Vermilion School Board approves meal program to benefit schools around Parish

At the regular Vermilion Parish School Board meeting on Thursday, July 16, 2015, the board approved to apply for and implement the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) this coming school year for qualifying schools.
These schools include Eaton Park Elementary, Herod Elementary, Jesse Owens Elementary, Kaplan Elementary, and Seventh Ward Elementary.
“Not only will all students get to eat free meals at the CEP schools, but the parents do not have to complete the meal benefits application,” said Amy Fremin, Child Nutrition Supervisor. “That entire process is eliminated with this program.”
The CEP program is an authorized part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which also established the recent changes in school meals across the nation. This program is offered through the USDA, and does offer a free breakfast and lunch meal at qualifying schools for every student, every day. One of the guidelines for a qualifying school includes at least a 40-percent enrollment of “identified” students (students receiving the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, students classified as homeless, migrant or in foster care) at the individual school site.
The Superintendent of the Vermilion Parish School Board, Jerome Puyau, expressed enthusiasm with the implementation of this program.
“This will be a great opportunity for the students and their families,” Puyau said. “We will also continue to look at the remaining schools throughout the district and add other schools when they have met all of the guidelines.”
If a school is not a CEP school, parents must complete a Family Meal Benefits Application every year to receive free and reduce priced meals. Every student at a non-CEP school will receive an application on the first day of school to be completed and returned as soon as possible. To get your free and reduce priced meals easier and faster, go to www.applyforlunch.com to complete an application.