Two Ways to Participate: Weekly Meal Box Pick Up or On-Site Dining
During the month of June, Bulloch County Schools will provide free meals to any children ages 18 and younger as part of its annual Summer Meals Program.
The program is open to all children regardless of income, school enrollment, or county residency. These meals are made possible through federal and state school nutrition funding to ensure that all children have access to healthy meals during the summer months when school is out.
This year there are flexible options for families. They may choose to pick up a weekly box of meals or on-site dining.
Weekly Meal Box Pick up on Four Mondays in June
The school district will have four distribution sites for weekly meal box pick up. Using a convenient drive-thru method, families will receive one box per child. Each box includes food supplies for seven days’ worth of breakfasts and lunches. The boxes will also include important information about food safety, food preparation and meal menus.
Pick-up dates are the first four Mondays in June (2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd), from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. or while supplies last. The weekly meal box sites are the following:
• Statesboro High School, located at 10 Coach Lee Hill Boulevard in Statesboro
• Stilson Elementary School, located at 15569 State Route 119 in Brooklet
• Nevils Elementary School, located at 8438 Nevils-Groveland Road in Statesboro
• Portal Middle High School, located at 27245 Highway 80 West in Portal
For these sites, families are encouraged to have their children with them, but if they do not, they should allow enough time to complete a simple state-required household verification form on which they will list each child’s name. Again, children do not have to be students of Bulloch County Schools or residents of Bulloch County.
Dine-In Meals on Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays June 3 – 26
Children may enjoy breakfast and lunch on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays June 3 through June 26, at Sallie Zetterower Elementary School, located at 1200 Cawana Road in Statesboro. Breakfast will be served from 7:45 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., and lunch is 12 noon to 1 p.m. Meals at this location must be eaten on site.
Since children will be present, there are no forms to complete to participate. Children can be accompanied by a parent, family member, caregiver, or for older children, enter independently.
Children who are enrolled in Bulloch County Schools’ summer learning programs at Sallie Zetterower Elementary will receive free meals at this location as well.
Why Summer Meals Are Important
Food insecurity is a concern for children in Bulloch County throughout the year, but especially when schools are closed for the summer.
- More than 87% of students enrolled in the school district qualify for free and reduced-priced meals.
- Twelve of the school district’s 15 schools qualify for the United States Department of Agriculture’s Community Eligibility Provision program which allows the nation’s highest poverty schools, who have a high percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals, to serve breakfast and lunch at no cost to all enrolled students at those schools without collecting Free and Reduced-Price Meal Applications.
- During the 2024-2025 school year Bulloch County Schools served 380 children who were identified as homeless based on the federal government’s McKinney Vento Act definition of lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.
- In the 2024/2025 school year, 69% of students were identified as economically disadvantaged.
