Gov. Kim Reynolds announces grant program expanding summer food assistance for children

Iowa school districts and communities will be able to apply for grants through the state Department of Education to provide additional meals and food to children over the summer, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday.

The new state-directed Summer Meal Program Expansion Grant will provide $900,000 in grants to help schools and qualified groups expand existing child nutrition assistance programs, the Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Option, that are collaboratively administered through the state education department and U.S. Department of Agriculture. The grants will be used to create more summer meal sites for Iowans under age 18, especially in underserved areas, according to the news release.

Reynolds said providing Iowa youth with free, nutritious meals when school is not in session “has always been a priority.”

“With the Summer Meal Program Expansion Grant, we will expand these well-established programs across our state to ensure Iowa’s youth have meals that are healthy and use local community farms and vendors when possible,” Reynolds said in the news release.

Democrats and food assistance advocates have criticized the governor and Republican lawmakers for declining to participate in the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children program in 2024. The USDA program, known as Summer EBT, provides families of children eligible for free or reduced-price meals at school with EBT cards, giving $40 of food assistance per child each month over the summer months.

Though 35 states have moved to participate in the program, Iowa officials said in December they did not believe the Summer EBT program was the best way to expand summer food assistance for children. State officials cited the expected $2.2 million cost of implementation for the state in administrative costs as well as the lack of “strong nutritional focus” in spending requirements for the benefits.

Advocates supporting the Summer EBT program expressed disappointment with the state’s decision not to participate and criticized Republicans’ focus on limiting which foods low-income people can purchase through food assistance benefits. Democrats including Rep. Sami Scheetz, D-Cedar Rapids, have also criticized the lack of action this session on measures like House File 575, that would have provided free breakfasts and lunches to students who qualify for free and reduced-cost lunches.

Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-West Des Moines, said she appreciated the governor taking action on feeding children in need, but the grant program “amounts to crumbs for Iowa kids.” She said meal sites are important, but the Summer EBT program would make food and resources more accessible for families during the summer.

“While summer feeding programs have their place, they are not accessible to all Iowa families,” Trone Garriott said in a statement. “Families must bring their children to and from the site every day, which is impossible for most working families. There are many Iowa school districts and entire counties that don’t even have a feeding site. As a result, these programs assisted less than 20,000 children last year.”

She said the governor could have pursued meal site expansions while participating in the summer EBT program, but that Reynolds “put politics before the health and wellbeing of our kids.”

Schools participating in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Programs can apply for additional funding through the new grant program as a sponsor through the Summer Food Service Program or Seamless Summer Option programs, and other organizations can participate as sponsors through the Summer Food Service Program.

Sponsors would be able to use the grant funding to serve meals during the summer at sites like schools, libraries, parks or other community centers, with a focus on new meal sites in areas where 50% or more of children are eligible for free or reduced meals and in areas that had two or fewer current meal sites serving the community.

Applications for the grant are now open at IowaGrants.gov, with a deadline of May 7. Sponsors are eligible for a total of up to $20,000 for current program participants, and up to $30,000 for new participants, with reimbursement funding going to food purchases, program outreach and other operational costs not currently covered through the existing program.

The grant program will use funds allotted to Iowa by the 2021 federal American Rescue Plan Act.

Iowa Department of Education Director McKenzie Snow said the grant program would help more Iowa students access healthy meals over summer break.

“Through partnerships with community-based providers and schools, the Summer Meal Program Expansion Grant will build upon family-focused solutions to support child nutrition and well-being in the summer,” said Iowa Department of Education Director McKenzie Snow. “The Iowa Department of Education remains committed to supporting students with healthy meals and food options, as it supports communities in growing the impact of existing child nutrition programs.”