Dec. 25—DIXON — Student lunch debt at Dixon Public Schools, which totals about $9,625, is being paid off quickly after a donation campaign was launched by the mother of a third-grade Jefferson Elementary student.
Destiny McElhinney began fundraising the week of December 9, and donations nearly tripled after Shaw Local published an article about the effort on December 17. The morning after it was published, Brett Nicklaus of Trinity Cares pitched in $2,000, which raised Jefferson’s money. total balance from $1,168 to zero.
[ Donations wipe out all student lunch debt at Dixon’s Jefferson Elementary in 24 hours ]
“It just broke my heart when I read that article,” Nicklaus said in an interview with Shaw Local. ‘I told my wife I was going to call her [McElhinney]and it took us less than a minute to decide we were going to jump on board.”
On Friday, December 20, Nicklaus presented a check for $1,168 to Jefferson principal Crystal Thorpe.
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Destiny McElhinney (left), Crystal Thorpe and Brett Nicklaus speak about the need for school lunch debt in Dixon schools. (Alex T. Paschal)
Jefferson students, who are in second and third grades, are sent home with weekly reminders if their lunch account has an unpaid balance. On Friday, those students were sent home with a letter saying the balance had been paid off, Thorpe said in an interview with Shaw Local.
The total number of donations to Jefferson exceeded the total lunch debt balance. Those leftover donations were placed in a school lunch fund for future student debt, Thorpe said.
The total balance at Washington Elementary of $930 was also paid by an anonymous donor the night of Dec. 19, Nicklaus said.
As of Tuesday, total donations have paid off nearly half of the district’s total lunch debt, Nicklaus said.
To make a donation, visit the Trinity Cares website and mention ‘nourish to flourish’ (the campaign slogan) in the memo. All donations will go directly toward Dixon Public Schools’ lunch debt.
Trinity Cares is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that Nicklaus and his wife founded about five years ago to raise money for various community needs as they arise. The organization also raised money and paid a large portion of the overdue lunch costs at Dixon Public Schools in 2020, Nicklaus said.
‘When I saw that [article] “I said, ‘I can’t believe we have the same problem now,’” he said.
Nicklaus’ overall goal is to establish an ongoing lunch debt fund for the district to ensure debt does not build up again, he said.
“It was a cool collaboration with Destiny. She made a statement. She wanted to help one kid and help the school, and now I think it can really blow up,” Nicklaus said.
With Trinity Cares, “we have the infrastructure to really make this more powerful and benefit people,” he said.
Student Lunch Debt at Dixon Public Schools
At all Dixon Public Schools, a hot lunch, including milk, costs $3 for students in kindergarten through fifth grade. For students in grades 6 through 12, it is $3.05.
Students in kindergarten through 12th grade can purchase separate milk for 65 cents and breakfast costs $1.30 for all students.
If students cannot pay, “we will never let them go without lunch,” said Superintendent Margo Empen.
Instead, the cafeteria staff will charge the amount to the student’s account and it will become an outstanding balance. Sometimes the costs add up and aren’t paid for various reasons, Empen said.
The highest debt balance is $2,739 for Madison Elementary, fourth and fifth grades. Dixon High School has $2,718 in past-due lunch fees and Reagan Middle School has $2,087.
“This is something we have to deal with every year,” says Empen. “I wouldn’t say this year is worse or better than any other year.”
To get the balances paid, the district will work with the students’ parents to set up a payment plan or help them sign up for the free and reduced lunch program if they meet the income requirements, Empen said.
“We’ve had very generous individuals, businesses and families over the years raise money to pay off these debts so parents don’t have to worry about raising that money,” Empen said.
Lunch costs for students at other Sauk Valley public schools
When McElhinney first started the fundraiser, she asked why Dixon Public Schools students have to pay for lunch when it is provided for free to students in Rock Falls and Sterling.
Several years ago, Rock Falls Elementary School District 13 and Sterling Public Schools applied and were accepted into the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National School Lunch Program Community Eligibility Provision. The program will allow districts to provide all of their students with free breakfast and lunch, Rock Falls ESD 13 Superintendent Dan Arickx and SPS Superintendent Tad Everett said in separate interviews with Shaw Local.
“We started it because it was nice not to have to collect lunch and breakfast costs from students,” says Arickx. “It was positive for our district. We were able to say, ‘Hey, look, you don’t have to pay for breakfast and lunch costs,’ and a lot of parents really appreciated that.”
The program is a federally supported meal program available to public schools and private nonprofit schools, as well as residential child care settings. CEP allows districts that meet a threshold of low socioeconomic students, called the identified student percentage, to serve free breakfast and lunch to all enrolled students without collecting household applications for free or reduced-price lunch.
The ISP measures the number of students eligible for free meals based on their enrollment or eligibility for other federally funded programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
Everett explained that the lunch offered free to all Sterling students is what is called a “Class A” lunch, meaning it is the entree served on that specific day.
“If a student chooses to do additional items a la carte, it is at that individual’s expense,” Everett said.
The qualifying identified student percentage was previously set at 40%, but a new rule that went into effect in October 2023 lowered that minimum to 25%, according to fns.usda.gov.
The school-determined student percentage must be 62.5% or higher to qualify for the free reimbursement rate for all reimbursable meals. Schools with ISPs from 25% to 62.5% are eligible for CEP, but at a lower reimbursement rate.
“There is a financial commitment from the district to participate in the program,” Everett said. “We just made the decision at the time that we thought this was best for our families.”
For example, a district may receive reimbursement for half of the meals it serves, but the cost of the other half is the district’s responsibility.
When asked why Dixon Public Schools does not offer free lunches to its students, Empen said, “There is a special qualification that you can apply for with the state board if you have the numbers to support it. I don’t believe we have the numbers. to support it, and that’s why we can’t offer that. If we did, we would definitely apply for it.”
According to the Food Research and Action Center’s CEP database, which includes data from the 2023-2024 school year, Washington Elementary has an ISP of 95%, Jefferson Elementary 61%, Madison Elementary 52%, Reagan Middle School 50% and Dixon High School has 41%.
The broader conversation about student debt in public schools
Although Rock Falls ESD 13 and Sterling Public Schools have no student lunch debt, district superintendents said they face the same problem in other areas.
“We have the same scenario of debt from some of our families that is unpaid and accumulating over time,” Everett said. “From a larger lens, the conversation about debt comes in two forms: your lunch program and your tuition structure.”
In public schools, there are several other types of fees, including fees for registration at the beginning of each year, fees for participating in athletics or other extracurricular activities, and more.
“If students have to pay, every school will always incur a student debt,” says Arickx.
At best, Everett said, a very minimal to zero rate structure would apply.
“It’s a visionary goal that we would have, that our families could really come to school for free, but we’re not there yet,” Everett said.
