A donor is paying off the debt of about 82,000 meals for low-income students in Maryland’s largest school system.
A $230,000 check was presented to school leaders during a special ceremony at Montgomery County Public Schools’ headquarters in Rockville on Monday. Administrators estimate the donation will cover two years’ worth of school lunch debt for students enrolled in the free and reduced-priced meals (FARM) program.
Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Thomas Taylor estimated that about half of the school system’s nearly 160,000 students historically have qualified for the FARM program. District officials could not provide an exact number of students the donation would assist.
“This is an effort of great impact in adding much relief at a time that, quite candidly, people really could use some relief,” Taylor said.
Since 2023, the school system has accrued about $1.36 million in school lunch debt, according to district officials. Some of the debt has come from FARM-eligible students, and the school system doesn’t require those families to repay the debt, according to its policies.
The rest of the debt is from students who are not eligible for free and reduced-price meals, but are still struggling, district officials said Monday.
In the Montgomery district, a full-priced breakfast can cost $1.30 and lunch can cost $2.55 for elementary students or $2.80 for older students. The district also provides free meals for students enrolled in high-poverty schools.
Since 2018, the school system’s education foundation has coordinated a Dine with Dignity campaign to help students access meals, but they say the problem is larger than the resources that are available.
“For many families, this is not about a lack of effort,” said Jamie Darvish, the owner of DARCARS Automotive Group and DARCARS Toyota — the groups that made the donation announced Monday. “It’s about affordability and a very challenging economy.”
Montgomery County school board president Grace Rivera-Oven said she cried when Taylor told her about the donation. She said she grew up as a FARM-eligible student in the county and was sometimes made fun of at school for it. She teared up as she expressed her gratitude to DARCARS for the donation, adding that it was an important way to help students who struggle to concentrate in classes because they are food insecure.
“We have a poverty issue in Montgomery. We have children who feel unwanted and unloved in Montgomery County,” she said. “We need to be the folks who bring a little ray of hope and love to them, because we are the adults.”
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