Free Lunches Added For Hart County Charter School Students

You’ve probably heard the expression, “There’s no free lunch.”

Well if you’re a student in Hart County, there is.

Breakfast and lunch will be available to all Hart County Charter System students for free this upcoming school year.

The Hart County Charter System is participating in a Free Breakfast and Lunch program for the 2024-2025 school year.

All students enrolled in Hart County Charter schools may participate in the School Breakfast Program and the National School Lunch Program at no cost.

Household applications are not required to receive meals.

“We are so excited for the opportunity to continue serving a variety of healthy and
delicious meals for breakfast and lunch, and to now be able to do that at no cost
to our students and their families,” said Courtney Hart, Director of Nutrition. We
hope that this will ease the financial burden on families while fueling our students
for success!”

Breakfast and lunch menus, as well as other forms and information, can be found on the Hart County Charter School District’s website at www.hart.k12.ga.us.

In May, Franklin County School Superintendent Melanie Burton-Brown announced that all Franklin County students will also be receiving free lunches in addition to free breakfasts in the 2024-2025 school year.

Burton-Brown added that the free lunches will eliminate the bookkeeping of those students who have not paid for their lunch or owe money.

The free breakfast and lunch program for all students falls under the USDA’s CEP program or Community Eligibility Provision.

According to the USDA’s website, the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) is a non-pricing meal service option for schools and school districts in low-income areas.

CEP allows the nation’s highest-poverty schools and districts to serve breakfast and lunch at no cost to all enrolled students without collecting household applications.

Parents in Hart County who need more information can contact Courtney Hart, Director of Nutrition, at [email protected] or 706-856-7294 and should follow Hart County Charter System School Nutrition on Facebook for information updates.