Lewis County C-1 School District
Questions & Answers Regarding Recent Policy Change on Delinquent Student Accounts
This document is being provided to address questions posed by our community members and concerned citizens of the Lewis County C-1 School District. The majority of the questions, concerns, and scrutiny aimed at Highland originated from Facebook comments in response to the MEMO shared by the district announcing a change in policy regarding student account balances and the impacts on student privileges.
It is important to note that many of the comments posted in response to the MEMO are not even from Lewis County C-1 tax paying community members. Additionally, it appears that several of the comments were made without reading the MEMO and were instead reactions to other’s comments. Finally, some of the information provided in the comments is not factual and/or references things that don’t really apply to this policy change.
History, background and information regarding excessive student account balances
The district’s recent policy change is one part of an overall effort to reduce excessive student account balances. These excessive student account balances are defined to include a total student balance of $50 or more in combination of all fees owed. While student lunch accounts are included, the excessive student account balances also include fines/fees owed for lost books, not returning school uniforms/equipment, restitution for vandalism/damaged property. This school year, district employees have been accosted (yelled and cussed at) by parents exclaiming, “we will not pay…” for property damage and/or lunch balances caused or accrued by their children. Due to the fact that most of these other fees are more disciplinary and student identifiable in nature, the district must limit details to protect the children’s identity. Therefore, I will provide information on what the majority of the Facebook comments have focused upon: Student Lunch Accounts.
About 5-6 years ago, the district had excessively high student lunch account balances. The LCC-1 School Board offered a 1-time opportunity for families to eliminate or greatly reduce existing lunch account balances by applying for free and reduced lunch status. Those who did and were approved for Free or Reduced had their accounts zeroed out. Those who applied and were not approved had their accounts cut in half and were to make payments on the rest. This effort drastically reduced the delinquent accounts to a much more manageable amount.
During the COVID pandemic all students were eligible for a free breakfast and lunch on school days due to federal relief funding. Once the relief funding stopped providing free meals, schools across the country, including Lewis County C-1, saw free and reduced applications/enrollment reduce from pre-pandemic levels -- meaning less people were and are receiving free and reduced meal status than prior to the pandemic. Despite efforts to get people to apply and understand that not only does being approved help the family, but also the school district with additional funding opportunities, there are still families that have not applied and probably do qualify to be on Free and Reduced Lunches. (*The process to apply for Free and Reduced Lunch status has been greatly simplified as it can be done online through the parent portal to TeacherEase.)
Now admittedly, there are several who believe that school meals should always be free to students; however, there are also those who don’t feel their tax dollars should be used to pay for other kids' meals. To provide context and understanding to what providing free meals means for just the Lewis County C-1 School District, the total expenditures for running our food service program in the 2023-24 School Year (last year) was $590,061.65. That is over half a million dollars, and even if you account for all of the revenues generated through federal/state reimbursement and from paid meals, the district had an operating loss in Food Service of $94,986.01.
While caring and compassionate community members have mentioned donations to help cover the delinquent meal balances, most probably expect this amount to be in the hundreds of dollars owed. However, at the date/time the MEMO about the policy change was shared with the community the delinquent account totals for each building were as follows:
Highland Elementary School = $10,998.15
(64 individual meal accounts owing over $20, with the highest balances being nearly $900)
Highland High School = $11,224.82
(46 individual meal accounts owing over $20, with the highest balances being nearly $1,000)
Notably, in less than 18 hours from the publishing of the MEMO about the policy change, the district already received additional Free and Reduced lunch applications that led to 5 student accounts getting zeroed out for a removal of over $1,000 from the above totals! The more people who apply and get approved for free and reduced meals will lead to an even bigger decrease in the totals owed.
A lot of comments reference “A La Carte” and suggest that it is the reason for the excessive balances. First and foremost, let me explain our past policy and where this district currently sits on the A La Carte line. The district's current policy states that students cannot charge any extras (A La Carte, extra milk, extra entrees, etc.) if a student owes $20 or more. Highland Elementary does not even have A La Carte items as an option - this only exists at the high school. While several have suggested this is the cause of the high balances, that argument doesn’t really seem to track. Admittedly, prior to this school year, our old Student Information System allowed us to shut off the ability for individual students to charge extras to their accounts based on parent request or if they were over a certain amount. The old Student Information System discontinued their program, and schools were forced to find a new vendor by this school year. Highland’s new system does not currently have a feature to allow us to turn the charging off or set limits for extras. This has introduced a new hurdle for the district to maneuver; however, our $20 charging limit still applies. If a student continues charging extras after exceeding the $20 limit, they will first be individually warned by an administrator in a private setting (not singling the student out in front of their peers). At that point, if a student continues to ignore the warning and charges for extras it will be deemed as a disciplinary situation. Parental help with this problem will go a long way to deter students from charging things they are not supposed to be charging.
This may lead the average person to ask, “OK, so how do the lunch account balances get so high then?” Well, contrary to the many comments suggesting the school will not let a child eat at school or provide a meal if their parents haven’t paid their account, Highland does indeed feed every student who comes through the school lunch line with one hot tray. Many community members may remember when they were in school having an alternative meal (usually peanut butter and jelly sandwiches) that were provided for free to students who had negative lunch balances. Quite simply, Highland does not currently force a child to take an alternative meal because legislation over the years has changed and requires every meal that is served to meet federal standards to be considered a “Credible Meal.” Consequently, if a student were to receive an alternate meal, they would still be charged the same fee as if they received a regular hot tray meal. This leads to issues of students being singled out among their peers and getting charged the same amount, SO WE DO NOT REQUIRE ALTERNATE TRAYS. Additionally, lunch account balances, by federal regulations, are to be carried over from year to year, so they continue to accumulate if a parent never pays them down.
In past years, the practice of many schools was to hold a student’s diploma until all fees were paid upon graduation. This was the policy when I attended high school in the 80’s; however, this is not legal and so Highland DOES NOT HOLD A STUDENT’S DIPLOMA if they graduate owing a balance. By the same token, the school really has no leverage to collect debt once a student is no longer a student of the district. While some have suggested suing those individuals to get the money, the truth is that in most cases the cost associated with a lawsuit would outweigh the benefits of getting the debt paid.
The district administration is currently working with school attorneys and the Missouri School Boards Association to formulate the actual policy language, as well as working with OPAA to address ways to remedy student charging issues. The practice of impacting student privileges as shared in the MEMO is a practice shared by many school districts. The district is also seeking legal advice on how to handle the issue of equitable distribution of donations for meal account balances.
The following is an attempt to answer the questions asked through Facebook comments made in response to the MEMO that was shared. Many of the questions are answered above but below will be an attempt to address the specific questions asked and to provide factual responses to comments that contain false or misleading information or reference things that are irrelevant to this policy change.
Q1: How much is currently owed in overdue lunch accounts?
A1: As of the date the memo was released, the district had an outstanding balance of $22,222.97 in delinquent student lunch accounts (owing $20 or more per individual student). The growing deficit impacts the district’s ability to continue providing meals without long-term financial consequences.
Q2: What are current meal prices and how much does eating lunch at school cost for an entire year?
A2: As adopted by the board of education on July 18, 2024, and to stay in compliance with federal mandates to increase meal prices annually with an eventual goal of reaching the same cost as what the federal government reimburses for free meals, the following are the costs for meals at Highland for the 2024-2025 school year:
Elementary School Students:
Lunch: $2.75 per tray
Breakfast: $1.45
Extra Milk: $0.50
High School Students:
Lunch: $3.00 per tray
Breakfast: $1.45
Extra Milk: $0.50
The 2024-2025 academic calendar includes 177 student attendance days. Therefore, if a student purchased lunch every school day, the total cost for the year would be:
Elementary Student: $2.75 x 177 days = $486.75
High School Student: $3.00 x 177 days = $531.00
*These figures are for lunch only and do not include breakfast or extra purchases such as milk, juice or a la carte items. Breakfast, regardless of building, would be $1.45 x 177 = 256.65 per student for the entire year. Families should add the breakfast and lunch amount to get the total if their child eats breakfast and lunch every day. Also, families with multiple children should multiply these amounts accordingly to estimate their total annual meal expenses.
Q3: Will students still receive meals even if their accounts have an outstanding balance?
A3: Yes. Children are not denied a meal at Highland. The district continues to provide full meals to all students, regardless of their account status. The policy is focused on addressing unpaid balances through other means, such as limiting non-essential privileges, rather than affecting meal access. Additionally, all kids can eat as much of the fruits and vegetables as they wish without incurring additional charges!
Q4: How can a student with free or reduced lunch status incur meal charges?
A4: Even if a student qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, additional charges can occur in several ways:
Extra Purchases: Items like a second milk, juice, extra entrées, or snacks from the A La Carte menu are not covered under the free/reduced program and will result in additional charges.
Second Meals: If a student goes back for a second meal, this is considered an extra purchase and is not covered by the program.
Home Lunch Supplements: Students bringing a sack lunch from home who subsequently purchase milk, or other items separately will be charged, as these are not part of the standard free meal.
Non-Lunch Charges: Students who lose books, damage/vandalize school property, or refuse to return school uniforms/equipment will be charged. These fees will be added to the meal balances for the purpose of the new policy setting “Excessive Fee Balances” at $50 before student privileges are suspended. Even in these cases, students will still receive a hot tray meal at the established price.
It's important for parents to monitor their child's meal purchases and other fees assessed to avoid unexpected charges or increasing balances due. It is also important to note that students are allowed to eat as much of the fruits and vegetables as they wish without incurring additional charges. Plus, the elementary offers a “share table” so the elementary kids are able to eat additional prepackaged components that other students are not going to eat.
Q5: How will the district handle situations where students have unpaid balances exceeding $50?
A5: According to the recent policy changes approved by the board of education, students with unpaid fees exceeding $50 may face restrictions on certain non-essential activities, such as participation in field trips or extracurricular events. However, the district ensures that no student is denied access to essential services, including regular meals. Families are encouraged to communicate with the district to discuss payment plans or explore assistance programs to manage outstanding balances.
Q6: Does the district offer alternative meal options for students with negative account balances?
A6: The district is committed to ensuring that all students receive nutritious meals, regardless of their account status. Currently, students are provided with the standard meal offerings even if their accounts have negative balances. The district does not implement alternative meals as a consequence of unpaid balances.
Q7: Why is the district implementing a policy that could limit student participation in activities due to unpaid balances?
A7: The district has a responsibility to be fiscally responsible while ensuring that all students receive necessary services. The new policy is intended to encourage timely payment of student accounts while maintaining the district’s ability to provide quality educational experiences for all students. Students will still receive meals, and we are committed to working with families who may need financial assistance.
Q8: Some community members have expressed concerns that this policy punishes students for situations beyond their control. How does the district respond to this?
A8: The district understands that students are not always responsible for unpaid balances. Our goal is not to punish students but to encourage accountability and ensure financial sustainability. We are committed to working with families to set up payment plans or find solutions through available assistance programs.
Q9: Some people have mentioned individuals owing as much as $1,600. How does an account get that high, and what is being done to prevent this?
A9: In some cases, families accumulate large balances due to extended non-payment. Currently, there are no individuals owing over $1,000, but there are a few who are close to this amount. A family with multiple students with large account balances could possibly be at the $1600 amount. The district has implemented measures such as regular notifications and direct outreach to families to prevent balances from growing to such significant amounts. Additionally, families experiencing financial hardship are encouraged to apply for free or reduced-price lunch programs.
Q10: How does the district justify spending on sports and infrastructure, such as the football field, parking lots, and electronic scoreboard instead of covering unpaid lunch debts and implementing policies regarding unpaid student balances?
A10: Funding for facility improvements comes from different sources, namely Capital Improvement funds and grants, which cannot legally be used for operational expenses like meal debt. The district must allocate funds in a way that ensures the long-term sustainability of both our educational programs and facilities. The district has a responsibility to maintain and improve school facilities for the benefit of all students. Investments in infrastructure and athletics are necessary for providing a well-rounded educational experience. These funds are separate from those used for operational costs, such as lunch programs. We also actively seek grants and donations to supplement these projects without affecting the general fund. For example, the district is in the process of building a FEMA Storm Shelter at the elementary campus that will house a dedicated gymnasium space. This project has FEMA covering 90% of the FEMA eligible expenses, therefore saving our local taxpayers a big portion of this expense.
Q11: Why did the district spend taxpayer money on an electric bus instead of using those funds to cover unpaid lunch debts?
A11: Similar to Question 10 above, the funds for school buses come from Capital Improvement funds and grants. The district cannot use these funds for operational expenses and must be designated for Capital Improvements. Furthermore, the electric school bus was purchased, after grants, donations and rebates, for less than the cost of a conventional diesel bus would have cost the district, and it operates at about 20% of the cost of a diesel bus per mile. This saved taxpayers money for transportation expenses. While the electric is currently sidelined, and has been for quite some time, the issue is with an inoperable charging station. Fixing the issue has stalled because of a bankruptcy lawsuit and a federal order to halt the funding of all federal grant programs. The district was approved and slated to get 2 more electric buses this year for a substantially less cost than to purchase a new diesel bus under an EPA grant award, which is also planned to address the charging station issues affecting the use of our current electric bus.
Q12: Are there existing programs or alternatives available for families struggling with lunch balances?
A12: Yes, the district participates in the National School Lunch Program, which offers free or reduced-price meals to eligible families. Eligibility for the program is established by the federal government on an annual basis. Families experiencing financial hardship who are struggling to pay their balances are encouraged to apply for this program to help manage meal costs. Applications are available through the school's administrative offices or the district's website. Additionally, we offer payment plans to help families gradually settle their accounts. Community assistance programs and donations may also help support students in need.
Q13: How can I apply for free or reduced-price meals?
A13: To apply, fill out a Free and Reduced Price School Meals Family Application and return it to your child's school. The information provided on the application is confidential and will be used only for the purpose of determining eligibility. Applications may be submitted any time during the school year. The application process is now more convenient and simpler to complete with the online application available in the parent portal of the TeacherEase App. If you have questions or need assistance with the online application, please contact your building administration office or the district central office.
Q14: What should I do if I believe my child’s free or reduced lunch status has expired without my knowledge?
A14: Eligibility for free or reduced-price meals must be renewed annually. If an application is not submitted and approved each year, the status will expire, and the student will be charged for meals. To prevent this, ensure that you submit a new application at the beginning of each school year. Applications are available at each school office and are also available online now through the parent portal in the TeacherEase App. Applications can be submitted at any time during the school year.
Q15: How can I monitor my child’s meal account balance?
A15: Parents are encouraged to regularly check their child's meal account balance to prevent accumulating unpaid fees. The school district provides an online portal through the TeacherEase App where parents can view balances and transaction histories. If you need assistance accessing this portal, please contact the school office. Additionally, the district sends out text reminders twice a week to all negative meal accounts on Monday and Thursday evenings that specifies the amount the student account is negative.
Q16: How does the district handle funds deposited into student meal accounts?
A16: All funds deposited into student meal accounts are used exclusively for the purpose of providing meals to students. The district does not "pocket" or misappropriate these funds. If there are concerns about account discrepancies, parents are encouraged to contact the school's administrative office to resolve the issue.
Q17: What steps should parents take if they are unaware of their child's account balance or if they believe there has been an error?
A17: Parents are encouraged to regularly monitor their child's meal account to stay informed about any charges. If you have questions or believe there may be an error, please contact your child’s building office during school hours. For those who cannot call during regular hours due to work commitments, reaching out via email is a viable alternative. The school staff is committed to assisting parents in understanding and managing their child's account.
Q18: How does the district handle situations where parents are unable to pay the outstanding balances?
A18: The district understands that financial hardships can occur. Parents facing difficulties are encouraged to communicate with the school to discuss possible solutions. While the policy restricts participation in certain activities for unpaid balances, the district ensures that all students will continue to receive their standard meals. The intention is not to withhold meals but to address the financial sustainability of school programs.
If you're facing financial difficulties, consider the following steps:
Apply for Free or Reduced-Price Meals: If not already enrolled, apply to determine if you qualify for assistance.
Contact the School: Reach out to the school administration to discuss your situation. They may offer payment plans or connect you with community resources to assist with meal payments.
Q19: How can I contact the school to discuss my child’s meal account?
A19: If you have concerns or questions about your child's meal account, please contact the school office during business hours. If your schedule does not permit a phone call during these times, you can email the office with your inquiries, and they will respond as promptly as possible.
By staying informed and proactive, we can work together to ensure that all students have access to nutritious meals and the opportunity to participate fully in school activities.
Q20: How does this policy align with federal guidelines on unpaid meal charges?
A20: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) acknowledges the challenges associated with unpaid meal charges and allows districts to develop local policies to manage them. The Lewis County C-1 School District's policy is designed to balance the need for financial responsibility with the commitment to ensure that all students receive nutritious meals during the school day.
Q21: How can community members contribute to help students with unpaid balances?
A21: The district welcomes and appreciates community support to assist students with unpaid balances. Community members who wish to assist can contribute to programs that help cover unpaid balances or sponsor meals for students in need, but donations can also be made directly to the district and designated specifically for reducing student account debts. To ensure that contributions are allocated appropriately, please contact the district's administrative office at jfrench@lewis.k12.mo.us for guidance on the donation process. The district also welcomes discussions on collaborative solutions that support both families and the school’s financial health. The district will ensure that donated funds are applied to student accounts in need.
Q22: How can the community stay informed about school board decisions and policies?
A22: The district encourages community involvement and transparency. School board meetings are open to the public, and regular monthly meetings are generally scheduled on the second Wednesday of the month. The meeting agendas are physically posted, put on the district's official website and shared through the district’s social media, including Facebook, prior to each meeting in accordance with the Missouri Sunshine Law. Attending these meetings or reviewing the published minutes can provide insights into policy decisions and offer opportunities for community members to voice their concerns or support.
Q23: Where can I find more information about the district's policies and financial decisions?
A23: The district's official website provides access to board meeting agendas, budgets, and other pertinent information. Attending school board meetings and reviewing publicly available documents can offer insights into the district's financial decisions and policies. Link to Lewis County C-1 Policies
The Lewis County C-1 School District values the input of parents and community members and is committed to working collaboratively to support the success and well-being of all students.
For further questions or to discuss payment options, please contact the building or district office via phone or email.