Record Number of Students to Enjoy Free Lunch this Year

Parents in the Maricopa Unified School District can now apply for free breakfast and lunch for their children, as announced by the district today.

The district has joined the “healthy” School Breakfast and Lunch program alongside the National School Lunch Program. These initiatives aim to ensure that all students have access to nutritious meals.

Breakfast will be available to all students at no cost, while lunch will be priced at $3.75. According to MUSD spokesperson Mishell Terry, some students may be eligible for free or reduced-price meals based on their family’s income.

Families who qualify for reduced-price meals will not have to pay this year, thanks to recent state funding covering the 40-cent cost per meal. This means that reduced-price meals will effectively be free for all students this year.

Households wishing to apply for free meals need to fill out an application and return it to the school, unless they have already received a notification confirming their eligibility for free meals this school year. Only one application is required for all children within a household, and the information provided will solely be used for determining eligibility and verifying data.

Eligibility for these meal benefits can be applied for at any time. The criteria for eligibility are based on household size and income, which have been adjusted over the years to account for inflation. For instance, a family of four must earn no more than $57,720 annually to qualify for free lunch this year, compared to $45,510 in 2017.

For more information, contact the district at 520-568-5100 or email [email protected].

Applications can also be accessed online here.