A notification was sent out to Eagle Grove Area Community School District parents Friday afternoon, Sept. 11, that thanks to an extension of the USDA free Summer School Service Program, all Eagle Grove students grades preschool through 12th grade will be able to eat free school meals from now until Dec. 31, 2020 or until funding for the program runs out.
This announcement means that all students, regardless of household income, will be able to eat both breakfast and lunch, completely free of charge. Free meals began this past Monday, Sept. 14.
Eagle Grove has been a qualifying school district for the free summer lunch program for the past several years, which is based on the percentage of free and reduced lunches qualified for during the school year. According to Toliver, when the free lunch program began this spring after school was cancelled because of COVID-19, the school district was at about 70 percent of students qualifying for either free or reduced lunches.
If funding runs out before Dec. 31, 2020, parents will be notified immediately.
