INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Thousands of students at select Indian River County schools will receive free meals during the 2026-27 school year through a federal program designed to improve access to nutritious food for children in lower-income communities.
Fellsmere Academy will offer both free breakfast and lunch to all students. Pelican Island Classical Magnet School, Citrus Elementary School, Dodgertown Elementary School, Vero Beach Elementary School and Indian River Academy will provide free breakfast.
The schools participate in Provision 2, a federal meal program that allows qualifying schools to serve meals at no cost to all students. Schools must meet federal eligibility requirements and receive approval from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to participate.
Cristen Maddux, a spokesperson for the School District of Indian River County, said the schools receiving free meals this year are the same ones that participated during the previous school year.
"The eligibility is based on how many students at the school are eligible for free or reduced lunch. It has to be 80% or higher, so that's why these schools were eligible. They were the same schools that were receiving this benefit last year. We didn't have any new schools added or any schools taken off of that list," she said.
According to the district, schools establish eligibility during a "base year," when household meal applications are collected and students are categorized for federal reimbursement purposes. Once approved, schools can continue operating under Provision 2 for up to four years before re-establishing eligibility.
Fellsmere Academy is the only school in the district able to provide both breakfast and lunch because of its higher percentage of students eligible for free meals. The other participating schools qualify for the program, but receive enough federal reimbursement to cover free breakfast only.
Maddux emphasized that students attending schools outside the Provision 2 program may still qualify for free or reduced-price meals based on their household's financial situation.
"All of our students can apply for free or reduced meals, so we don't want families to be under the impression that they're only at these certain schools. Everyone can apply, and there are several students that are eligible for free or reduced meals at our other schools. They just don't necessarily meet that threshold of schools individually for the Provision 2 status," she said.
Applications for free and reduced-price meals for the 2026-27 school year open July 15. The district encourages families at every school to apply, noting the information also helps determine future participation in federal meal programs.
District officials say the program is intended to support both student health and academic performance by ensuring children have access to nutritious meals during the school day.
"I think that a lot of times students are getting their meals at school because of some of the disadvantages that they might face. It's hard for families to provide a lot of times nutritionally balanced breakfast and lunch. So a lot of these kids are coming in very early in the morning to go to school, and our kitchen staff and our cafeterias are there to give them the fuel that they need for the day, and it's obviously very important, especially for younger children, to fuel their brains," Maddux said.
The district also continues to offer a free summer meals program for children 18 and younger to provide access to meals while school is out of session.