Education Leaders of Color Applauds New Bill to Eliminate Child Hunger

Yesterday, the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor took a major step forward in the effort to ensure that hunger is no longer a barrier to thriving for millions of children across the country by approving and advancing the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act. The bill aims to address long-standing inequities in food security, exacerbated by the pandemic, which have disproportionately impacted the academic success of children of color. Angelica Solis-Montero, Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) Chief Policy Officer, issued the following statement in response:

“As an organization seeking to ensure that young people of color have the support they need to thrive, capitalize on opportunities, and build generational wealth, we seized the opportunity to partner with our members with deep expertise in food security to offer the House Committee on Education and Labor a host of recommendations for this bill. We thank our members for their hard work on this issue so far, and we are thrilled to see many of our recommendations reflected in the final version of the bill.

“We also applaud the House committee members for engaging with us and other organizations who understand the compounding challenges food insecurity presents for children of color because we are closely connected to their communities as teachers, mentors, advocates, advisors, school administrators and more.

“Among its many important provisions, The Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act expands access to school meals; preserves the future of school meal programs by increasing the reimbursement rate for lunch by 10 cents and providing commodity support to the School Breakfast Program; expands WIC eligibility to age six; authorizes the Summer EBT Program at $75 per month per child for eligible households; improves school meal capacity and sustainability by providing grants to purchase kitchen equipment, supporting farm to school programs, and incentivizing scratch cooking; and expands food access for those experiencing homelessness or in emergency shelters by increasing the eligible age of reimbursement for these individuals from 18 to 25. 

“Aligned with a core value to go beyond education and leverage cross-sector collaboration among diverse leaders to create solutions for communities of color, EdLoC has taken additional steps to foster access to healthier, sustainable food that young people need to have the chance to learn and thrive. 

“In partnership with No Kid Hungry, EdLoC will award one-time grants ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 to activate partnerships intended to advance community-driven food security strategies and culturally-adapted interventions that aim to increase access to and/or availability of safe, nutritious, and acceptable food. 

“And, last month, EdLoC joined a diverse group of education, nutrition, and disabilities’ rights organizations in sending a letter to President Biden calling for an additional topic - the role schools play in addressing student hunger - to be addressed at the upcoming White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. The full letter is available here.

“At EdLoC, we believe that it is imperative to recognize the complexity of the challenges facing our children and families, so that we can advance multiple strategies and innovations that ensure continuing economic advancement for low-income and underrepresented children and their families. To that end, we look forward to remaining engaged on the food security issue until hunger is no longer a factor in a child’s ability to succeed in school and life.”