Free or Reduced Lunch

• Almost a third of Minnesota school children and more than four in ten school children in Wisconsin are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches at their schools because of their families’ low-income levels.
• Substantially lower proportions of students in Chisago, Washington, Pierce, and St. Croix Counties are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches than their respective states.
• Compared to the Wisconsin average, a slightly higher proportion of Polk County students and a much higher proportion of Burnett County students (in fact, almost six in ten) are eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches.

• Although the national economy was slowly improving over the 2010-2019 period, the proportion of Wisconsin students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches remained steady.
• The percentage of Pierce and St. Croix Counties eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches has consistently been about one-third lower than the state average. On the other hand, Burnett’s percentage has been consistently higher than the Wisconsin average and Polk’s surpassed the state average during the 2020-21 school year.
• The percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches in Wisconsin and the St. Croix River Valley Counties increased significantly during the 2019-20 school year and peaked during 2020-21, possibly as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic implications on lower-income families; even though the statewide percentage of eligible students decreased in the following school year, it is still above pre-pandemic levels.
• All St. Croix River counties in Wisconsin followed the statewide trend, but Burnett County observed the most drastic increase: the percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches went from 35% in 2018-19 to 59% in the 2020-21 school year.
• County-level percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches has been unavailable since the 2021-22 school year.

• Around three in ten of Minnesota students have been eligible for free or reduced-priced school lunches for most of the 2010 – 2022 time period.
• In both Chisago and Washington Counties the proportions of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunches have been much lower than the state average, with this proportion falling to almost half of the Minnesota average during the 2020-21 school year.
• The proportion of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunches in Washington and Chisago counties has been very similar. Although Washington County has observed lower proportions compared to Chisago County for most of the 2010 – 2021 time period, the two counties observed the same percentage (around 17%) in the 2020-21 school year.
• The percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches in Minnesota and the St. Croix River Valley counties increased significantly during the 2019-20 school year, possibly as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic implications on lower-income families; even though such percentages decreased in the following school year, they are still above pre-pandemic levels.
• County-level percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price school lunches has been unavailable since the 2021-22 school year.

View spreadsheet