While Montgomery County, Maryland, is one of the wealthiest counties in the nation, it has more students receiving free or reduced鈥憄rice lunches than D.C. has students overall.
The numbers are eye-opening. During the 2023 to 2024 school year, , compared with roughly 51,000 students enrolled in D.C. public schools.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 uncomfortable for some folks in Montgomery County to acknowledge,鈥� said Dr. Thomas Taylor, superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools.
Taylor said the official numbers may not tell the full story.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a huge percentage of families that could qualify but don鈥檛 take advantage of it for various reasons,鈥� Taylor added.
“You have a number of students in between the free-lunch program and paying full price,鈥� Taylor said. 鈥淐andidly, they accumulate debt over time because they can’t afford to pay it.鈥�
To deal with MCPS鈥檚 $1.2 million in unpaid student meal debt, the Dine with Dignity campaign was launched.
鈥淔ood insecurity is very real in our country and our state, and it is real here in Montgomery County,鈥� Taylor said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e had generous donations from DARCARS.鈥�
Taylor said that the Darvish family, who owns the Silver Spring-based dealership group, donated $250,000 to help offset meal debt.
鈥淲e’re really making this a mission for philanthropic support to help get Montgomery County students fed and supported,鈥� Taylor said.
As MCPS attempts to pay down the debt, The Banner reports officials are considering raising the price of school lunches, beginning with a 30 cent increase next year, due to rising food prices and labor costs.
Talia Richman, an education reporter for The Banner, told 海角社区app that school officials have said that students qualifying for free or reduced lunch would not be affected.
鈥淭he district says, if we don’t do this, there could be real consequences. They might have lower quality meals,鈥� Richman said. 鈥淭he wait times for meals might be longer. They might have to get rid of breakfast at some campuses.鈥�
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