New policies in the Essex High School cafeteria have been impacting students and faculty. Several members of the EHS community have voiced their concerns.

The main concern among students is the size of their lunches.

EWSD’s Director of Child Nutrition, Scott Fay, said there are multiple reasons why Essex High School students can receive two breakfasts but only one lunch. 

There are certain rules the school needs to follow around balanced meal plans if they want to continue to give away free food. Mr. Fay gave the veggie bar as an example of a place in our cafeteria that helps students get around the one meal rule, while still following the rules of a balanced meal.

“It’s not healthy to get two slices of pizza,” Fay said. “Having the veggie bar allows students to get more food if they’re still hungry.” 

Despite this opportunity to get more food, some EHS students are still left feeling hungry.

“Lunch portions are inadequate,” Eli Conti, a junior, said in an email.“My tummy is often left rumbling by the end of the day.” 

While students enjoy the free meals, teachers must pay $4.00 for breakfast and $5.50 for lunch. If this same rule applied to students, the average student here would spend $9.50-$13.50 a day on food.

Fay acknowledged this problem.

“The school gets reimbursed for student meals by the federal government because of the Universal Meal Act,” Fay said.

The Universal Meal Act was passed by the Vermont Legislature to allow access to free meals for students at school. This is only for students and does not include teachers. 

Mr. Fay explained the school has never had any problems distributing food but always wants to make sure the school is able to provide for food insecure families.

While it may be upsetting to not grab an extra sandwich to power through the day, the lunchroom staff are only able to serve as much as the rules allow.