LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Schools around the State of Michigan are still providing free meals to all students during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Governor Whitmer’s shutdown of non-essential activities and gatherings makes allowances for activities like these to occur, as food provision is considered critical infrastructure.
“Gov. Whitmer is committed to ensuring that Michigan students have access to the food they need during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Press Secretary Tiffany Brown said. “Under the governor’s executive order, K-12 school food services are considered critical infrastructure and should continue. The governor deeply appreciates the vital work that our frontline school employees are doing every day to ensure that our kids have the food they need while the order is in effect.”
Kalamazoo Public Schools began issuing free meals for students during the shutdown before the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order, as all public schools were closed prior to the order being issued.
Interim Superintendent Gary Start says this meal provision is crucial for some children.
“You just have to show up to the location, tell us how many students you have, and we provide the meals,” Start said. “A lot of our kids count on us for meals, so immediately after the Governor announced that we would be closed for three weeks, we put a plan together.”
On a statewide level, the Michigan Department of Education has created an interactive map to display where each pickup site can be found. It includes pickup times in addition to locations.
“Families will still be able to access meals for their children through this challenging time,” State Superintendent Dr. Michael Rice said. “I thank all of the school employees and volunteers for continuing their commitment to feeding the children of our state. Ensuring Michigan’s children continue to get the food they need every day is vitally important.”
The map can be viewed online through the Michigan Department of Education website at this link.
Meanwhile, the latest COVID-19 information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.
