“孩子們正在挨餓”:為什么學(xué)校很難讓學(xué)生吃飽飯

“孩子們正在挨餓”:為什么學(xué)校很難讓學(xué)生吃飽飯

Six months into schools' pandemic-driven experiment in distance learning, much has been said (and debated) about whether children are learning. But the more urgent question, for the more than 30 million kids who depend on U.S. schools for free or reduced-price meals, is this:

學(xué)校在流行病的推動下進行的遠程教育實驗已經(jīng)進行了六個月，關(guān)于孩子們是否在學(xué)習(xí)，人們已經(jīng)說了很多(也爭論了很多)。但對于3000多萬依賴美國學(xué)校提供免費或減價膳食的孩子來說，更緊迫的問題是:

Are they eating?

他們有飯吃嗎?

The answer, based on recent data and interviews with school nutrition leaders and anti-hunger advocates across the country, is alarming.

根據(jù)最近的數(shù)據(jù)和對全國學(xué)校營養(yǎng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人和反饑餓倡導(dǎo)者的采訪，答案令人擔憂。

Among low-income households with children who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals, only about 15% have been getting those meals, said Lauren Bauer, a researcher at the Brookings Institution.

布魯金斯學(xué)會的研究員勞倫•鮑爾表示，在低收入家庭中，只有15%的孩子有資格享受免費或減價學(xué)校膳食。

Anecdotally, school nutrition directors across the country tell a similar story.

坊間流傳的說法是，全國各地的學(xué)校營養(yǎng)主管都講述了類似的事情。

"Every day I worry about them. Every day," said Alyssia Wright, executive director of Fulton County Schools' nutrition program in Fulton County, Ga. "We come up with ways every week to find a new way to get meals to our kids."

“每天我都為他們擔心。佐治亞州富爾頓縣學(xué)校營養(yǎng)項目的執(zhí)行主任艾莉西婭·賴特說。“我們每周都想出新辦法讓孩子們吃到飯。”

Because the old ways, from just a few months ago, aren't working anymore.

因為幾個月前的舊方式已經(jīng)不適用了。

Before COVID-19, Arizona's Tucson Unified School District served roughly 35,000 meals a day. So far this school year, according to Lindsay Aguilar, the district's food services director, that number has plummeted by nearly 90%.

在COVID-19之前，亞利桑那州的圖森聯(lián)合學(xué)區(qū)每天供應(yīng)約35,000份餐食。據(jù)該地區(qū)的食品服務(wù)主管林賽•阿吉拉爾說，本學(xué)年到目前為止，這一數(shù)字下降了近90%。

The drop is "disheartening," Aguilar said, "because in our district, 70% of our families qualify for free or reduced-price meals. So I know there's a need."

這種下降“令人沮喪，”阿吉拉爾說，“因為在我們這個地區(qū)，70%的家庭有資格享受免費或減價膳食。”所以我知道有這個需要。”

In Charlotte, N.C., school leaders have seen "a huge difference" in meal distribution, said Reggie Ross, who works for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and heads the national School Nutrition Association. So far this year, Ross said, school meals in Charlotte "were down about 89%."

北卡羅來納州夏洛特市的學(xué)校領(lǐng)導(dǎo)看到了膳食分配上的“巨大差異”，在北卡羅來納州公共教育部工作的雷吉·羅斯說，他是全國學(xué)校營養(yǎng)協(xié)會的負責人。羅斯說，今年迄今為止，夏洛特的學(xué)?；锸?ldquo;下降了大約89%。”

In many districts, the majority of children who qualify for subsidized school meals aren't getting them — often because they can't get to them. And some districts said their meal-service budgets are being stretched so much by the pandemic that they could soon face cuts and layoffs.

在許多地區(qū)，大多數(shù)有資格享受學(xué)校補貼膳食的孩子卻得不到——往往是因為他們無法享受到。一些地區(qū)說，他們的膳食服務(wù)預(yù)算受到疫情的嚴重影響，可能很快就會面臨削減和裁員。

Right now, Bauer said, about a third of U.S. families with children are suffering from food insecurity. "More alarmingly, 1 in 5 families say that the children themselves don't have sufficient food, and the families don't have enough resources to purchase more."

鮑爾說，目前，大約有三分之一的美國有孩子的家庭正遭受著食品不安全問題的困擾。“更令人擔憂的是，五分之一的家庭表示，孩子們自己沒有足夠的食物，而這些家庭也沒有足夠的資源購買更多的食物。”

For some children, school meals may be the only ones they get in a day. And with school feeding programs reaching fewer and fewer families, Bauer worries that "children are going hungry."

對一些孩子來說，學(xué)校餐可能是他們一天中唯一的食物。隨著學(xué)校供餐計劃惠及的家庭越來越少，鮑爾擔心“孩子們會挨餓。”

When schools closed for remote learning in the spring, most districts quickly shifted into a familiar model of food distribution: their summer plan. Under this model, districts chose a handful of schools, in neighborhoods with the greatest need, where families could drop by each day, often between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., and pick up a bag with lunch and often breakfast.

當學(xué)校在春季因遠程教育而停課時，大多數(shù)地區(qū)迅速轉(zhuǎn)向了人們熟悉的食物分配模式:他們的夏季計劃。在這種模式下，學(xué)區(qū)選擇了少數(shù)幾所位于最需要幫助的社區(qū)的學(xué)校，家庭可以每天(通常是在上午11點到下午1點之間)來這里，拿起一個裝有午餐和早餐的袋子。