Mansfield Coronavirus: Where To Get School Lunches Amid Closures

MANSFIELD, MA — Schools across Massachusetts are closed through April 6 in an effort to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, leaving parents to make their now homebound children with lunch each day, a meal often supplied by school cafeterias.

The lack of school lunches is a particular challenge for families of children who qualify for free or reduced price school meals.

A study from 2017, the most recent data available on the topic, shows some 442,000 students qualify for free or reduced price school meals.

Childhood Hunger Facts:

• More than 400,000 students in Massachusetts qualified for free or reduced school meals, according to Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
• One in nine kids in the state is food-insecure
• In 2019, some 57,000 meals were served each day across the state through the Summer Meals program
• 486,000 kids eat school lunches each day
• More facts about hunger in Massachusetts are available via Project Bread

In an effort to ensure students and families who rely on these program still have access to meals five days a week, a number of schools and other facilities across the state are continuing to provide lunches to families in need.

Here's where to get school breakfasts and lunches in Mansfield:

• Attleboro Area Interfaith Collaborative — First Baptist Church
  • Tuesdays starting at 4 p.m.
  • Mansfield 52 N Main St, Mansfield, MA 02048
  • Free hot meals to go for anyone (not just children) who needs a meal. No questions asked.
  • Click here for more information

School closure meal data is provided by Project Bread. A list of all schools still serving lunches across the state of Massachusetts is available online.

"Project Bread is working with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and many schools and community partners to provide families with access to school meals while schools are closed," the organization said.

On the map below, you can scroll to zoom, click and drag to move around the state and click on pins for details.

Do you know of a school not on the list? Let us know in the comments.

Read next:

• Coronavirus In MA: Where To Get Meals During School Closures
• What Massachusetts Food Pantries Are Doing About Coronavirus