Portsmouth proposes to raise lunch cost up to 40 cents

PORTSMOUTH

Superintendent David Stuckwisch wants to raise lunch prices in the city's schools by as much as 40 cents to help pay for rising food costs and new cafeteria equipment.

Under his proposal, lunch prices would rise to $1.25 next school year and to $1.50 for the 2009- 10 and 2010- 11 school years. The proposal comes at a time when most school divisions across South Hampton Roads have already increased their meal prices to cover higher food costs.

School Board members are scheduled to vote on the matter today. They will also decide whether to limit the number of times elementary and pre school students can defer lunch payments. The division has racked up about $260,000 in unpaid lunch fees over the last six years.

Currently, elementary students pay 85 cents and middle and high school students pay 95 cents for lunch. The fees are the lowest in South Hampton Roads. More than 50 percent of Portsmouth's students qualified for free or reduced lunch this past school year.

If board members approve Stuckwisch's proposal to raise lunch prices to help pay for about $1.2 million in cafeteria equipment expenses and higher food costs, the division's lunch prices could still be the lowest in the area.

Milk coolers, ice makers, freezers and refrigerators, among other items, need to be replaced, and some refrigerators, fryers, washers and convection ovens need major repairs, Nita Mensia-Joseph, the division's operations director, wrote in an e-mail.

However, the board could decide to raise lunch fees only to cover higher food expenses and not the cafeteria equipment costs. The increase for students then would be only 15 cents.

Board members are scheduled to decide tonight on whether Portsmouth should limit unpaid food charges. Elementary and pre school students who are required to pay for lunch have been allowed to defer payments when they don't have money.

Portsmouth is the only South Hampton Roads school division to allow the unlimited charges. Other divisions have reported no more than several thousand dollars in unpaid student lunch debt.

Stuckwisch proposes that students be allowed to defer one lunch payment. If they come up short at the checkout again and have not paid the first debt, they would be offered free alternative sandwich meals. Other local divisions provide such meals. Portsmouth school leaders said the free meal should cost the division about 30 cents at most.

Portsmouth Board members Betty Hudgins and Elizabeth Daniels said it's time to ban students from charging their lunches. They're both in favor of increasing the city's lunch prices by as much as 40 cents to cover rising food costs and the cafeteria equipment expenses.

Board member Jean Shackelford said she supports raising lunch prices to $1.25 next school year. But she's not sure she supports raising it again in future school years to $1.50.

Board chairman James Bridgeford said he does not intend to vote in favor of raising fees to help pay for the equipment. But he will vote to limit lunch charges and increase lunch prices to help cover rising food costs.

Cheryl Ross, (757) 446-2443, cheryl.ross@pilotonline.com