D211 standard lunch cost increasing by 10 cents

Schaumburg-Palatine High School District 211 students will have to pay 10 cents more for a full-price standard lunch next school year.

The District 211 Board of Education voted last week to keep all other fees — including textbooks, bus transportation, driver’s education and student parking — at the same rates as this year.

The 10 cent increase means prices for a standard lunch will rise to $2.15, $2.30 or $2.45, depending on what entree the student chooses to eat that day. The three-tier standard lunch pricing structure was instituted in 2010-11 and has been a popular choice for students, said David Torres, associate superintendent for business.

Torres said he didn’t know exactly how many standard lunches — which all include milk and a specified amount of grains, fruits and vegetables — are bought at full price per day, but estimated that a majority of students choose to eat them over a la carte options.

“I think people are making healthier choices,” he said. Standard lunches have “really been a very successful change and option for students.”

He said the increase in lunch prices is a result of the rising costs of operating the standard lunch program and producing meals that meet the standards of the Health, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.

The district increased prices for standard lunches by 10 cents last year too.

Reimbursements that the district receives from the government because of its participation in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National School Breakfast and National School Lunch programs also play a role in the increase.

District fees that will remain the same range from $35 for a late registration fee for bus service applications received after July 6, 2012, to $350 for driver education behind-the-wheel. The student parking fee will stay at $65 while the textbook/instructional supply fee will remain at $160.