All VISD Students Can Now Eat Breakfast and Lunch for Free

Here is much needed good news for families whose students are enrolled at Victoria Independent School District schools as it was announced today, VISD will start offering FREE breakfast and lunch program for ALL VISD students. 

According to the latest news release through VISD which you can read in its entirety here, " Victoria ISD has been approved to serve free breakfast and lunch to all district students, starting Monday, November 2, 2020, through the end of the 2020-2021 school year, regardless of income eligibility in the free and reduced meal program.

Free breaks and lunch for the remainder of the school year will mean less stress for parents and children.

" Parents will not need to complete a meal benefits application in order for their child to receive free or reduced-priced meals. However, there is still important documentation for parents to provide to the district that will help the district track student demographics and prepare families who will need to qualify in the future. “It is still very important that parents fill out the free and reduced applications this school year,” explained VISD Director of Child Nutrition Services, Dana Bigham. “It will assist income qualifying students at the beginning of the 2021 school year.

The press release further advises families, "If no application is submitted this year, all students qualifying based on income would have to pay for meals on the first day of school instead of having a grace period.”

Why are there now free breakfast and lunch meals available to ALL VISD students?

Elementary students in VISD have been receiving free meals this school year through the US Department of Agriculture’s Community Eligibility Provision program. However, the district’s middle schools and high schools were not included in that program. New guidelines from the Texas Department of Agriculture now allow VISD to expand this option to the middle school and high school campuses.

The free meals are available on campus for students receiving in-person instruction as well as students learning remotely.

YES, THIS BENEFIT INCLUDES STUDENTS LEARNING REMOTELY.

Students receiving remote instruction may pick up meals between 12:45-1:30 each school day outside the cafeteria at either Crain Elementary, Chandler Elementary, or O’Connor Elementary.