A GoFundMe account, started just five days ago, has already surpassed its goal of $7,600 its organizer said is necessary to pay of Kings Local School District's lunch debt.
The GoFundMe, titled "Erase Kings School Lunch Debt" was started by Keri Arinsmier, according to the account's page. WCPO reached out to Arinsmier, but she declined an interview.
The account sought to raise $7,600 to cover the outstanding balance and by Wednesday, just five days after it was opened, the account raised over $8,000 for the district.
If the debt hadn't been paid off, Arinsmier wrote in the GoFundMe description that the district could have been forced to give kids "alternative lunches."
"No kid should have to feel shame at lunch," wrote Arinsmier. "And our Kings staff who cares so much for our kids each and every day doesn't want to be forced to do that."
She added that lunches in the district cost nearly $3 per meal.
The GoFundMe took off from the beginning, raising over half of its goal in the first day.
Kings Local Schools is far from being the only school district struggling under the weight of lunch debt incurred alongside rising food prices.
Schools' prioritize feeding students over charging them for their meals when a students' account is empty, so many districts have seen debts rise over the years. On top of that, the USDA ended its pandemic-era free federal waivers, which allowed all students to automatically get free breakfast and lunch at school.
But Kings Local Schools also isn't the only district in the region that has seen community support rise up to solve the issue.
In 2019, Fairfield City Elementary resorted to providing PB&J or cheese sandwiches for students who couldn't afford a lunch, but that option left some students still hungry — and it didn't account for dietary restrictions or allergies. Non-profit Dougie & Rays stepped in with a program called Lunch It Forward, that helped pay off lunch debt for the district's youngest students.
In 2020, Sycamore Community Schools in Blue Ash received a hefty donation from InfoTrust, a local analytics and tech company, to cover their $5,500 lunch debt.
In January, Boone County Schools said its school lunch debt jumped from $10,000 before the COVID-19 pandemic to $25,000 — accrued from the 2022-2023 school year alone.
WCPO reached out to Kings Local Schools for further comment but have not yet heard back.
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