Lenzy Krehbiel-Burton
Tulsa World Staff Writer
Stephen Pingry
Tulsa World Staff Photographer
Students attending Tulsa Public Schools can leave their lunch money at home come August.
Speaking at Memorial High School’s cafeteria, Superintendent Ebony Johnson announced Thursday that all TPS students will be able to receive a free breakfast and lunch at school during the 2024-25 school year.
“Providing free meals to students across Tulsa Public Schools is consistent with the district’s commitment to removing barriers for our students’ success and directing every resource to ensure every student has the opportunity to thrive,” Johnson said.
The announcement is due to the district’s expansion of its participation in the Community Eligibility Provision of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National School Lunch Program.
That provision allows all students at a school, district or a group of schools to eat for free if enough pupils are eligible for income-based assistance programs, such Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations.
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Last September, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a rule change lowering the eligibility threshold for schools and districts to apply for community eligibility from 40% of students to 25% of students.
More than 80% of all TPS students are already eligible for free or reduced-price school meals.
TPS elementary students have been able to eat breakfast and lunch for free since the 2016-17 school year thanks to a combination of the Community Eligibility Provision and a suite of COVID-19 waivers that provided free meals for all students.
However, those waivers lapsed at the end of the 2021-22 school year, which meant TPS’ middle and high school students who chose to eat a school meal have had to pay or fill out an application to receive breakfast and lunch for free or at a lower price for the past two school years. The district submitted its community eligibility application in January to add secondary sites.
“Opening up eligibility district wide means 15,000 secondary students … will be eligible to eat for free and not worry about bringing money to school for lunch,” Johnson said.
A handful of other Tulsa-area districts also provide at least one free meal per day for students. Sand Springs Public Schools previously announced that it will offer free school meals to all students for the coming school year. Mounds Public Schools already utilizes the Community Eligibility Provision for its elementary and middle schools, and Sperry Public Schools’ Board of Education approved offering free breakfast for all elementary students this coming year.
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