Summer Meal Program Fuels Student Success

Even though school won’t be in session, LaRue County School District will continue to fuel its students.

The H.A.W.K. Meals program will provide children 18 and under access to a daily lunch and breakfast for the next day in a bag. H.A.W.K. meals will run from June 3 to July 26. This program helps feed children within the community who aren’t otherwise guaranteed meals when school is not in session.

“We want to continue to offer healthy meals to the children in our community over the summer,” Stephanie Utley, Food Service Director said. “We know that even though school is not in session many children in our community could benefit from this program.”

As Feeding America notes, more than 22 million children across the nation struggle with food insecurity. They depend on school breakfast and lunch programs.

Over 50% of LaRue County students are eligible to participate in the federal free meal program according to government data from US News & World Report. Those students are often not guaranteed access to healthy, reliable meals during the summer months.

Research indicates that taking care of students’ food needs can lead to more focus on schoolwork, improved retention, and overall better performance. For example, on average, students who eat school breakfast have been shown to achieve 17.5% higher scores on standardized math tests and attend 1.5 more days of school per year.

H.A.W.K. Meals are open to any child 18 years old and under, regardless of where they live. The program has two options each day for lunch, and the breakfast for the next day will be included in the bag.

Utley said that it’s due to LaRue County’s rural designation by the USDA that they’re offering daily, non-congregate meals to children. This is a change from last year’s program where there were bulk meal pick-ups.

“We will have a drive-thru at LaRue County High School as well as several mobile stops that will be announced at the end of May,” said Utley.

Officials hope that by caring for students throughout the year, the LaRue County Hawks community can return to the 2024-2025 school year fueled for learning.