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Kershaw County School District takes a step toward getting free lunches for all students

The district is now eligible for the federal program called Community Eligibility Provision or CEP

KERSHAW COUNTY, S.C. — Free breakfast and lunches could be on the way for students in Kershaw County, as the district has now become eligible for the Community Eligibility Provision, also known as CEP.

It's a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) program that provides schools with money to serve meals at no cost to all students. 

At the last school board meeting, the district voted to move forward in the application process for the program. 

"The community eligibility provision has been around since about 2014. Kershaw County, however, did not qualify district-wide for it," said Kershaw County School District Coordinator for Nutrition Services Misha Lawyer. "Being eligible for this changed this last school year, and now we do qualify,"  

That qualification came when the USDA changed eligibility from not only SNAP or TANF but also Medicaid. 

"Currently this school year, we're feeding about 65% of our kids breakfast, and we're feeding anywhere from between 54-64% for lunch," Lawyer adds.

The district already has free breakfast and after-school snacks along with its supper program, but this will now cover lunch, as well helping to bridge a gap they noticed during the pandemic.  

"Astonishing statistics to look back at is during COVID, we were feeding 75-80% when they didn't have to pay, so we know bringing CEP in will bring our kids back into the cafeteria," Lawyer said.

As for the next steps, they must put their application in for the state department, and it would not go into effect until next school year. 

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