The federal government currently has five primary programs designed to feed school-age children: the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the School Breakfast Program (SBP), the Child and Adult Care Food Program, the Seamless Summer Option, and the Summer Food Service Program. Each program has distinct meal costs, eligibility requirements, and reimbursement processes for the meals served. While all public schools have the option to participate in each of these federal meal programs, they may choose to opt out of any of them. Recognizing the multitude of benefits for students, families, and schools, this report illustrates how five states—California, Maine, Colorado, Minnesota, and New Mexico—have acted to independently serve free school meals for all students. In the absence of continued federal investment, this strategy is essential for ensuring that students are well fed and ready to learn during the school day.

The Child Welfare Information Gateway produced a five-part podcast series throughout 2022 that illustrated ways that states and tribal jurisdictions have supported kinship caregivers. The series includes interviews and group conversations intended to provide beneficial information for child welfare and social work professionals about implementing new services and programs, working across agencies, and improving practice. These podcasts highlight programs in Rhode Island (July 2022), Washington State (September 2022), the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe (September 2022), Nevada (October 2022), and New Mexico (December 2022).

This report covers the results of a study completed by the United States Government Accountability Office on challenges facing grandparents and other older kin becoming primary caregivers. The report examines the numbers of grandparents and other kin serving as primary caregivers for children and reasons for that care. It also notes challenges kinship caregivers face and how they are addressed, and the extent to which the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services supports states’ efforts to use relevant programs and initiatives. The report highlights kinship care in four selected communities in New Mexico, New York, Mississippi, and Ohio.

This research-to-practice brief profiles a needs assessment of TANF child-only cases undertaken as part of the Office of Family Assistance’s Assisting Special Populations to Improve Readiness and Engagement (ASPIRE) project. Researchers first conducted a literature search and then select interviews with state and local TANF agency officials in California, Idaho, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia, and Washington State. The brief describes three major categories of child-only TANF cases and provides a historical overview of how the TANF child-only caseload has changed in size over time. Additionally, the brief identifies needs pertaining to specific types of TANF child-only families, including non-parent caregivers, ineligible immigrant parents, and SSI recipient parents. Innovative models for alternative service delivery are highlighted.

Historically, low-income students have been identified in schools by receipt of the federal free or reduced lunch program, but this measure is becoming irrelevant and misleading as more districts offer “community eligible” free lunches to all students. As a result, some states have begun to identify low-income students by family participation in programs like TANF, SNAP, Medicaid, and foster care. The post’s authors at the Brookings Institution applaud these methodological changes because they will yield more accurate data on the achievements of disadvantaged students without including non low-income students who may be receiving free or reduced price lunch. This post highlights practices and data from states, such as Delaware, Massachusetts, New Mexico, and Tennessee, as well as the District of Columbia, as exemplary initiatives of linked data measure systems.