The return of students last week for the start of the 2014-15 school year was accompanied by a resumption of free and reduced-price school meals for students in need. At the beginning of the school year, applications for the meals program were sent to all homes with students. Households with qualifying income levels were encouraged to apply. For example, the annual-income threshold for a four-person household is $31,005 for free lunches and $44,123 for reduced-price lunches. In the Eatonville School District, officials reminded families to watch for the lunch application that would be sent home with students. Applications are also available at individual schools, the district office and online at www.eatonville.wednet.edu. If students qualified last school year, there is a grace period from the start of this school year (Sept. 3) that will allow them to continue receiving free or reduced meals until Oct. 14.-áAfter that, students will automatically return to paid-lunch status if they haven't applied for free or reduced-price for 2014-15. Families in the Eatonville district can get additional information from Yvonne Sanchez, an administrative assistant for the district, at 360-879-1038. In both the Eatonville and Bethel districts, breakfast will be served at no cost to children who qualify for free and reduced-price meals. Lunches will be served at no cost to children who qualify for free meals and to those who qualify for reduced-price meals in kindergarten through third grade. If families are receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP/TANF/FDPIR) benefits, their schoolchildren automatically qualify for free school meals. Also eligible are all foster children, homeless and migrant students, households participating in food distribution programs on Indian reservations, and students in Head Start and Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program. In addition, in homes where foster children live, all other students in the home may be eligible based on household size and income, officials noted. Applications for free and reduced-price meals can be submitted any time during the school year. That's important if families' economic situations change. For instance, if a household member becomes unemployed, families should contact their school district because the changed employment status may make children of the household eligible, said a spokesman for the state superintendent of public instruction. The National School Lunch Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provides free and reduced-price lunches and breakfasts for qualifying schoolchildren. Not all costs for the program are covered locally by the national program. In Washington, the state pays all lunch costs for public school students in kindergarten through third grade for reduced-price meals. The state also pays all breakfast costs for students in every grade who qualify for reduced prices.
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