Governor Wants More Money For School Lunches

Governor Mark Dayton says he will ask the Minnesota legislature to provide another $3 ½ million dollars in funding to make sure that all of the state’s schoolchildren have access to lunch.Dayton made the announcement a day after a report was released that shows a majority of Minnesota school districts have policies that deny students a hot lunch, and in some cases any lunch, to students who cannot pay for their meals. There are about 62,000 low-income students signed up for the state’s reduced-price lunch program. It pays for all but 40-cents of a school hot lunch, but the report found some schools deny lunch or serve a much smaller meal if a student does not have the 40-cents.  The Rochester School District is among the 97 districts in the state that do not deny lunch to children who cannot pay.