action Agency (anti-poverty agency). I helped CTI to develop a WIC (Women’, Infants and Children Supplementary Nutrition) program, a downtown Farmers Market, and to do outreach for SNAP. I look forward to developing a network of agencies in Newton to administer the Summer Food Service Program.
City Councilor Brian Yates
This is outstanding, Councilor Yates. Thank you!
Do you mind me asking who gets to determine whether applying is “feasible”? Will we ultimately know all factors that go into making this decision?
If possible, I would also recommend amending your item to inquire from the Mayor how much it would cost the City to launch its own SFSP type site in the event that we apply for and don’t receive funding. This is especially true since, as you alluded to, the application process is unclear.
Again, thank you for your help with this.
That’s great Councilor Yates. Thank you.
On the website meals4kids the areas are marked on the map at the bottom after you search Newton, Ma.
There is one in Newton Corner, Nonantum, Newton Center, Newton Highlands and I think in Oak Hill (surrounding the gold club.)
It looks the first step may be to contact the MA DOE department that is the administrator for the USDA – see below.
“Schools, park programs, community agencies, churches, or other entities interested in becoming a SFSP site or sponsor should contact the Child Nutrition Outreach Program (CNOP). CNOP can help determine if a site is eligible. To become a sponsor, please request an application from ESE by contacting the Office for Nutrition, Health and Safety Programs at 781-338-6480 or by email: nutrition @doe.mass.edu. You can also visit the http://www.meals4kids.org website for additional information.”
Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-4906
Website: http://www.doe.mass.edu/cnp/nprograms/
These sites may be helpful.
How to Participate in Summer Meals
https://fns-prod.azureedge.net/sites/default/files/sfsp/SFSP-Fact-Sheet.pdf
Program Guidance | Food and Nutrition Service
https://www.fns.usda.gov/sfsp/handbooks
Scott Lennon has joined RuthAnne Fuller in co-sponsoring my item on determining the feasibility of Newton applying for a Summer Feeding Program.
The determination of feasibility will be made by a combination of the next Administration and the next City Council. I’m sure the costs of a non-Federal program will be included in the response to this item.
City Councilor Brian Yates