HUDSON— With the funding for Free Meals for All now permanent and included in Gov. Maura Healey’s budget, Director of Dining Services Michelle DePaul gave the highlights of what the department had been up to and what the funding means for Hudson students at the Aug. 22 Hudson School Committee meeting.
The budget includes $172 million in funding to be used for the Free Meals for All program.
DePaul, who worked as a dietetic intern in 2018 prior to becoming director in August, said she has had “a very warm welcome” in Hudson.
She said one of the prominent topics for food services is that the state approved another year for the Free Meals for All initiative, and it is now permanently in the budget.
Regardless of household income, children will get free meals. Massachusetts was the fifth state in the United States to fund a permanent free meal program, according to DePaul.
“Every student in every school can get one free breakfast and one free lunch permanently,” DePaul said.
She noted that they are encouraging families to fill out an application, which could be found at the Hudson Public Schools website, www.hudson.k12.ma.us.
She said, “This just helps provide data for our funding for the year.”
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As for data regarding meal participation, with the introduction of the Free Meals for All as a temporary measure in the 2022-23 school year, she said there was a steady increase from 2019.
The district average went from 42% to 59% participation with a slight dip in 2023 at Hudson High School and Quinn Middle School.
New school year
In other news, Superintendent Brian Reagan reported on the preparations for the start of the new school year.
He said, “We’re in really good shape to open up on Wednesday for students.”
He said the district is in good shape in terms of personnel as they are finalizing the filling of current vacancies at the high school and middle school for Spanish and part-time music positions, respectively.
The district is struggling to find paraprofessionals to fill spots, Reagan said, an issue that Hudson is “not alone” in facing. They do a lot of advertising at parishes and places where families gather to get interested parties, he noted.
He said if anyone is interested in working in the Hudson schools as a paraprofessional or a therapist, the person can go to the school website to apply. Director of Pupil Services Catherine Kilcoyne estimated there were about 70 paraprofessionals set to work in the district this year.
He added, “They’re very rewarding positions.”
In transitioning into the superintendent role, Reagan has met with town leaders, including the police and fire chiefs in late July and the Executive Assistant Thomas Gregory and Finance Committee Chair Sam Calandra in August.
He said the “biggest piece for the fall that I’m excited about” is the residencies he will do at each school in the district. His schedule for them is as follows: Farley Elementary School from Sept. 11 to 18, Forest Avenue Elementary School from Sept. 25 to 29, Mulready Elementary School from Oct. 2 to 6, Quinn Middle School from Oct. 20 to 27 and the high school from Oct. 30 to Nov. 3.
All week, he added, “I will function out of that building, not out of Apsley Street.”
He said he is “really looking forward” to the residencies and working out of those schools.
School Committee member Christopher Yates said, “It’s great you’re going to be in all of the five schools for a week.”
He also commended Reagan on meeting with the town leadership and asked how the meeting with the Finance Committee went. Reagan said it went well.
He added, “He was very complimentary to the district in general, school committee leadership.”
While Calandra recognizes the work that goes into the school budget, he is also realistic, Reagan said.
Calandra suggested that Reagan work with the strategic planning subcommittee to develop a “digestible and succinct message that the average citizen in town can understand” regarding the financial future of the Hudson School District.
