Thursday, October 30, 2025
Milwaukee Public Schools is proud to serve free breakfast and lunch to all students on school days. As our country looks to the loss of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits beginning on November 1, we want to assure all families that their students will receive free breakfast and lunch in school on every school day. In addition, students in after-school programs who normally receive a snack and/or dinner will continue to receive them. Free breakfast and lunch, along with food in after-school programs, are NOT tied to SNAP benefits.
Free breakfast and lunch are funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP). In addition, MPS takes part in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) to make sure all children are offered meals, including those who may exceed income limits. This means that every child has access to two free meals per school day while attending any MPS school.
In September, MPS served more than 550,000 breakfasts and 860,000 lunches. That number may grow if SNAP benefits end, and the MPS Department of Nutrition Services is prepared for the potential increase in meals.
This week, MPS joined the city, the county, Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Bucks, faith partners, and others in launching an emergency food drive. All MPS schools are donation sites, and we are working to distribute donation boxes. This flyer has more information. Please note that schools are collecting food donations but are not able to distribute food to families.
Families who need emergency food or other resources can find information through Impact, Inc.
The Milwaukee County Emergency Food Distribution map can also be used to find nearby locations offering meals and groceries.