The Board of Education of Anne Arundel County has unanimously approved a plan to leave school meal prices at the same level as they have been for the last seven years in which students have had pay for meals.
Under the plan approved at the Board’s May 4, 2022, meeting, full-price breakfast at all levels for the 2022-23 school year would remain at $1.50, elementary school lunches would cost $2.75, and secondary school lunches would cost $3.00. The price of milk would remain at 55 cents. Reduced-price breakfast and meal prices at all levels would also remain unchanged.
Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) meal prices have not changed since the 2014-2015 school year. Students have not had to pay for meals during the pandemic due to the availability of state and federal grant funds.
“The work that our Food and Nutrition Services team does every day to provide healthy, nutritious, and delicious meals to our students is beyond outstanding,” Superintendent George Arlotto said. “This team didn’t miss a beat during the pandemic and their dedication to our students is awe-inspiring. The result is steady meal prices, a huge relief for families at a time when costs are rising in almost every conceivable area.”
The school system’s Food and Nutrition Services receives no county funding at present, and instead relies on revenue from federal reimbursements (99 percent in the current fiscal year) and state funding (1 percent in the current fiscal year) to operate.
AACPS has served more than 19 million meals through accommodative USDA waivers since March 2020, when schools were first closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information about the school system’s Division of Food and Nutrition Services, click here.