ECPPS Community Partnerships Broaden Free Meal Services

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has extended a waiver, nationwide, that enables summer meal operators the ability to continue feeding all children free meals. The waivers were slated to expire on August 31; however, the USDA took action to extend the waivers as late as December 31, 2020, to meet the needs of children and families during this unprecedented time. Without the waivers to continue meal services for all children, school districts would have had to limit meal accessibility to enrolled students and there could have been associated costs for families.

ECPPS is committed to providing free meal services for all children in the community. The school district began providing free meal services to families throughout the community in March 2020 as the pandemic began. ECPPS provides free meal services from specific school locations and also partners with other agencies such as Girls Inc., Boys and Girls Club and the Albemarle Area YMCA to provide meals for children in their care.

Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools (ECPPS) is pleased to share that we have added an additional partnership to provide free meal services for students enrolled in the Northeast Academy for Aerospace and Advanced Technologies (NEAAAT). Superintendent Edmonds, along with ECPPS administrative staff, worked closely with Dr. Andrew Harris, NEAAAT CEO, to establish the partnership to provide meals to their students.

Superintendent Edmonds shared, "We are so pleased to have the opportunity to continue feeding children and to ensure this very basic need is met. We are pleased to partner with NEAAAT to provide free meal services in our continued effort to reach all children in our community. Our goal is to ensure that children are not hungry. Hunger is an additional stress that no child or family should experience. We are honored to have the flexibility to continue to meet this very important need for children across our community and with organizations such as NEAAAT."

NEAAAT offers free and reduced price meal options to students whose families qualify under National School Lunch program guidelines. Through the partnership with ECPPS, all students at NEAAAT will now be eligible for high quality, nutritious meals each day at no cost to families.

"We're absolutely thrilled to begin this historic partnership with ECPPS," stated Dr. Harris. "The board and I are very grateful to Superintendent Edmonds, the ECPPS Board of Education, and all of the many NEAAAT and ECPPS staff members whose seamless collaboration has made this vital service possible for our students. We look forward to additional opportunities that will amplify our collective impact on the lives of area children and their families in the months and years ahead."

ECPPS will begin meal services for NEAAAT students on September 14, 2020.