According to a memo from the New York state Department of Education, schools must have a policy to address student meal charges and area school districts are no different.

Beginning with the 2017-18 school year, food service providers must have a “written and clearly communicated policy to address student meal charges when payment cannot be collected at the point of services,” the memo from the Child Nutrition Program Administration states. Policies must be “reasonable, well-defined and maintain the integrity and dignity of students and households to minimize harm to the student.”

The policy must have a grace period during which students can charge meals once funds are gone and notification to a parent or a guardian.

Falconer Central School District Superintendent Steve Penhollow said the district recently passed a policy that encourages parents at the beginning of the year to apply for free or reduced lunches.

“If they receive assistance, they usually automatically meet qualifications,” Penhollow said.

Then, if a student’s account gets below the $2 mark, a notification email or phone call is sent out, Penhollow said. After two lunches are charged with no funds for purchase, the student will be given a peanut butter sandwich or cheese sandwich with fruit, vegetable and milk as required by the state.

“The peanut butter and jelly would be in place of an entree,” Penhollow said.

However, that doesn’t happen often, he said. Asked if a student’s lunch would be thrown away and replaced by a sandwich if no money was provided, Penhollow said he would hope not because the meal that would be thrown away couldn’t be eaten by anyone else.

“I would hope we would never throw away a lunch,” he said.

Bert Lictus, Panama and Clymer Central School District shared superintendent, said both school districts make sure the students are fed.

“Obviously, the districts make sure every child has a lunch to eat,” Lictus said. “We work with the parents at the beginning of the year to fill out the forms, and if a child is getting behind, we work with the parents to remedy the situation.”

He said a practice has been put in place because the “last thing you want is for a kid not to eat because they don’t know what to do.”

“In Chautauqua County, most of us know our families and the situations they’re in,” Lictus continued. “If you start to see red flags, you can know what’s going on before it gets to that point. No child will go hungry, I’m confident it’s true in every school.”

He said he does not want lunches to be thrown away in the schools and does not want a student to be humiliated in front of other students.

A big issue with school meals and the free and reduced lunch program is that many parents are too proud to fill out the forms, Lictus said. Other times, some people cannot fill out the forms themselves. In those instances, the district does attempt to make sure everyone who qualifies fills out the forms each year and will work with community members who need help.

“It’s a real issue in our county,” Lictus said. “There’s a lot of poverty.”

Jamestown Public Schools District does not charge for lunches, but still passed a policy on lunch charges. In the policy, it states that students receive one free breakfast and lunch a day, so meal charging is not allowed. A la carte purchases can not be charged, and adult purchases cannot be charged. A la carte purchases can be put on accounts via check or cash and remaining funds will be carried over into the next school year.

To qualify for the free and reduced priced lunch program, according to the New York state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, a family with income up to 130 percent of the poverty rate, or $31,590 for a family of four annually, can receive free meals. Families are eligible for reduced price lunches with income up to 185 percent of the poverty rate, or $44,955, for a family of four annually.