All students enrolled at BPS will receive free breakfast and lunch everyday until Dec. 31, 2020, according to an email sent by BPS on Sept. 23. This relief was approved by the United States Department of Agriculture. 

Whether students qualify for free and reduced lunch, no meal charges will be made to lunch accounts through Dec. 31, or until the funding runs out. Students and families will then be notified and the students’ accounts will return to the original meal payment. 

Any school meals charged since the first day of school will be refunded to students’ lunch accounts, and any remaining money in the account will carry over once funding for the free meals has ended. 

Bellevue West kitchen manager Kellie Hooker-Picht said that à la carte options such as extra entrees, chips, drinks, and snacks will continue to be charged on accounts as normal. 

BPS also encouraged families to apply for free and reduced lunch so that they can still receive meal benefits until the return of regular meal charges.