Universal Free School Meals in the United States: Examining Factors Influencing Adoption of Community Eligibility Provision

Food insecurity for households with children is a large problem in the United States, an issue exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing school meal programs as critical safety nets for children in low-income households, many states are passing legislation to adopt universal free school meals. Funding for the statewide program is tied with the federally funded Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) that became available to all school districts in school year 2014-15. A universal free school meal program, CEP is available to schools with high levels of low-income children. However, close to half of all eligible school districts did not participate in CEP in school year 2018-19 despite research showing benefits of adoption for the children, schools, and community. Using a policy diffusion approach and a Cox regression model, this research examines factors associated with higher rates of participation in CEP. Informing state and federal agencies, and policymakers, the results demonstrate the importance of a school district’s identified student percentage (reflecting school district level poverty) and a state’s direct certification rate (a process that certifies students for free school meals) in increasing the likelihood of CEP adoption.