Santa Cruz City Schools said it will offer free meals to all students for the 2025-26 school year.
Thanks to the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs and the California Universal Meals Program, all students will be served a healthy breakfast and lunch free of charge, regardless of household income or any other factor.
Free meals will be given at every district school: Bayview, Gault, Westlake, DeLaveaga and Monarch elementary schools; Mission Hill and Branciforte middle schools; Santa Cruz, Harbor, Soquel and Costanoa high schools; and Delta School, Alternative Family Education and Ark Independent Studies.
“We’re thrilled to once again be able to give the support and the comfort of good meals to all of our students,” said Amy Hedrick-Farr, Santa Cruz City Schools’ director of food and nutrition services.
While food is free to all, school districts are still required to collect general information about families served. Any families who plan to use the free food program at any point next year are encouraged to complete this form, which also qualifies families for potential discounts on internet, phone bill, college applications and SAT testing.
Offering free food to all fits into the Santa Cruz City Schools’ work to make food relationships part of curriculum, according to Hedrick-Farr, with all elementary students participating in “life lab” gardens, as well as studying ecology and the science of horticulture.
For more information on free breakfast and lunch programs at Santa Cruz City Schools for the 2025-26 school year, please contact Hedrick-Farr at amyhedrickfarr@sccs.net or at 831-429-3850.
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