THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2021 Page 15 Sen. DiDomenico and colleagues pass student nutritional legislation require schools and districts where a majority of students are low-income to enroll in federal programs – known as the Community Eligibility Provision and Provision 2 – that allow them to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students. In addition to providing universal meals, these programs reduce administrative burdens for schools. DiDomenico, a longtime champion for food security and the Commonwealth’s children and families, spoke on the floor of the Senate in Sal DiDomenico State Senator O n September 23, State Senator Sal DiDomenico and his colleagues in the Massachusetts Senate voted to pass Bill 298, An Act to promote student nutrition, which would ensure that more children in Massachusetts have access to nutritious school meals. This legislation would CIVIC | FROM PAGE 11 In addition, the MSO has fully incorporated voter registration into our reentry programming. Our staff works diligently to ensure that returning citizens understand their voting rights and the value of civic engagement to a full and successful reentry into society. Since November 2019, we have helped 192 individuals register to vote as part of the reentry process. Many of those who registered did not know they would be eligible to vote upon their release and several were registering for the first time in their lives. I look forward to continuing to work with members of the Legislature, the Secretary of the Commonwealth, local elections officials, and community partners to ensure all eligible individuals have the opportunity to cast ballots who wish to do so. INVESTING | FROM PAGE 6 less than the grant amount requested. Completed applications may be emailed to: Everett.Mayor@ci.everett.ma.us. Please include the word “Grant” in the subject line. Or you may mail your completed application to: Women and Minority Owned Business Grant Program, c/o Office of Mayor DeMaria, 484 Broadway, Everett, MA 02149. support of the bill during the Senate’s debate of the bill. “We live in a wealthy state but there are haves and have nots. There are students in our communities whose last meal was lunch the day before. We have parents in food lines making tough choices between feeding their kids, paying for prescriptions and paying rent,” said DiDomenico. “We can have the best schools and teachers but if our kids come to school hungry, they are not ready to learn.” The bill minimizes families’ meal debt by requiring school districts to maximize federal revenues and directing the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to assist them in doing so. When students do accrue debt, the bill requires school districts to determine whether they are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. Finally, An Act to promote student nutrition prohibits schools from targeting students who carry meal-related debt with punitive practices, such as withholding report cards and transcripts, preventing students from graduating or walking at graduation, barring students from participating in no-fee extracurricular events like field trips, or throwing a child’s hot meal away and replacing it with an inferior meal. The House of Representatives had passed a version of the bill on July 29. This bill returned to the House; on September 27 the House referred the bill to its Committee on Bills in the Third Reading for further action.
16 Publizr Home