|Photo by Emma Delk| Marshall County Schools Child Nutrition Director Debbie Derico poses with food items included in the Board of Education's free summer meal boxes.

The Marshall County Board of Education’s on-site summer meal program will kick off in June to provide students with free, nutritious meals outside the classroom.

In addition to the on-site meal program, the BOE also offers free meal boxes that are delivered directly to students by mail. Children cannot participate in both on-site meal services and home-delivered meal kits.

The federally funded Summer Food Service Program is open to all children 18 and under. Registration is not required for on-site meals, which must be eaten at the designated locations.

The on-site meals will be served at the following locations:

– John Marshall High School: Breakfast from 8:30-9 a.m. and lunch from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, June 2 to June 19.

– Grand Adventures Leadership Camp at Grand Vue Park Pool (satellite meals only): Breakfast from 8-9:30 a.m. and lunch from noon to 12:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, June 23 to August 8.

– Central Elementary School: Breakfast from 8-8:30 a.m. and lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., Mondays and Fridays on June 23 and June 27, and Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from June 24 to July 24.

– John Marshall High School Strings Program (satellite meals only): Breakfast from 8-8:30 a.m., Monday through Thursday, July 14 to July 17 (no lunch service).

Home-delivered summer meal kits are available from June 1 to August 3 for students in the attendance areas of Cameron Elementary and High, Sand Hill, Washington Lands, Hilltop and Sherrard Middle schools.

MCS Child Nutrition Director Debbie Derico encourages any students in the county to attend the on-site summer meal program, and those who qualify for the meal kits to sign up.

“I have parents tell me that they don’t want to take away the food from somebody else, but that is not how these programs work,” Derico noted. “The more students we have, the merrier, so we want everybody who qualifies to get the benefits.”

While anyone can attend the on-site meals, Derico stressed that only students who attend one of the six schools designated as “rural” based on USDA Summer Feeding Program guidelines can use the meal kit service.

“The schools eligible for the program are defined by USDA Summer Feeding guidelines, so if a student goes to Sand Hill, for example, they receive that benefit,” Derico said. “Unfortunately, if they attend John Marshall, because it hasn’t been designated as rural, the students do not meet the guidelines.”

Parents must register by Thursday each week to receive next week’s meal kit. Parents must sign up for every week they want to receive the meal kit.

The shelf-stable box will be prepared and shipped directly to the child’s home each week. The meal box will contain food items for seven breakfasts and lunches, including 112 oz. of shelf-stable milk. Meals and snacks will meet the meal compliance USDA Summer Feeding Program guidelines.

Derico added that all the items included in the summer meal kits will also meet the new food dye regulations for school lunches signed into law by Governor Patrick Morrisey.

“The new synthetic food dye regulations do not start until Aug. 1, but all the food items I am using for summer food programs will still meet those regulations,” Derico said. “We’ll have a pink lemonade and blue raspberry applesauce that will use different fruit dyes, but none of the seven banned dyes. Some of our other local food suppliers, like United Dairy for our milk, have already changed to meet the new requirements.”

Derico noted that another meal program that benefits low-income families with school-aged children during the summer months is the WV Department of Education and WV Department of Health and Human Resources Summer EBT Benefits. Each eligible child receives a one-time benefit of $120.

“I’m getting a lot of calls about the Summer EBT Benefits, but it is a program through the Department of Health and Human Resources, not the board of education,” Derico noted. “If a family has a child in our school system and meets income guidelines, they can receive $120 per child. I want families to know that the program is also available.”

Derico said parents can visit the county website at www.boe.mars.k12.wv.us to learn more about the Summer EBT Benefits program.

Derico noted the importance of the on-site meal program and summer meal kits in providing students with nutritious meals during the summer. She added that many families take advantage of the programs, with about 200 attendees at every on-site meal and over 400 students currently signed up for the meal kits.

“We have always used the motto in Marshall County that hunger does not take a summer vacation, so we want our feeding programs to be available to our students during the summer,” Derico said. “Their nutritional needs do not stop just because school is out, so we want to offer any programs and provide information for any available. We want to help our children continue to grow and learn through the summer.”

To sign up or learn more about the summer meal kits, visit www.boe.mars.k12.wv.us. For additional details about the program, contact Derico at 304-843-4448.