Field Reports
Tracing Race-Related Tethers in the National School Lunch Program: Exploring CEP as an Equitable Solution for Tomorrow’s Alabama
Kate Blankinship,
Emerson Fellow
Published 2020-2021
Montgomery, Alabama
The U.S. has witnessed unprecedented policy shifts related to child nutrition during COVID-19. However, federal intervention in school meal programs has a deep-rooted history. This report tells a story of school lunches in Alabama. Starting with the historiography of school meals, it traces the National School Lunch Program’s roots into today’s policies and discusses the subsequent impacts on children. More importantly, this report examines the inherently prejudiced nature of school meal legislation and the disproportionate impact of food insecurity on Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. This report closes out by exploring COVID-19-inspired legislation as permanent solutions to childhood hunger.
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Publication tags: Field Reports
Originally from Memphis, Kate graduated with honors from the University of Chicago with a major in Linguistics and minor in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. As an undergraduate, Kate was heavily involved in public service, working with local pre-schools and CBOs while also pursuing independent and supervised research on anti-poverty, child welfare, and other social welfare programs. As a research assistant, Kate analyzed poor civil litigants’ access to the federal legal system, the availability of public health resources in tribal communities and in U.S. territories, and the resilience of SNAP and Medicaid in the current administration. After graduating college, Kate served with Americorps, working with the nonprofit College Possible in Chicago where she advocated for and mentored high school seniors as they navigated the college application and scholarships processes.
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