Program Overview
National School Breakfast and Lunch Program for Illinois is a federal level program funded by the central government. The program assists low-income households by helping them pay their children school meal expenses in different public and private institutions. The program in Illinois is administered by the Illinois State Board of Education. The program is divided into the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP).
The program provides adequate nutritious meals to the children during their lunch period at schools. The program needs to meet the requirements of the federal government. However, different school food authorities have different conditions regarding the type of food to serve and how to serve them.
Program Objectives
The main objective of the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program is to provide healthy meals that are nutritionally balanced to establish good eating habits in the children. The children who are under 18 years of age and currently enrolled in schools can receive the benefits. The meals are provided either free or at a very low cost.
General Requirements
Children who qualify for the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program will receive free food or food at a reduced cost in their schools. The general requirements to apply for the NSLP are,
- Families with dependent kids and an income level below 130% of the federal poverty line (FPL) can apply for the NSLP benefit program.
- Households with income levels between 130% and 185% of the federal poverty level and have dependent children can receive food at lower prices in their schools. (prices will reduce up to 40 cents and no more)
- Kids with family income more than 185% of the FPL have to pay full prices but may also receive some kind of funding. Every food administration office in your school decides its prices for fully paid meals.
There are other eligibility conditions for the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program in the state of Illinois including,
- The candidate must be a permanent citizen or a legal alien in the U.S.
- The candidate must be the citizen of Illinois
- The candidate is a parent or caretaker or a primary guardian with kids attending either high school or below
- The candidate’s household income must fall under the eligibility condition determined by the program
The candidate’s citizenship and immigration status are not the primary requirements in most of the states to apply for the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program. In both cases, however, you have to follow the same procedure to get the program’s benefits.
The number of members in a household and total household income is also very important factors while considering a candidate for the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program in the state of Illinois. The amount of the maximum gross income level before taxes must equate,
| Size Of Household | Maximum Annual Income Level ($) |
| 1 | 23107 |
| 2 | 31284 |
| 3 | 39461 |
| 4 | 47638 |
| 5 | 55815 |
| 6 | 63992 |
| 7 | 72169 |
| 8 | 80346 |
In case, the household size is greater than 8 members an additional amount of $8177 is considered per member. The amount of annual income level might change from time to time. Therefore, it is a good step to contact the managing agency in your area. They will be able to provide you with the most recent and up-to-date guidelines about the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program in the state of Illinois.
How To Apply
Once you check the requirement for the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program for Illinois, the next step is to apply for the program. To get your child registered for free food at school, you will have to get in touch with your child’s school office. The school administration that deals with this program will guide you through the whole application process. You can find the list of schools registered with the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program at the link given below
https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Data-Analysis-Directories.aspx
In case you have other queries please call the Illinois Department of Education at 217-782-2491 or 1-800-545-7892 to talk to the program’s representative.
For Further Information
You can also visit the School Nutrition Programs for further information on the program. The link will take you to the Illinois State Board of Education website that provides you with up-to-date information regarding the program to make the application process less daunting. You can use the same procedure if you want to reduce the prices of your child’s food at school.
The agency looking into the Illinois NSLP program makes sure that all the applications are accessed properly. The agency makes sure to determine the eligibility of the candidates within ten days of submitting the application form. The qualified families are approached about their qualifications once they are selected. This makes sure the families don not have to pay any meal charges which might cause a burden to them.
It is advisable to apply for the program before the deadline in order to make sure your child is not deprived of the program’s benefits. The benefits provided by the program are effective throughout the school’s academic year.