Child Nutrition Program
Free and Reduced Lunch Application Now Open
Free and Reduced Lunch Applications are now open for the 2026-2027 school year. Families must submit a new application each school year to be considered for benefits. Only one application per family is required.
2026-2027 ACS Student Daily Lunch Pricing:
- $2.75 – Paid Meal
- $0.40 – Reduced-Price Meal (eligibility determined by application)
- FREE – No-Cost Meal (eligibility determined by application)
Please note, unless you receive an email confirming that your student has been approved for Free or Reduced-Price Meals, your child will be charged the full paid meal price.
If you need assistance with the Free and Reduced Lunch Application, contact Dr. Tandy Blackwell, Child Nutrition Program Coordinator, at tandy.blackwell@acs-k12.org or (256) 233-6600.
Be ready for the first day of school - apply today!
Our Purpose
The goal of the Child Nutrition Department is to provide affordable and nutritious meals to students of our school system. Athens City Schools deliver healthy and delicious school meals based on the USDA’s nutrition guidelines so that students are engaged and ready to learn in school. All meals include a variety of fresh fruit and vegetable choices and a variety of chilled non-fat or low-fat milk.
Athens City Child Nutrition Program Fact Sheet
- FREE breakfast at every school for all Pk-12th grade children.
- The average number of children served daily — Lunch: 2,200 / Breakfast: 2,100
- All meals must meet federal nutrition guidelines.
- Breakfast offerings always include fresh fruit.
- Lunch options always include fresh fruit and fresh vegetables (salads).
- Lunches also include whole grains, reduced/zero trans fats, low-fat dairy, baked items, healthy cooking, and prep techniques.
- Calories are limited based on the age of the children being served.
- After school snacks are available free of charge for students at AES, BES, CES, JNES, AIS, AMS and AHS. A snack consists of two meal components that includes a 6oz juice or 8oz of milk AND a 1oz wholegrain or 1oz string cheese or 1oz Gogurt. Some common examples are 6oz fruit juice with a bag of wholegrain chips, 8oz milk with animal crackers, or 6oz fruit juice with a Gogurt.
- All fluid milk must be 1% milk fat or less.
- Students have choices but must take at least 1 serving of fruit or vegetable.
- Items may appear to be the same as store-bought products, but they have been specifically made for schools with whole grains, reduced sodium, fewer calories, etc.
- Chicken and Potato products may appear fried to appeal to students, but they are baked.
- Pizza has a whole-grain crust, low-fat cheese, and reduced sodium sauce.
- Our School Nutrition Services team uses a program that calculates the nutritional values of all meal offerings to ensure they meet strict standards.
- All menus are available on any school website or the district website. Nutritional information is available per request to central office.
- Free and Reduced Priced Meals can be completed online from the district website by clicking FREE & REDUCED LUNCH APPLICATION or downloaded from the district website.
- Online payments and alerts of low balances can be set up by clicking the link ONLINE MEAL PAYMENTS on any school or district website.
- USDA research indicates that children who participate in the School Lunch Program have superior nutritional intakes compared to those who do not participate.
USDA Statement of Nondiscrimination
United States Department of Agriculture Nondiscrimination Statement
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the State or local Agency that administers the program or contact USDA through the Telecommunications Relay Service at 711 (voice and TTY). Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.
To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027 , found online at How to File a Program Discrimination Complaint and at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by:
1. Mail:U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Mail Stop 9410, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410;
2. Fax: 2. Fax: (202) 690-7442; or
3. Email: program.intake@usda.gov.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Departamento de Agricultura de Estados Unidos Declaración de no discriminación
De acuerdo con la ley federal de derechos civiles y las normas y políticas de derechos civiles del Departamento de Agricultura de los Estados Unidos (USDA), esta entidad está prohibida de discriminar por motivos de raza, color, origen nacional, sexo (incluyendo identidad de género y orientación sexual), discapacidad, edad, o represalia o retorsión por actividades previas de derechos civiles.
La información sobre el programa puede estar disponible en otros idiomas que no sean el inglés. Las personas con discapacidades que requieren medios alternos de comunicación para obtener la información del programa (por ejemplo, Braille, letra grande, cinta de audio, lenguaje de señas americano (ASL), etc.) deben comunicarse con la agencia local o estatal responsable de administrar el programa o con el Centro TARGET del USDA al (202) 720-2600 (voz y TTY) o comuníquese con el USDA a través del Servicio Federal de Retransmisión al (800) 877-8339.
Para presentar una queja por discriminación en el programa, el reclamante debe llenar un formulario AD-3027, formulario de queja por discriminación en el programa del USDA, el cual puede obtenerse en línea en: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027s.pdf, de cualquier oficina de USDA, llamando al (866) 632-9992, o escribiendo una carta dirigida a USDA. La carta debe contener el nombre del demandante, la dirección, el número de teléfono y una descripción escrita de la acción discriminatoria alegada con suficiente detalle para informar al Subsecretario de Derechos Civiles (ASCR) sobre la naturaleza y fecha de una presunta violación de derechos civiles. El formulario AD-3027 completado o la carta debe presentarse a USDA por:
(1) correo: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; o
(2) fax: (833) 256-1665 o (202) 690-7442; o
(3) correo electrónico: program.intake@usda.gov
Esta institución es un proveedor que ofrece igualdad de oportunidades.