Free school meals return as Carroll County students head back to class

Carroll County students return to School

Students in Carroll County returned to school Friday, and many were greeted with more than just new teachers and class schedules. Thanks to a federal program, every child in the district is now receiving free meals?no questions asked.

CARROLLTON, Ga. - Students at Central Elementary were greeted with pizza, corn dogs, and warm smiles on their first day back to school Friday — but the biggest welcome may have come from the lunchroom, where not a single child had to pay for a meal.

Carroll County Schools is now in its second year of offering free breakfast and lunch to all students through the federal Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), a program aimed at reducing food insecurity in high-poverty districts.

Carroll County is one of 185 school food authorities across Georgia now participating in CEP, which allows schools that meet certain income-based requirements to serve free meals to all students without collecting individual applications. Statewide, more than 1,350 schools are enrolled in the program for the 2025–2026 academic year.

What they're saying:

"You know they are going to love the corn dog," said Central Elementary Principal Marla Turpin. "But serve it with salad and fruit on the side, and they are more likely to eat the food with it."

For some students, those trays of food may be the only full meals they get all day.

"No one should have to worry about food, especially children," Turpin said.

Turpin noted the equalizing effect of the program.

"Every student gets the same. There’s no labels," she said. "Did you bring lunch money today, honey? We don’t want that."

Carroll County Schools Nutrition Director Bridgett Cross said the district had worked for years to qualify for CEP, finally becoming eligible two years ago after the federal government began including Medicaid data in its calculations.

"That’s what enabled Carroll County to qualify," Cross said.

She said the feedback from families has been overwhelmingly positive.

"I hear, ‘You just don’t know the difference this makes.’ It’s just such a blessing to our family," Cross added.

Amid concerns about future federal funding, Cross said she wrote a letter to President Trump thanking him for the program and urging continued support.

"I thanked him for the ability to feed our children," she said, "and just hoping in the days moving forward that our government will always put our children first."