The Lehigh Valley chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is working on a petition to bring universal free school lunch to the Bethlehem Area School District. 

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Community Eligibility Provision is a non-pricing meal service option for schools and school districts in low-income areas, allowing every student to receive free lunch each day. Many schools in Easton and Allentown currently offer universal free school lunch through the program, but Bethlehem doesn’t. 

In the petition, the Lehigh Valley Democrat Socialists of America propose enrolling Bethlehem schools in the Community Eligibility Provision as a potential solution.

The petition states that the school district has accumulated more than $250,000 in lunch debt from covering unpaid student meals.

Dominic Trabosci, a member of the Lehigh Valley Democratic Socialists of America, said although the chapter has been active for two years, free school lunch has only recently become a priority.

The chapter voted to focus on gathering signatures during the first half of 2026. Trabosci said the effort includes one-on-one meetings with school board and community members outreach to raise awareness.

“We are currently in the pressure phase where we’re trying to show the board that the community really does want universal free lunch,” he said.

Trabosci said the petition has nearly 400 signatures from Bethlehem community members. 

He also said universal free lunch can significantly impact student engagement and performance. In some cases, he said, school meals may be the only nutritious food a child receives during the day, and without them, academic performance could suffer. 

“It not only helps eliminate the stigma (of singling out kids who qualify for free lunch), but it also helps working class families and even those who do not currently qualify for free lunch who may be $1,000 off of what they make in a year,” Trabosci said. 

After meeting with the school board, Lehigh Valley chapter co-chair Cheyenne Cahoon said she was directed to the district’s financial department. She said the meeting wasn’t particularly productive, but that didn’t discourage the group. 

She said the financial department wasn’t very receptive to their presentation and seemed to expect a more informal discussion, but instead the group came prepared with data and evidence.

Following the meeting, Cahoon said the campaign gained momentum and became the chapter’s main focus. She said members have been active in raising awareness through social media. 

Brittany Wuest, a parent in the Bethlehem Area School District, said her own experiences growing up shaped her perspective on the issue. 

She said she wouldn’t want her child or others to be in a situation where food isn’t accessible and recalled feeling different from peers when she qualified for free lunch. 

“I know how it feels to look at other kids and see them with snacks that are seemingly much cooler than mine, and thinking that I wish I could have those, but they weren’t an option for me when I was a kid,” Wuest said. 

Wuest said while eligibility and accountability have changed over time, social media has made it harder for students to avoid judgment.

“Kids nowadays have it so much worse,” Wuest said. “(Bullying) is so much more visible and readily available to kids because of technology. If there was any opportunity to make things easier for (kids) and make there be one less thing for them to worry about, why couldn’t it be lunch?”

The Lehigh Valley chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America will host a virtual public education event on March 21 to discuss the campaign’s next steps after the petition is completed.