[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-583323-105":59,"doc-detail-583323-en":129},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":122,"head_meta":124,"extra_data":126,"updated_unix":128},105,"en","carsey-perspectives-universal-free-lunch-why-not-new-hampshire","CARSEY PERSPECTIVES - Universal Free Lunch: Why Not New Hampshire?","","Universal Free Lunch analyzes why New Hampshire should expand school meals to all students instead of limiting eligibility to families below federal poverty thresholds. It reviews national context on childhood hunger, summarizes survey and interview findings from adults across New Hampshire and Maine, and explains how stigma and administrative burdens reduce application rates. Using Maine’s School Meals for All experience as evidence, it highlights improved participation and related student outcomes such as behavior and fewer health complaints.",{"@graph":69,"@context":121},[70,84,104],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/carsey-perspectives-universal-free-lunch-why-not-new-hampshire/583323/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":98,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":99,"interactionStatistic":100},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/carsey-perspectives-universal-free-lunch-why-not-new-hampshire/583323.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Jake","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":101,"interactionType":102,"userInteractionCount":4},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":103},"ViewAction",{"@type":105,"mainEntity":106},"FAQPage",[107,113,117],{"name":108,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":110},"What eligibility rules currently determine free or reduced-price lunch in New Hampshire?","Question",{"text":111,"@type":112},"In addition to eligibility, some students only represent families that submitted applications, so rates can reflect participation patterns, not only need.","Answer",{"name":114,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":115},"Why does universal free lunch matter for students and families?",{"text":116,"@type":112},"The report argues that the policy can eliminate stressors that otherwise prevent families from completing applications.",{"name":118,"@type":109,"acceptedAnswer":119},"How does Maine’s School Meals for All program serve as evidence in the report?",{"text":120,"@type":112},"The document cites implementation success in Maine, including increased meals served and reported benefits such as fewer student complaints of stomachaches and headaches and improved classroom behavior. It also notes that universal meals became part of school culture in at least one district.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":123,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":125,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":127,"site_id":62},583323,1792046801,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":130},{"doc_id":127,"user_id":131,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":132,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":133,"file_id":134,"file_url":135,"file_type":136,"file_size":137,"view_count":4,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":29,"language":138,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":139,"faqs":140,"seo_title":141,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":128,"read_time":142},962084928904,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d","CARSEY PERSPECTIVES  \nMay 12, 2026  \nUniversal Free Lunch: Why Not New Hampshire?  \nDelaney Hesler  \nIntroduction  \nSchool lunch is an essential component of students’lives. Spending an average of 6.8 hours a day at school (World Population Review, 2025), students need food to fuel their learning. Along with many other states across the nation, most New Hampshire schools participate in the National School Lunch Program (NH DOE, 2025) . This program provides federal reimbursements to schools for students who qualify for free or reducedprice lunch. The current eligibility requirements for free meals require students to come from households with an annual income at or below 130 percent of the poverty level, which is $41,795 for a family of two adults and two children (USDA, 2025–26 guidelines) . For reduced-price meals, incomes must be at or below 185 percent of the poverty level ($59,478 for a family of four) (ibid) . Families with incomes above this threshold pay full price.  \nAcross all New Hampshire districts, an average of  \n23 percent of kids were eligible for free or reducedprice meals during the 2025–26 school year (NH DOE, 2026). However, in pockets of both rural and urban New Hampshire, rates far exceed the average. For example, 56 percent of students in the city of Manchester were eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, and 68 percent of students in the small town of Stewartstown in northern New Hampshire were eligible. Seabrook also had a significant share of students eligible at 51 percent (ibid). While these are important data points, the percentages represent only families who submitted applications.  \nNo Kid Hungry, a national campaign focused on reducing childhood hunger, reported that nearly 60 percent of children in low-income areas across the nation reported coming to school hungry; 12 percent of them were so distracted by their hunger that they couldn’t concentrate on school (No Kid Hungry, 2023) . In their 2025 Back to School report, the organization reported that “83 percent of parents agree that their children have a hard time concentrating when hungry”(No Kid Hungry, 2025, p.4) .  \n\n| Key Findings |  |\n| --- | --- |\n| | In a survey of 217 New Hampshire and Maine adults, 82% said that schools should provide free meals to all students, and 17% said that schools should provide free meals to students who qualify. |\n| | School officials interviewed conveyed a clear passion and care for expanding access to free meals for all students. |\n| | The state of Maine has seen significant success after implementing School Meals for All in 2021, which gives all students access to free meals. |\n\nSome states are leading the charge in addressing childhood hunger through school meals, including herein New England. For instance, in 2021, Maine passed the School Meals for All Act, which allocated funds to the state to cover the remaining costs of school meals not covered by the federal government through the National School Lunch Program (An Act To Address Student Hunger through Expanding Access to Free School Meals, 2021). The federal government still reimburses schools for students who qualify, but the state covers the difference, ensuring that all students can receive a free breakfast and lunch each day. This has drastically increased and improved the number of meals served in Maine schools (Full Plates Potential, 2023).  \nThe Why  \nNew Hampshire requires schools to offer students at least one meal per day (NH DOE, 2024), yet not all families can afford this meal. For both students and families, qualifying for free and reduced-price lunch can come with stigma and judgment (Harvard T. H. Chan  \nHuddleston Hall • 73 Main Street • Durham, NH 03824 603-862-2821 • [carsey.unh.edu](carsey.unh.edu)  \nTTY Users: dial 7-1-1 or  \n1-800-735-2964 (Relay N.H.)  \n2 CA R S EY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY  \nSchool of Public Health, 2023) . This can hinder students from turning in their applications, and many go hungry rather than admit they ","cbCaia6ssHpYr1xN","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaia6ssHpYr1xN","pdf",303464,"English","# Introduction\n# The Why\n# Results\n## Interview Highlights: Success in Maine","[{\"question\":\"What eligibility rules currently determine free or reduced-price lunch in New Hampshire?\",\"answer\":\"In addition to eligibility, some students only represent families that submitted applications, so rates can reflect participation patterns, not only need.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does universal free lunch matter for students and families?\",\"answer\":\"The report argues that the policy can eliminate stressors that otherwise prevent families from completing applications.\"},{\"question\":\"How does Maine’s School Meals for All program serve as evidence in the report?\",\"answer\":\"The document cites implementation success in Maine, including increased meals served and reported benefits such as fewer student complaints of stomachaches and headaches and improved classroom behavior. It also notes that universal meals became part of school culture in at least one district.\"}]","CARSEY PERSPECTIVES - Universal Free Lunch: Why Not New Hampshire? | PDF",15]