Meal Benefits Application (Free and Reduced) Application

• All children in households receiving benefits from SNAP, the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) or  TANF, are eligible for free meals.
• Foster children that are under the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court are eligible for free meals. 
• Children participating in their school’s Head Start program are eligible for free meals.
• Children who meet the definition of homeless, runaway, or migrant are eligible for free meals.
  • • Families or children who are living in motels, hotels, hostels, RVs, campgrounds, emergency or transitional shelters, abandoned buildings, cars, parks, or any other public or private places not designed or ordinarily used as permanent lodging.
    • Families or children who are sharing the housing of another person due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason.
    • A child who is formally placed by the court into foster care. 
    • A child who is identified as a runaway and receiving assistance from a program under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act.
    • Families or children considered migrant agricultural workers. 

• Children may receive free or reduced price meals if your household’s income is within the limits on the Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines. Your children may qualify for free or reduced price meals if your household income falls at or below the limits on the chart above.

We strongly encourage you to complete the Free and Reduced Application before school starts each school year.  If your child charges meals before you complete the application, you are responsible for those charges regardless of your Free and Reduced status after you apply.  

Yes! You are encouraged to complete an online application instead of a paper application if you are able. The online application has the same requirements and will ask you for the same information as the paper application. Visit Aspire to begin or to learn more about the online application process. Contact Catalina Vasquez - Director or Child Nutrition Programs if you have any questions about the online application.

No. Use one Free and Reduced Price School Meals Application for all students in your household. Applications can be completed online or the application above can be printed and completed in PEN. We cannot approve an application that is not complete, so be sure to fill out all required information. Return the completed application to: Grand County School District 264 South 400 East Moab, Utah 85432

Yes! You may apply at any time during the school year.  For example, children with a parent or guardian who becomes unemployed may become eligible for free and reduced price meals if the household income drops below the income limit. If you are a seasonal worker you may use your average annual (yearly) income to complete the application. If you have any questions about this process, please contact Catalina Vasquez - Director or Child Nutrition Programs.

Children in households participating in WIC may be eligible for free or reduced price meals.  Please send in an application.

List the amount that you normally receive. For example, if you normally make $1000 each month, but you missed some work last month and only made $900, put down that you make $1000 per month.  If you normally get overtime, include it, but do not include it if you only work overtime sometimes.  If you have lost a job or had your hours or wages reduced, use your current income. If you are a seasonal worker you may use your average yearly income. Please contact Catalina Vasquez - Director or Child Nutrition Programs if you have any questions.

Families or children meeting any of the situations listed below may qualify for free or reduced priced meals REGARDLESS of income.

• Families or children who are living in motels, hotels, hostels, RVs, campgrounds, emergency or transitional shelters, abandoned buildings, cars, parks, or any other public or private places not designed or ordinarily used as permanent lodging.

• Families or children who are sharing the housing of another person due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason.

• A child who is formally placed by the court into foster care. 

• A child who is identified as a runaway and receiving assistance from a program under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act.

• Families or children considered migrant agricultural workers. 

If your family meets any of these situations please contact the Director of Child Nutrition Programs to determine free or reduced price meal eligibility and find out if additional resources are available to you.

Catalina Vasquez, CDM, CFPP

Director of Child Nutrition Programs

608 South 400 East

Moab, Utah 85432

(435) 259-2757

[email protected]

Household members may not receive some types of income we ask you to report on the application, or may not receive income at all. Whenever this happens, please write a 0 in the field. However, if any income fields are left empty or blank, those will also be counted as zeroes. Please be careful when leaving income fields blank, as we will assume you meant to do so.

Many families in Grand County do not qualify for free meals based on income, but don't make enough money to comfortably provide breakfast and/or lunch to their school-age children. 

If your family or children meet any of the following situations you may be eligible for free or reduced priced meals, regardless of income: 

• Families or children who participate in SNAP, FDPIR, or TANF 
• Families or children who are living in motels, hotels, hostels, RVs, campgrounds, emergency or transitional shelters, abandoned buildings, cars, parks, or any other public or private places not designed or ordinarily used as permanent lodging.
• Families or children who are sharing the housing of another person due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason.
• A child who is formally placed by the court into foster care. 
• A child who is identified as a runaway and receiving assistance from a program under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act.
• Families or children considered migrant agricultural workers. 

If your family or children do not meet any of those situations, please complete this form.  GCSD often has some funds available from generous donors to help pay for student meals.  We cannot apply emergency lunch funds to your student's account without a completed Emergency Lunch Fund Application AND a completed Meal Benefits (Free & Reduced) Application. 

If you find that your family is struggling to provide meals for your children, please contact: 

Catalina Vasquez, CDM, CFPP

Director of Child Nutrition Programs

608 South 400 East

Moab, Utah 85432

(435) 259-2757

[email protected]

We are happy to work with your family to ensure your students receive nutritious meals at school and connect you with community resources, if needed.  

Do the members of your household lack a permanent address? Are you staying together in a shelter, hotel, or other temporary housing arrangement? Does your family relocate on a seasonal basis? Are any children living with you who have chosen to leave their prior family or household? If you believe children in your household meet these descriptions and haven’t been told your children will get free meals, please contact Catalina Vasquez - Director or Child Nutrition Programs.

Yes. You, your children, or other household members do not have to be U.S. citizens to apply for free or reduced price meals.  The information on your application is HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL and is not shared. The information you provide is ONLY used to determine your eligibility for Free or Reduced Price Meals, so it is very important that ALL members of your household are included on the application.

List any additional household members on a separate piece of paper, and attach it to your application.

Yes. The Child Nutrition Department reviews all Free and Reduced Applications. We may also ask you to send written proof of the household income you report. Any information you submit on your application is HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL and is never shared with anyone.

Si habla español, visite nuestra página gratuita y reducida en español.

If you need a Free & Reduced Meal Application in an alternate language (other than Spanish), click HERE.

If you need additional help in an alternate language (other than Spanish), please contact the Moab Valley Multicultural Center.