INDIANAPOLIS — Back to school is just around the corner, and it's the first time in about two years the federal child nutrition waiver is not in place.
That means parents could have to pay for school lunches.
The previous program was offered as a form of COVID-19 relief, giving all students free lunch and breakfast.
Even though it won't be offered this year, the free and reduced lunch program is still in effect in the Hoosier state, but parents must apply to take part.
It's something schools across the city say is important to offer.
"We never want t kid to go hungry, we are always going to feed a kid. But we also need to make sure we are working without parents to make sure they are taking care of their balance on that stuff as well," Wes Anderson with Southern Hancock County Schools said.
At a time when pretty much everything is at an all-time high, parents say they're grateful they can qualify for free school lunches.
"I don't have to worry about my kid going hungry because I knew they would have that food at school to fall back on," Sara Helton, who utilizes the free lunch program, said.
To learn more on if you qualify for free and reduced lunch and to apply, click here.
-
IMPD investigating after person found dead on Indy's east side
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers responded to the 1500 block of North Arlington Avenue on reports of a person shot just after 8:30 p.m.Indiana’s oldest Black American Legion post to close, members trying to save it
The flags that symbolize service no longer fly in front of Tillman H. Harpole American Legion Post 249, whose charter dates back to the late 1930s.High school construction students build homes for veterans
Trade school students spent the week building several homes at the Project 57 development near Michigan Street and Holt Road. It will become a neighborhood for homeless veterans.Indianapolis Ten-Point Coalition working to prevent violence before it starts
The group was patrolling the BP Gas Station at 29th and MLK Thursday night when group members noticed two young men with guns walk into the gas station.