Santa Fe school cuts free lunch program due to budget

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - A charter school in Santa Fe has abruptly ended its free and reduced-price lunch program due to state education funding cuts.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports (https://bit.ly/2j4cj08 ) that Monte del Sol students were informed during the holiday break that the school can no longer afford to contribute about $40,000 from its annual budget to offer federally subsidized lunches to about 80 or 90 students enrolled in the program.

Monte del Sol Head Learner Robert Jessen says the school only receives about $3 from the federal government for each free lunch it serves.

Monte del Sol has been offering the federal lunch program since 2010. Before that, Jessen says the school provided peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to low-income students.

Jessen says the school is trying to find a vendor to provide lunches.

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Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, https://www.sfnewmexican.com