At its July 10, 2018 meeting, the BKW Schools Board of Education adopted a plan to prohibit lunch shaming. Lunch shaming is any action that, even unintentionally, draws attention to students who do not have money to purchase a meal or whose parents have not paid lunch account balances.
The plan is as follows:
Prohibition against Meal Shaming Plan:
Berne Knox Westerlo will provide any student with a reimbursable meal, if the student requests one.
Charging of items outside of the reimbursable meal (ala carte) is expressly prohibited
Parents may instruct the Meal Program Department to not allow meal charges to a requesting student. This should be done in writing and signed by the parent. The instructions will then be noted on the students account. A parent may change the instruction at any time by contacting the Meal Program Office and retracting the instruction.
Food Service staff will always allow the charging of a reimbursable meal without question unless parental instruction noted on the account states otherwise.
As noted in the Meal Charge Policy, letters are sent out weekly for students with a negative balance on their account.
Accounts notices that do not result in action from the parent may be followed with a phone call to insure they received the information, arrange for a payment plan or to assist with information regarding free/reduced meal availability.
The Meal Programs Office will run DCMP reports at a minimum of bi-monthly and check individual status of incoming students as needed to ensure all eligible students are receiving free meals.
As information becomes available, the Meal Program Staff will reach out to any family experiencing changes that could impact their ability to receive f/r meals.