Tuscaloosa City Schools working toward free breakfast, lunch for all students

By WVUA 23 Student News Reporter Nick Balenger

Students attending Tuscaloosa City Schools will likely head to classes in the fall with one less worry for their parents: What’s for breakfast or lunch. That’s because TCS is eligible for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Community Eligibility Provision program that provides all students in the district free breakfast and lunch.

In Tuscaloosa County, about 22% of children face food insecurity. TCS Superintendent Mike Daria said students can’t focus on learning when they don’t know when they’ll be getting their next meal.

“Our work is teaching and learning,” Daria said. “We believe firmly that we’d like to remove any barriers. If our students are hungry they can’t focus on learning, so this takes care of that for all students across our entire district.”

TCS will still be reimbursed for students who are eligible for free meals.

Daria said it’s not yet a done deal, but because the system is eligible it’s “extremely likely” they will be accepted into the program.