No abstract

In 2019, the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program served approximately 15 million breakfasts and 30 million lunches daily at low or no cost to students. Access to these meals has been disrupted as a result of long-term school closures related to the COVID-19 pandemic, potentially decreasing both student nutrient intake and household food security. By the week of March 23, 2020, all states had mandated statewide school closures as a result of the pandemic, and the number of weekly missed breakfasts and lunches served at school reached a peak of approximately 169.6 million; this weekly estimate remained steady through the final week of April. We highlight strategies that states and school districts are using to replace these missed meals, including a case study from Maryland and the US Department of Agriculture waivers that, in many cases, have introduced flexibility to allow for innovation. Also, we explore lessons learned from the pandemic with the goal of informing and strengthening future school nutrition policies for out-of-school time, such as over the summer. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print September 17, 2020: e1–e9. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305875 )

Reduced access to school meals during public health emergencies can accelerate food insecurity and nutritional status, particularly for low-income children in urban areas. To prevent the exacerbation of health disparities, there is a need to understand the implementation of meal distribution among large urban school districts during emergencies and to what degree these strategies provide equitable meal access. Our case study of four large urban school districts during the COVID-19 pandemic aims to address these knowledge gaps. Guided by the Getting to Equity (GTE) framework, we conducted a mixed-methods study evaluating emergency meal distribution and strategy implementation in four large urban school districts (Chicago Public Schools, Houston Independent School District, Los Angeles Unified School District, and New York City Department of Education). We gathered data from school district websites on (1) meal service and delivery sites and (2) district documents, policies, communication, and resources. Using qualitative coding approaches, we identified unique and shared district strategies to address meal distribution and communications during the pandemic according to the four components of the GTE framework: increase healthy options, reduce deterrents, build on community capacity, and increase social and economic resources. We matched district census tract boundaries to demographic data from the 2018 American Community Survey and United States Department of Agriculture food desert data, and used geographic information systems (GIS) software to identify meal site locations relative to student population, areas of high poverty and high minority populations, and food deserts. We found that all districts developed strategies to optimize meal provision, which varied across case site. Strategies to increase healthy options included serving adults and other members of the general public, providing timely information on meal site locations, and promoting consumption of a balanced diet. The quantity and frequency of meals served varied, and the degree to which districts promoted high-quality nutrition was limited. Reducing deterrents related to using inclusive language and images and providing safety information on social distancing practices in multiple languages. Districts built community capacity through partnering with first responder, relief, and other community organizations. Increased social and economic resources were illustrated by providing technology assistance to families, childcare referrals for essential workers, and other wellness resources. Geospatial analysis suggests that service locations across cities varied to some degree by demographics and food environment, with potential gaps in reach. This study identifies strategies that have the potential to increase equitable access to nutrition assistance programs. Our findings can support (1) ongoing efforts to address child food insecurity during the pandemic and (2) future meal provision through programs like the Summer Food Service Program and Seam...

This study examined the employment status of 1,393 former special education students who had exited from 37 of Alabama's 128 school systems between 1996-2000. These 37 school systems served as demonstration sites through the state's transition systems change grant. Follow-up telephone interviews revealed that 73% (N=1,013) of these former students were employed one year after exit. Using a hierarchical logistic regression analysis, there was an 87% probability that these students would be employed one year after high school if they held a job at the time they exited school. Other significant findings include the relationship between employment status and gender, disability, and urban or rural setting. The probability of the student having a job one year after high school, for example, was greater if the student was male, had a learning disability, was from an urban school, and had a job at the time of school exit. In contrast, the probability of employment was less likely for females with a disability other than a learning disability, from rural schools, and without a job at the end of high school. These findings suggest that students with disabilities can benefit from participating in paid work experiences during high school and that females in rural settings need better transition planning and programs.