Gov. Kathy Hochul visited Eagle Point Elementary School on Thursday afternoon to talk with students and staff about her plan to provide free school meals to all students in New York beginning next school year.
The governor met with members of Eagle Point’s Student Equity Team in the library at the start of her visit – London Ford, Harper King, Ziahn Carrillo and Kazi Omme Kotha, as well as equity team mentor Marcella Klaes-Eichhorn.
Also representing the district were Superintendent Joseph Hochreiter, Principal Jared Fox, Albany Public School Teachers Association President Laura Franz and four members of the Board of Education – President Sridar Chittur, Ph.D., Vice President Tabetha Wilson, Secretary Ellen Krejci and member Vickie Smith.
Local elected officials also joined the governor – Mayor Kathy Sheehan, Albany’s representatives in the State Legislature, Sen. Pat Fahy and Assemblymember Gabriella Romero, and Assemblymember John McDonald.
All district students have benefitted from free breakfast and lunch at school for many years through the Community Eligibility Provision of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. However, many federal programs are in jeopardy under President Trump, and Gov. Hochul’s plan would alleviate funding concerns about school meals for all New York students and families.
“We are grateful to Governor Hochul for advocating for free meals at school for every student in New York, especially during these incredibly unsettling times with education funding under attack at the federal level,” Superintendent Hochreiter said. “Hunger is a tremendous obstacle to student success, and Governor Hochul's plan to remove that obstacle across our state is the right thing to do for our future.”
Visit our Facebook page to check out photos. You also can visit the governor’s website to read more about her plan, and for additional photos from her team.
“The research on this critically important topic is irrefutable — and aligned with our daily experiences here at Eagle Point Elementary School — children do better at school when they have access to free breakfast and lunch at school,” Fox said. “They have better attendance, are focused and more alert, and generally happier and less anxious.
“It would be devastating to our school community to lose the federal funding that has sustained these programs for many years, and we thank Governor Hochul for stepping in to assure that that will not be a concern for educators and families in New York.”
