Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Read this report-from Mass Law Reform Institute
Denying Food and Shaming Children: Unpaid School Meal Policies in Massachusetts
"When a child has no money in his/her meal account and no money in hand to pay, school districts use various practices which are, presumably, intended to shame the parents but that actually humiliate and punish the child. These include: dumping a child’s lunch tray into the trash and instead serving a cheap sandwich in place of the hot meal; prohibiting students from participating in any school related extracurricular activities (sports, field trips, plays); withholding report cards or other documents from the family; and other practices involving children in the pursuit of debt, which may well violate Massachusetts Debt Collection laws. School meal debt—something a child has no control over—becomes a badge of shame that unnecessarily creates a stigma with peers and undermines academic achievement. Meal shaming punishes a child whose family may be facing significant economic challenges and hardships."
Link to full report
http://www.mlri.org/uploads/48/1f/481f9f9228712df0601b29be77ad90dc/MLRI-School-Meal-Debt-Report-March-2018.pdf
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