In 2006, when William Perno ate lunch with his 8-year-old daughter at Chula Vista Elementary, he noticed children crying because they’d been served cheese sandwiches. The school was one of several in the state that had an “alternate lunch” policy—children got the sandwich if their parents hadn’t paid school lunch bills. But “the sandwich was a stigma,” he says. “(Paying for lunches) is the parents’ responsibility. Schools should not (involve) children.”

Hortencia Garcia-Rubio recalls when her 10-year-old son with autism was served the cheese sandwich. He brought his lunch to the cash register, but “they threw (it) out and gave him the cheese sandwich,” she says. “He was inconsolable; he thought he was being punished.”

William and Cindy Perno mobilized other parents to successfully challenge the policy, with support from California Food Policy Advocates. Parents came together to:

Talk to the district: “My wife and I wrote a letter to our school district,” says Perno. “We were told the sandwich was nutritious enough to serve as school lunch.”

Get parents involved: “(We) went to schools before and after school and met parents,” says William Perno. “We printed up flyers on cheese-colored paper. We started a mailing list.”

Go to the school board: “We encouraged (parents) with complaints to come to school board meetings,” says William Perno. “Some were reluctant—they’d be upset at the lunch lady, but not the school district. Bilingual parents would speak on behalf of non-English-speaking parents.” Parents also met with individual school board members—and successfully campaigned for a new school board member who is against alternate lunches.

Get media coverage: Parents invited an LA Times reporter to attend a school board meeting where several parents spoke. Other newspapers and TV stations picked up the story.

Involve statewide agencies: Parents approached the California Department of Education (CDE), asking them to limit the use of alternate lunches in schools statewide. They also reached out to California Food Policy Advocates (CFPA), a statewide organization working on food and nutrition issues.

“We used our communications with CDE to put on more pressure,” says George Manolo-LeClair, CFPA’s senior director of legislation. “We met with their legislators to help move policy along.”

Success!

In February, CDE eliminated alternate lunches for children eligible for free and reduced-price school meals—and established stronger restrictions for using it with other children.

“Parents in Chula Vista were very effective in bringing this issue to our attention, as well as to the attention of the USDA and members of the legislature,” says Phyllis Bramson-Paul, director of CDE’s nutrition services division.

“We really thank the parents for bringing their concerns to our attention,” adds Anthony Millican, communications officer for Chula Vista Elementary School. “The alternate lunch was never intended to be a punishment.” The school now has an automated system that lets parents know when they owe money and reminds them to pay.

For more info: California Food Policy Advocates,
510-433-1122, www.cfpa.net