During the budget report presented to San Benito High School trustees at last week’s meeting, Superintendent John Perales urged the district to work toward increased participation in the free and reduced-price lunch program, since state funding is affected by these numbers.
Last school year, about 55 percent of the school’s students participated in the free or reduced-price lunch program. But in the Hollister School District, which is one of the high school’s feeder elementary districts, at least 65 percent of the students qualify for a free or reduced-price meals, Perales said.
“And I know at the high school, it’s a label and a stigma. But we need to get the word out to our community,” Perales said. “Because the more and more we go over that 55 percent threshold, it could—it will––mean millions and millions of dollars.”
