Hunger-Free Schools Ohio: Expand meal access for all now

School meals should be no different than textbooks or transportation services provided to all public school students; they are a basic need for children to learn in school. But, since the end of the pandemic-era programs that provided free school meals for all students in all districts, too many Ohio students are going without the meals they need. On February 20, the Ohio Education Association hosted a virtual press event on behalf of the Hunger-Free School Ohio coalition to call on state lawmakers to expand access to school meals for all. This episode contains excerpts from that panel discussion.

LEARN MORE ABOUT HUNGER-FREE OHIO SCHOOLS| Click here for more information about the Hunger-Free Ohio Schools coalition's work and how you can get involved. 

WATCH THE WHOLE DISCUSSION | Click here to see the full virtual press conference that is featured in this episode, including more from the featured guests, questions from the media, and the message from Ohio House Finance Chair Rep. Jay Edwards on this issue.

READ THE WHITEPAPER| Click here to see the “School Meals Support Ohio Student Health and Learning” white paper from Children's Defense Fund-Ohio.

Featured Education Matters guests: 

Scott DiMauro, Ohio Education Association PresidentKatherine Ungar, Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio Senior Policy Associate who authored CDF-Ohio's recent white paper on the urgent need to expand access to school meals in Ohio.  Lindy Douglas, Special Programs Coordinator, and Daryn Guarino, Director of Food and Nutrition for Alexander Local Schools in Athens County, where school lunch debt has more than doubled this year from pre-pandemic levels.  Josh Kauffman, principal at Bluffton Middle School in Allen County, where students held a bake sale to pay off their classmates’ school meal debt.  Meg Thompson, a parent in the Wellington Exempted School District in Lorain County whose family was denied assistance to access nutritious school meals for their children after benefiting from universal access the year before. 

Connect with OEA:

Email [email protected] with your feedback or ideas for future Education Matters topicsLike OEA on FacebookFollow OEA on TwitterFollow OEA on InstagramGet the latest news and statements from OEA hereLearn more about where OEA stands on the issues Keep up to date on the legislation affecting Ohio public schools and educators with OEA's Legislative Watch

About us:

The Ohio Education Association represents about 120,000 teachers, faculty members and support professionals who work in Ohio’s schools, colleges, and universities to help improve public education and the lives of Ohio’s children. OEA members provide professional services to benefit students, schools, and the public in virtually every position needed to run Ohio’s schools.Education Matters host Katie Olmsted serves as Media Relations Consultant for the Ohio Education Association. She joined OEA in May 2020, after a ten-year career as an Emmy Award winning television reporter, anchor, and producer. Katie comes from a family of educators and is passionate about telling educators' stories and advocating for Ohio's students. She lives in Central Ohio with her husband and two young children.

This episode contains excerpts of virtual press conference that was held live on February 20, 2023.