School forces 25 students to throw away lunches when they couldn’t pay..kids cried, went home hungry

[liberalhistorian]

39. No shit. In my own rural district,

where I sub for all grades when needed (one connected building and cafeteria serves all the grades, at different breakfast and lunch times), this would never have happened or been tolerated. For one thing, the school takes care of it itself, it doesn't contract the food service out and it hires local community people, who all know each other and the children. For another, I have personally witnessed times when children haven't had enough prepaid credits or money and were waved through with no problem, (usually saying "just bring it tomorrow or have mom or dad call), and, for another, the district's culture simply wouldn't go for it. There have even been times when I, as a sub, have been short a bit (we have to pay for our lunches same as the other teachers and the students) and have simply been told to take care of it later, when I can.

That kind of thing used to be commonplace; I know, 'cause my parents were teachers. But cash-strapped districts that barely have the money for even the basics of education anymore are more and more contracting out to for-profit private contractors who usually aren't from the community and whose only concern regarding the community is how much money it can suck up from students and teachers. When profit and the bottom line are all that matters, which is true for most private businesses, this is the kind of shit that will result. Now, profit is fine for most businesses. But there are some areas that should never be privatized; public education and services, prisons and public health are prime among them.