The following letter is being posted on ParentSquare on Tuesday, June 25 for all parents/guardians.

Dear Parent/Guardian,

We are pleased to announce that the East Greenbush Central School District will be offering free breakfast and lunch in all school buildings starting in the 2024-25 school year. 

Earlier this school year, we were able to offer free meals at four schools – Donald P. Sutherland Elementary School, Red Mill Elementary School, Howard L. Goff Middle School and the Questar III Sackett Center – based on expanded access to the federal Community Eligibility Provision, increased funding from New York State, and the percentage of students directly certified for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) or Medicaid at those schools. 

We said at that time, we would continue to review data to determine eligibility at all district schools. Keeping that commitment, we recently submitted an updated application for all district schools and that application was approved.

The sites included in the CEP application that will receive free meals are:

• Columbia High School (9-12)
• Howard L. Goff Middle School (6-8)
• Bell Top Elementary School (K-5)
• Donald P. Sutherland Elementary School (PK-5)
• Genet Elementary School (PK-5)
• Green Meadow Elementary School (PK-5)
• Red Mill Elementary School (PK-5)
• Questar III Sackett Center
• Early Childhood Education Center (PK)

The approval of free meals for all schools in the East Greenbush CSD will be in effect September 1, 2024 through June 30, 2028.

No further action is required for families to receive free meals. Students who currently have a balance in their MySchoolBucks account can leave the funds in place and use it to pay for additional a la carte items such as snacks. Refund requests can also be made by emailing the Food Services Department at wiseco@egcsd.org.

If you have any further questions, please contact Colleen Wise at wiseco@egcsd.org or 518-207-2474.