School nutrition professionals from across the United States arrived in Washington, D.C. last month with a clear and unified message for policymakers: if the country expects schools to continue improving the quality and nutritional value of the meals served to students each day, the federal government must increase its investment in the programs responsible for delivering those meals.
That message framed the School Nutrition Association’s 54th annual Legislative Action Conference, which brought more than 850 school nutrition directors, administrators and industry leaders to the nation’s capital for three days of policy discussions, education sessions and meetings with lawmakers focused on the future of school meal programs.
Held at the JW Marriott on Pennsylvania Avenue, just steps from the White House and Capitol Hill, the conference provided school nutrition professionals with a national stage to discuss both the progress and the challenges facing school meal programs across the country. The event’s agenda blended policy briefings with operational education sessions designed to prepare attendees for the conversations they would soon be having with members of Congress and their staff.
For many participants, the conference represented a rare opportunity to bring real-world operational experience directly into Washington policy discussions. School nutrition directors manage complex programs that must balance strict federal nutrition requirements, tight operating budgets and the expectations of students and families who rely on school meals each day.
The conference concluded with coordinated visits to Capitol Hill where school nutrition leaders met directly with lawmakers and congressional staff to share insights from their districts and advocate for stronger federal support for school meal programs.
The timing of the conference comes as the U.S. Department of Agriculture prepares to release updated regulations designed to align school nutrition standards with the new 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Those guidelines emphasize higher protein intake, increased use of whole foods and reductions in highly processed ingredients. For school nutrition professionals, the proposed standards represent an opportunity to further improve the nutritional quality of meals served to millions of students each day. At the same time, many districts say the changes could introduce significant financial and logistical challenges without additional federal support.
Stephanie Dillard, President of the School Nutrition Association and Child Nutrition Director for Enterprise City Schools in Alabama, said one of the conference’s primary goals was helping lawmakers understand the financial realities behind school meal operations.
She explained that while school meals are often viewed as a simple service, the economics behind the programs are far more complex. “$4.70 must cover the food and the supplies, our labor and our equipment, deliveries and utilities, and the list goes on,” Dillard said.
That reimbursement rate represents the federal payment schools receive for providing a free lunch to eligible students, yet it must stretch across every aspect of the operation—from purchasing ingredients and maintaining kitchen equipment to paying staff and managing transportation and distribution
logistics.
Dillard added that many school nutrition leaders are enthusiastic about expanding scratch cooking and introducing new menu options that align with the latest nutrition guidelines, but the economics of those choices can make it difficult to incorporate them regularly into school menus. “Our St. Patrick’s Day menu featured a scratch prepared Shepherd’s Pie using fresh, locally sourced beef,” she added. “I wish we could offer this option regularly, but local beef is priced about $3 more per pound.”
The financial concerns raised by school nutrition directors were reinforced by new data shared during the conference. According to the School Nutrition Association’s 2025–26 School Nutrition Trends Survey, nearly every responding school meal program director reported needing additional funding to sustain their operations.
The survey found that 99 percent of respondents said they required more resources to support their programs, while 79 percent reported an “extreme need” for increased funding to expand scratch cooking, reduce reliance on ultra-processed foods and comply with upcoming regulatory changes.
Ryan Mikolaycik, Executive Director of food services and warehouse operations for the Austin Independent School District, said those statistics closely mirror what his team has experienced while operating one of the nation’s largest school nutrition programs. “School meals are already the healthiest meals American children eat, thanks to current federal nutrition standards,” Mikolaycik noted.
However, he emphasized that the next phase of federal guidelines will place even greater expectations on school nutrition programs across the country. “I support those goals and many schools like ours have been working toward these principles for years,” Mikolaycik continued. “But when 79% of school nutrition directors report an ‘extreme need’ for increased funding already, it’s impossible to ask us to do more with less.”
During the Legislative Action Conference, those concerns formed the foundation of the advocacy conversations school nutrition professionals carried into their meetings with members of Congress. Leaders emphasized that federal investment must keep pace with rising food costs, labor challenges and the infrastructure upgrades needed to support scratch cooking and healthier menu development.
Liz Campbell, Vice President of Government Affairs for the School Nutrition Association, said those operational realities were frequently highlighted during discussions with policymakers in Washington. She explained that many school districts are attempting to strengthen their culinary programs by hiring chefs, expanding staff training and investing in new kitchen equipment, but those efforts are often constrained by staffing shortages and tight budgets.
“The director in Meriden, Connecticut hired a chef specifically to develop scratch recipes and build staff skills,” Campbell detailed. “But too often he spends his time filling in on the line serving kids because of staff shortages.”
Campbell said those examples illustrate why school nutrition leaders are asking Congress to take a broader approach to supporting school meal programs. In addition to increasing reimbursement rates for meals, the association’s policy recommendations also call for greater investment in training, kitchen equipment and infrastructure that would allow districts to prepare more meals from scratch while maintaining efficiency and food safety.
Throughout the Legislative Action Conference, participants emphasized that their advocacy efforts ultimately focus on ensuring school nutrition programs remain both sustainable and effective. School meal programs currently serve roughly 30 million children each school day, providing a vital source of nutrition for students in communities across the country.
Campbell outlined that the School Nutrition Association’s 2026 Position Paper calls on Congress to increase school meal funding, protect and expand access to healthy meals for students and ensure that updates to federal nutrition standards remain operationally feasible for districts working within tight budgets and complex logistical environments.
As the conference concluded and school nutrition professionals returned to their districts across the country, many expressed optimism that their conversations in Washington had helped policymakers gain a clearer understanding of the operational and financial challenges facing school meal programs.
Dillard concluded that continued collaboration between school nutrition professionals, federal agencies and lawmakers will be essential to ensuring the nation’s school meal system continues evolving in a way that supports both student health and operational
sustainability.
“We will continue to work with the USDA, Congress and the White House to ensure schools receive necessary support to bring us even more in line with the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” she concluded.