Free Breakfast, Lunch Available For Kern County Students This Summer

From now until July 12, the Kern High School District (KHSD) is providing all Kern County students ages two through 18 with free breakfast and lunch every day. 

By Victoria Rodgers | South Kern Sol

From now until July 12, the Kern High School District (KHSD) is providing all Kern County students ages two through 18 with free breakfast and lunch every day. 

With these meals, which are federally funded through the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) of the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program, the KHSD has a goal to ensure that every child in the community has access to nutritious meals during the summer months. 

Lupe Sabella, the KHSD’s Assistant Director of Nutrition Services stated that: “As a district, we look forward to being leaders in our community and a valuable resource to families we service within different areas of Kern County by providing healthy and nutritious food during the summer. Kern High School District’s summer meal distribution program is an example of community outreach we provide to students of the district and their families. Research shows that summer hunger and food insecurities often have negative effects on students’ learning when school begins again. As a district, it’s our goal to keep those issues at bay by making sure students have enough to eat.”

All meals must be consumed on campus, but students do not need to be enrolled in a KHSD school to receive their free meals. 

“We are proud to share that we serve about 260,000 meals during the course of  the summer, those include breakfast and lunch distributed throughout the county,” stated Sabella. “The summer feeding program is open to all children ages 2-18, no identification is required. All comprehensive high school sites and libraries throughout the county are happy to provide a meal.”