The Food Service Supervisor in the Newton School District says if the partial government shutdown continues, it could adversely impact government-funded school meal programs across the country. Julie Miller, who has overseen food service operations in Newton Schools since June 2022, provided the local school board with an update on the shutdown earlier this week.

“As of now, we have been assured that there is enough funding available to reimburse us for meals eaten during the month of October. But that is all they could tell us at this point in time. It’s also highly likely that Head Start could close during the shutdown, which affects our bottom line, because we feed those Head Start students three times a day.”

As of late last week, Miller says 51.5% of the students in the Newton School District get free or reduced- price lunches. The breakdown per school is 25% at Newton Christian, 55.6% at Emerson Hough Elementary, 52.4% at Thomas Jefferson Elementary, 54.5% at Woodrow Wilson Elementary, 52.5% at Berg Middle School, 44.9% at the High School, and 76.2% at West Academy, the district’s alternative high school.