This is Happening in Our Schools!!!!!!!!

[Palegroe]

I can't believe this is even imaginable in our schools in 2010 in the United States of America!!!!!

I put the first couple sentinces of the news paper article on here to give you the jest and the link to the whole paper article is at the bottom but I am dumfounded that this is taking place.  I'm sorry but just because the parent doesn't care the school doesn't have to either? Under no circumstance should a child be denied a lunch of the same value as any other child at that school whether it be the parent or childs faults in the United States of America none, no reason. If they want to go after the parents in court fine, if they want to ask for donations fine, if they have to ask for more taxes fine, if they have to cancel ballgames fine, But never deny a child a Lunch at school. I'm sorry but this is just unimaginable to me I can't believe this is even an issue. Next will we allow waterboarding if they do not finish homework?


Some children of parents who, collectively, owe the Henderson County school district about $40,000 in unpaid meal bills are now being served cheese sandwiches for lunch.

And when the local school board meets Monday at 6 p.m., one topic of particular interest to many will be a proposed policy to address this same issue -- namely, how many charges a parent can incur before other procedures, like an alternative meal, are put in place.

The board will hear a proposal that would limit the maximum amount of meal charges at $10 total, and no charging would be allowed for extra or a la carte items. Payment for cumulative charges would be due within 10 days of the first charge.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/jan/23/cheese-lunch/

[CCP]

I'm sorry but this is just unimaginable to me I can't believe this is even an issue. Next will we allow waterboarding if they do not finish homework?

Palegroe, I agree and I cant believe the schools system has come to this. I feel fortunate both my kids are grown and I cant recall anything remotely like this happening to them when they did go to school.

When I was in school there where no choices of extra stuff and everyone got the same meal. If you didn't have the money no one denied you your meal.

[pitw]

This would be all new to me.  Our kids take their lunch to school with them .

[Hawks Feather]

With "Offer verses Served" being used by the Free and Reduced Price Lunch Program a student needs to take at least 3 items to count as a Full lunch.  The cheese sandwich counts as 2 and milk would count as 1.  Technically your child could pay whatever the full price is for a meal and take the exact same items that are being given to a student whose parents have decided that they no longer want to pay.  We had quite a few students that chose to take a cheese sandwich and milk (on days that it was on the menu) and nothing else.  You also can not FORCE any child to eat unless they are on an IEP so any child that would take a cheese sandwich and milk and not eat any of it would not be made to eat it.  I would usually call a parent of kids who chose to throw away their food and was often told that it was none of my business what their child ate.  I would ask them to send me a note to that effect and I would no longer worry.  Some did while others just called the superintendent to complain that I was picking on them.

I have no idea what your district population is but if you really want to see how much support there is for a lunch program, tell them that YOU would like to serve as the leader for a levy, that when passed, would have EVERY child receive a complete free lunch, not a cheese sandwich and milk.  In the building I retired from they had around 275 students and 30% were on free or reduced which left about 190 students that either had to pack or purchase a lunch each day.  For my building your levy for the lunch program would only cost $332.50 a day x 180 school days for a total cost of $59,850 for the year.  (I realize that not every student has a parent who is not sending money, but once they learn that they don't really have to pay they won't.)   The district had around 2400 students, district was 22% free and reduced so 1,872 per day need YOUR levy money, $3,276 per day, and $589,680 for the year.  Good luck with YOUR levy because the school will also be running a levy to pay for the fixed cost increases.  

So, before anyone goes postal, I am not in favor of not feeding children.  In fact I had some kids come in early so that I could give them breakfast - usually cereal or some toast and milk before school because they came to school without any food in their stomach.  Did I call Human Services on these parents, yes I did and not ONE of the kids were ever removed from the house.  Even when the parents knew what I was doing there was not ONE that ever said thanks, but several did send in a note the following year that their child that just started school would also need to be fed breakfast by me - again with no thanks.  The other question that needs to be asked is, "What do these kids eat on Saturday and Sunday?"  Heck, if the parents work and won't even send in money or a sack lunch for their child what are they giving them on the weekend?

Schools are faced with more and more Non-paying parents - lunch fees, book bills, sports fees, any special events, etc.  When the district uses monies for these things there are findings by the Auditors Offices for them not following guidelines.  Then the school district looks like they are not doing what they should be and taxpayers don't want to pass any additional levies because the State has said that they are not following the rules.  

O.K. I am off my complaining kick, but I hope this helps give everyone an idea of what happens on the school's end of this.

Jerry

[Palegroe]

I know the school system is not completly to blame. It is sad that we live in a time where the majority of the population is more worried about the ballteam getting new uniforms than every child getting the opurtunity to eat a good meal while at school.  I don't even have children but guess i am looking forward to my children, when and if I have them, being in a society where food, water, and knowledge is ranked higer than money and dept.  And I will take it own myself to teach them about God.

[FinsnFur]

Our schools did ask for donations. And many of them even closed their doors and merged with other schools in attempt to cut costs.
I know by the middle of last year they were having a really rough time, just like many of us.
None of the schools here gave cheese sandwiches out that I know of. I think here if you fall behind they give you Peanut Butter sandwich.

Either way, I applause their efforts to see that each child is at least fed something. 

[HaMeR]

When I went to school,, yes I still remember  ,, it was the school's responsibility to educate me. Not feed me. That was my Parents role in my life. Now I realize that some folks can't afford as much as others. My Dad raised 5 kids without Mom working. We could of had more but Dad wanted Mom at home & not working. The kids that couldn't always afford to buy a school lunch carried their lunch. We all ate. And nowadays the Parents have decided to allow the school's to raise their kids completely.    I guess I'm just too damn old as the word "parenting" still has meaning to me.

[Hawks Feather]

And nowadays the Parents have decided to allow the school's to raise their kids completely.    I guess I'm just too damn old as the word "parenting" still has meaning to me.

Glen,
Many schools felt that they could do a better job than the parents and it became a downhill slide.  The more the schools took over the more (some, not all) parents were willing to give.  I know far too much about this because I lived it.  While I will always be a fan of "Education from birth till death" that does not mean that it has to be done inside a school building.  The best educators are the parents who are with their child when they are not in school.  One of the best parents and one that I often used as an example for other parents was a single mom living in a low income housing project.  I had walked down the street to a mom and pop place for lunch during the sumer and when I came out I saw the mom and two kids coming toward me on the sidewalk.  They stopped and I asked the kids where they were going.  'Mom is taking us to the library' was the answer.  The housing project was just under a mile from the school and the library was at least another 3/4 of a mile from the school and they were walking.  I asked if they were having something special at the library that day and the kids said, 'Yes, they have books and mommy reads them to us.'  I talked with the mom a few minutes and the kids about ages 6 and 8 at the time were getting tired of standing and were ready to go.  They started off and I was walking along holding hands with the 8 year old when mom said, 'I see something RED' and the game was on.  They needed to guess what she saw.  When they guessed what it was they had to tell what it was used for or what it did.  A tractor/trailer went by and mom asked what trucks did and then they needed to guess what might be inside the trailer.  Then they started counting the blocks on the sidewalk.  She was doing more to enrich her kid's education than most of the parents that lived in the high income section of my attendance area.  I would see them walking several times a week to the library and would go out whenever I saw them going by the building.  I told her that if she ever needed a ride to give me a call, but she said that walking was good for the kids and her.  I told the kid's teachers the following year that they needed to get the mom in as a volunteer - one seemed O.K. with the idea and the other one was a little "assisted living parent shy" or that is a nice name for it.  The teacher that had mom come in started out a couple of hours one day a week and by the end of the first nine weeks the mom was in each morning listening to kids read, doing flash cards, working on math, and many other duties.  She was a blessing to have in the building.  At the end of the year we wanted to do something for her and gave her a credit at the grocery close to the school and a very large box of educational items.  She started using them at the low income complex to work with any kids (free of any charge) during the summer.  Then many afternoons she could again be seen walking her kids to the public library.  She and her kids were there for three years when she got remarried (first husband was a drunk that like to beat her I found out) and they moved to another town.  She came in and thanked me for all I had done for her and her kids and I laughed at her and said that I was the one that needed to be doing the thanking to her for all that she had done for her kids, the school, and the housing project.  If every parent were like her we probably would not need schools.

So Palegroe when you have kids remember the mom above (Dads can do the same thing) and become an educational advocate for your child.  You don't need to wait till they start school.  When you are walking or driving ask them questions and tell them about things that they can see out the windows if you go for a ride.  Many city (even small cities) kids have no idea what a combine is or what it does.  I used to take my girls out "to the country" (about three miles) to watch a farm.  We would go out when they were planting, a few weeks later when the grain stated to grow, then when it was bigger, and finally when the farmer was harvesting the crop.  For small city kids they did pretty well on tests when there were pictures or questions about things not found in the city. 

The main thing is to get involved and stay involved in your kid's life - both in school and out.

Jerry

[pitw]

Jerry that was a great read Thanks . 
  When going with your kids for a drive [1-2,000miles] don't turn on the backseat TV cause it won't teach them squat.  Give them a map and let them navigate[you get to see more]. Play crib with them and I'll guaranty that there math marks will improve.  Spend time as the above story tells cause after all they are yours and who should teach them.

[msmith]

I made a post about 3:00 AM but don't know what happened to it. 

I think the school is going above and beyond by giving them cheese sandwitches. Shoot, a lot of times that's what's in MY lunch. Here lunches are divided into 3 categories, full price, reduced price, and free lunches. What category your kid is in is decided by your income. My wife is the local school nurse and sees that most of the kids who are delinquent on their bill come from families that are in the "full price" category, ie. they CAN pay their bill but don't. The ones that can't, get free lunches anyway. People don't pay because they use their kid as a pity piece knowing that the school just can't stand to see them go hungry. Bills go unpaid for months by people that can afford to pay them, but they don't because they don't have to. When I was in school, you bought your lunch ticket before 1st period. When lunch came, no ticket, no lunch. Yeah, I went hungry a few times, but I didn't die and it taught me to be more dligent about making sure I either had money, and if I didn't, ask mom for lunch money. What are we teaching kids by giving them something for nothing? We are breeding another generation of welfareites. Schools around here are declining in enrollment anyway. With less monies coming in, they don't need to have to absorb the cost of lunches due to a bunch of irresponsible parents.

[Tikaani]

Could not agree with you more Mike, sounds cold but the parents need to be held accountable.  Don't give their kids lunch money but bet you they have a 52" flat screen at the house.  The problem as I see it is that people that really to need a hand up suffer because the lifetime "welfareites" make it harder and harder for giving people to  care.  By the way, good read Jerry

John

[Palegroe]

Hawk Feather I agree whole heartedly with you we do not need to depend on the public school system or any other system to raise our children, that is our responsibility.  You can teach a child something everyday by the ways you have mentioned.  I didn’t learn to change my oil, Sparkplugs, wash my cloths, hunt, clean a gun, drive a tractor, measure the moister of grain or any one of at least a million other things at school.  I feel my parents taught me more than the school system ever could have.  But for those children that there parents are dead beats and just don’t care and won’t take responsibility, I would be ashamed of my self if I didn’t try and help them.  I know there is kids in say 8-12 grades that are pocketing this money and buying sigs and ring tones and I know I’m being a hypocrite a little by saying I’m not worried about them but it’s the children in the elementary schools that can not help them selves and have parents that either don’t care or live above there means that really bother me.  If we can send Hundreds of millions of dollars of supplies to a country thousands of miles away for a natural disaster I feel we can send $40,000 to our local school system to patch up this man made disaster.  I do not blame the school system either they are just trying to work with what they’ve got.  I have lived off of cheese and peanut butter sandwiches and drank water a many a times when that’s all I had in the cabinets when going to college of driving a tractor 16 hours a day but am just surprised that a child not yet of the age of accountability would have to do this.  Feed the children and go after the parents in court if they have to.  If these children of the parents that don’t care are taught this lesson of doing without and nothing is free It could teach them many lessons but I wouldn’t want them to be taught the wrong lesson and the vicious cycle continue.

[CCP]

Maybe I missed something here in the original post?

I took it as some PARENTS didn't pay for their CHILDS lunch so little Johnny (no offense Semp) will have to eat a cheese sandwich so all the other kids can make fun of him because his parents didn't pay the bills. 

I believe a child in public school should not be given less than because their parents dropped the ball.

Jerry I enjoyed your post and agree with most all the others here.

My problem is in reality their are alot of BAD parents and the child's only crime would be being born to bad parents. So do the children of bad parents deserve less??

I also believe some of this stems from paying for lunches for the month. Home in duress and job loss then comes a 20 dollar bill from the school for the month just so it is easier for the school and no money changing hands in the lunch line. We didn't seem to have such a problem when mom and Dad put back 6.25  for the week. Plus I learned to keep up with my 1.25 lunch money and fight to defend it from bully's.

Teaching a kid to be responsible and weary of outsiders were some good things.

[JohnP]

We just recently had a vote for a school budget over ride, which was soundly defeated by a more than 3 to 1 margin.  Not because we are are bunch of stingy mean people but because our school district can't seem to manage the money us tax payers give them.  They replace the schools admin vehicles every two years, but the buses are falling apart.  The principle has four vice principles and each has an assistant and secretary.  The county school director made $90,000 a year and got a $30,000 pay raise shortly before the over ride vote, she now makes $120,000 per year.  Our public school system is a wreck and I for one contribute it to greed on the teachers union and the federal government.   None of our grandkids are in the public school system they are either home schooled or in private school.  The point being that the addtional 30K and the wages of 4 vice principles and their staff could buy a lot of lunches for those that can't afford it.

Palegro you are absolutely correct no American child should ever go hungry or lack medical attention.  We are feeding and providing medical care for kids in third world countries just so they can grow up healthy and strong and make war on our kids.   We should demand more from our government and local school board - but we don't.  

[Hawks Feather]

John,

I would have voted against it too.  I never had a school car, nor does anyone in this district.  I did have a secretary and after 20 years I got her time extended so that she could stay 15 minutes after the kids left rather than 30 minutes before the kids left.  Since I was on the playground directing traffic so the buses could get in it was nice to have someone in the office.  That was paid for by the principals not getting a 1% pay increase like the teacher's got that year and the next.  There are school districts that need to become realistic and also have governing boards that are willing to just say 'no'. 

As for the money given to other countries I agree that it is time to no longer try to buy some other country's support and use that money here.

Jerry

[KySongDog]

  I took it as some PARENTS didn't pay for their CHILDS lunch so little Johnny (no offense Semp) will have to eat a cheese sandwich ...................

I am used to it.  No offense taken.