No school, no problem: Utah's summer meal programs address student food insecurity
While many students look forward to the end of the school year and the start of summer break, roughly 17% of Utah children who suffer from food insecurity may worry more about where their food will come from without access to school lunch.
To help children and families meet nutritional needs over the break, the Utah State Board of Education's Child Nutrition Program administers more than a dozen federal food programs working together to feed low-income children. Free meals will be available through these programs at over 300 locations combined at schools, libraries, parks and community centers this summer. The locations are spread across the state, with close to 30 locations in Salt Lake City, 18 in Ogden and 40 throughout Utah County.
Several school districts will participate in the Utah Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Option, which provide free meals to children 18 and younger and offer low-cost meals for adults. Children must be present to collect their meals and eat at the site, but some take-home items like fruit may be provided. Most meal sites will be closed on state holidays, including Juneteenth, Fourth of July and Pioneer Day.
'I think there is a great need,' said Sheldon Moore, field supervisor for the Child Nutrition Program. 'Most of the kids rely on our breakfast and lunch meals during (the) school year. When school is out, they still need to be fed ... so this program actually bridges the gap in the summer months to make sure that our kids are still fed.'
Salt Lake City School District will provide free lunches at the Salt Lake City Public Library, local elementary schools and parks between June 4 and Aug. 9. Free breakfast will also be provided at participating schools when summer school is in session. Visit the Salt Lake City School District website for site-specific hours and schedules.
Granite School District will provide free lunches at 14 locations in West Valley City, Magna, Kearns, Taylorsville and Salt Lake City on weekdays from June 9 to Aug.1. Adult meals at these locations will be $3.50 each. The school district also plans to host a summer meals kickoff celebration to provide free barbecue and games on June 10. Details on participating locations, schedules and menus are available on their website here.
Davis School District will serve free lunches at 15 schools across the district on Mondays through Thursdays from June 2 to July 23. Lunch is available from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and adults eat for $4.25 per meal. The full list of participating locations is available here.
Alpine School District will offer free lunch and breakfast for children at several schools this summer. Adults can join their children for breakfast for $3 or lunch for $5. The summer meal schedule for June, with locations and menu options, is available on the school district's Facebook page.
Utah's child nutrition programs served 68,530 free summer meals in the Salt Lake City School District in 2024, according to Moore.
'That just shows you, just (in this) district, how many kids this program impacted. Then, if you throw in everybody else just around us, you can see how much this program is needed,' said Moore.
A cumulative list of organizations participating in Utah summer meals and their operating dates can be found here.
The board of education announced on Tuesday that the SUN Meals program will also be returning to Utah this summer to offer free meals and snacks. The federally funded program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provides food to low-income children age 18 and under who qualify for reduced-price or free lunch at various locations in their communities.
School meal programs reported nearly 200,000 students were determined eligible for free or reduced-priced school meals in 2024, according to reports from the Child Nutrition Program.
Most locations are congregate meal sites, meaning students must be present to receive their meal — rather than have a parent pick it up — and must eat at the site. In rural communities where it may be more difficult to travel to a meal site, the program also offers meals at noncongregate sites for pickup and delivery through SUN Meals-to-go.
SUN Meals programs are being offered in addition to the SUN Bucks or Summer EBT program, which provides $120 per child in households that receive assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Medicaid. Households with children receiving reduced or free lunch or already enrolled in these programs will be automatically enrolled in SUN Bucks.
'It's important for our Utah students to have access to healthy and nutritious meals, not only when they're in the classroom, but when they're out of the classroom, as well,' said Sharon Turner, director of public affairs for the Utah State Board of Education. 'So, the SUN bucks and SUN meals programs will provide different ways and methods where they can have access to that.'
SUN Bucks funds are scheduled to be dispersed in June this year. For more information or to apply to the program, visit the Department of Workforce Services website here.
A map of locations that offer SUN Meal services throughout the summer is available on the U.S. Department of Agriculture website. While information for the state is not on the website yet, it is updated every Friday, and Utah-specific updates will be added by the end of May and June, according to the Utah State Board of Education.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Black America Web
an hour ago
- Black America Web
The Disrespect: Trump Disregards Juneteenth, Says US Has ‘Too Many Non-Working Holidays'
Source: MANDEL NGAN / Getty Black MAGA, y'all alright? Donald Trump has once again shown us who he is, the most un-American, unproductive, and unapologetically divisive figure ever elected to the highest office in the land, who has the audacity to complain about 'non-working' holidays—namely, Juneteenth. On Thursday (Jun 19), as Black Americans celebrated Juneteenth, commemorating the end of chattel slavery in the United States, Trump didn't issue a statement, attend an event, or offer even a hollow gesture of recognition. Instead, he took to his communication platform, Truth Social, to complain that America has 'too many non-working holidays,' intentionally ignoring one of the most historically significant dates for our community. 'Too many non-working holidays in America. It is costing our Country $BILLIONS OF DOLLARS to keep all of these businesses closed,' Trump said Thursday on Truth Social without explicitly mentioning Juneteenth. Allow me to say the quiet part out loud: This wasn't an oversight; it was an intentional and calculated decision to disrespect. While Trump spent the holiday doing nothing, former President Joe Biden spent the day honoring Juneteenth at the exact site where Union soldiers arrived in 1865 to inform more than 250,000 enslaved people of their freedom, Reedy Chapel AME Church in Galveston, Texas. It's a stark contrast moment that shows the difference between honoring American history and actively trying to erase it. According to the White House, Trump had initially planned to sign a proclamation recognizing Juneteenth, but that plan was quietly scrapped without explanation after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed the administration was 'working 24/7' before dismissing the need for a Juneteenth proclamation altogether. 'I'm not tracking his signature on a proclamation today,' she said. 'I know this is a federal holiday.' What's more disrespectful is that this is the same administration that uses Black people as props while refusing to protect Black life or recognize Black history. Whether it's photo ops with Black pastors, staged roundtables with cherry-picked community 'leaders,' lying on us with fake stats, or parading out HUD Secretary Scott Turner for cover, Trump's playbook is always the same: surround yourself with Black faces while ignoring Black voices. And let's talk directly to the 30% of Black voters who proudly say they support Trump. This is what you're co-signing—a man who weaponizes the Black struggle when it suits his narrative and ignores it when it requires decorum. Trump claims to have 'made Juneteenth famous' in 2020, as if generations of Black Americans haven't been celebrating the day with parades, cookouts, and sacred remembrance for over a century, only to pretend a few years later that it doesn't matter—and that's the bigger issue. Trump's rejection of Juneteenth isn't just disrespectful; it's part of a much larger and more dangerous pattern by an elderly man who's waging war on DEI initiatives, rewriting curriculum to exclude critical race theory, and gutting federal protections for Black workers. And let's not forget, Trump had no problem announcing two new holidays, Victory Days for both world wars — including one that already exists as Veterans Day, but Juneteenth is suddenly too costly, because it's too Black. It's clear that Trump's disregard for Juneteenth is not about the number of holidays, but instead about denying the truth of America's past to protect the illusion of its innocence and solidifying to his base that acknowledging Black liberation is optional. Deepak Sarma, inaugural distinguished scholar in the public humanities at Case Western Reserve University, told HuffPost that Trump's reversal on Juneteenth this year shows that his political strategies embrace 'cruelty,' and that he employed a 'bait-and-switch' in an attempt to woo Black supporters; noting that Trump is 'appealing only to his MAGA constituents, many of whom were covert, and now are overt, racists,' and he has discarded the concerns of his Black supporters. 'This is consistent with his Machiavellian political philosophy, which embraces deception, cruelty, and immorality to achieve his selfish goals,' Sarma told the publication. '[Rejecting] DEI, embracing pro-life, utilizing ICE, are all ways to cater to MAGA voters.' Since the beginning of his second term, Trump has done more to dismantle Black progress than almost any president in modern history. From banning DEI programs to banning books about Black history, his record speaks louder than his silence ever could. So yes, Trump's refusal to acknowledge Juneteenth is disrespectful; it's also entirely on brand, serving as a reminder that his presidency is built on white grievance, historical revisionism, and the suppression of truth. SEE ALSO: Thanks To Donald Trump, The American Dream Is Dead Donald Trump, Executive Overreach, And Project 2025's Blueprint SEE ALSO The Disrespect: Trump Disregards Juneteenth, Says US Has 'Too Many Non-Working Holidays' was originally published on Black America Web Featured Video CLOSE
San Francisco Chronicle
4 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Photos: S.F. Juneteenth Parade a joyful celebration of Black freedom and heritage
The third annual San Francisco Juneteenth Parade enlivened Market Street on Sunday with an array of floats and performers, united by the theme of Black pride. A dozen block parties were in full swing through the duration of the parade, from the Embarcadero to Civic Center. The parties featured children's activities, a car show, games, giveaways, line dancing, musical performances and dances. San Francisco's parade was one of many events around the Bay Area this month celebrating Juneteenth, the day in 1865 when slaves in Galveston, Texas, learned of their emancipation more than two years earlier. President Joe Biden declared June 19 a federal holiday four years ago, though his successor, President Donald Trump, did not sign a proclamation celebrating Juneteenth this year. Trump, who has sought to end diversity, equity and inclusion policies nationwide, has said the U.S. has 'too many non-working holidays' and that they harm the economy. Regardless, the mood was celebratory and upbeat Thursday during the Hella Juneteenth Festival at the Oakland Museum of California, where hundreds of people enjoyed live music, food and drinks while acknowledging the added significance of the holiday this year under Trump. Last weekend, San Francisco's Fillmore neighborhood celebrated Juneteenth with a party spanning eight blocks featuring performers, vendors, games and a fashion show.
New York Post
5 hours ago
- New York Post
With border now secure, US needs to boost legal immigration to strengthen economy, workforce, study finds
President Trump and Congress should approve new laws to boost legal immigration to strengthen the US economy and workforce in the coming decades now that the border is secure, a new study said. 'Immigrants are likely to be more valuable than ever in achieving higher economic growth over the next several decades,' according to analysis by the right-leaning group Unleash Prosperity. The report recommends increasing the overall quota for annual immigration entries and expanding visas for high-tech foreign workers via the H-1B visa program. 6 President Trump and Congress should approve new laws to boost legal immigration to strengthen the US economy and workforce, according to the study. Christopher Sadowski It also calls for expanding visas that allow companies to hire foreigners for seasonal work. 'Due to profound demographic changes in the United States, expanding visas for programs ranging from high-tech H-1B workers, to seasonal H-2B workers, to EB-5 investor immigrants, combined with an increase in the overall quota for annual immigrant entries will benefit the U.S. economy,' the study insisted. Doing so will counter the demographic cycle of fewer young Americans entering the workforce and more Baby Boomers retiring and exiting the workforce. 6 The study calls for expanding visas that allow companies to hire foreigners for seasonal work. AFP via Getty Images The study, co-authored by Richard Vedder, Matthew Denhart and Stephen Moore, comes as the Trump administration continues its crackdown on illegal immigration by tightening enforcement at the southern border and detaining and deporting illegal immigrants. Unleashed Prosperity was co-founded by Moore, an economic adviser who helped craft President Trump's and the GOP's 'Tax Cuts and Jobs Act' of 2017, which expires at year's end. Other co-founders include Steve Forbes, chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media and former Republican candidate for president; economist Arthur Laffer and free market analyst Phil Kerpen. 6 The study comes as the Trump administration continues its crackdown on illegal immigration by tightening enforcement at the southern border. Getty Images It has received funding from heavy hitters, including Fred Smith, the founder of FedEx, who died over the weekend at age 80, the company said. Moore praised the Trump administration's actions that have ended massive border jumping and illegal immigration, making it timely to talk about expanding legal immigration. 'The reason why we did the study is the border is secure. There's a right way and a wrong way to do immigration. Americans will be supportive of doing it the right way,' he said Sunday. 6 Moore praised the Trump administration's actions that have ended massive border jumping and illegal immigration. AFP via Getty Images The report cited data justifying the need to significantly raise legal immigration quotas: Immigrants of working age are more likely to be employed than native-born Americans — 65% compared to 60%. Immigrants account for half the growth of the workforce over the past decade, and more are of prime working age than American-born residents. Nearly half of all Fortune 500 companies in America were founded by immigrants or the children of immigrants. Three of the 'Magnificent Seven' American tech companies were born in other nations: Elon Musk of Tesla, X and SpaceX was born in South Africa; Sundar Pichai, born in India, is the CEO of Alphabet (Google); and NVIDIA leader Jensen Huang came from Taiwan. Over the 20-year period 2020-2040, all of the net growth of the American labor force will be attributable to immigrant workers. 6 Immigrants of working age are more likely to be employed than native-born Americans — 65% compared to 60%. Post. 'Over the past decade, immigrants have filled nearly 40% of the new jobs in America. It would be hard to argue this has displaced Americans from jobs, because the unemployment rate has remained relatively low,' the authors said. Since 1994, the proportion of foreign-born workers in the labor force nearly doubled, to 18.6% in 2023. In recent decades, the US has had higher economic growth rates than Western Europe and Canada, the report said. 6 Since 1994, the proportion of foreign-born workers in the labor force nearly doubled, to 18.6% in 2023. Getty Images 'The extraordinary increase in productive resources — disproportionately immigrants — has given the United States a competitive edge,' the report said. The report notes the declining birth rate in the US. Women averaged giving birth to more than three children in the 1960s, now they average fewer than two. That's not enough to maintain the population absent more international migration, the report said. 'Modern-day America was founded and settled by immigrants. They turned a largely uninhabited and poor land into a thriving large nation of unprecedented wealth and accomplishment. Our nation's ability to absorb immigrants historically has proven rapid and unique among nations,' the report said. The Trump administration's goal to grow the economy by 3% a year over the next decade will be difficult to achieve without an ample influx of immigrants to compensate for an aging American-born population, the authors said.
