Subsidized school lunches in Snohomish County

The number of students in Snohomish County who receive free and reduced-priced meals through the National School Lunch Program has steadily increased over the past five years in the majority of school districts.

According to the most recent available data, collected in October 2011 by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Child Nutrition Services, the Index School District had the highest percentage of students enrolled in the program while the Northshore School District, which serves students in Snohomish and King Counties, had the lowest percentage enrolled.

Applications to enroll in free or reduced-price meal programs are sent home to families at the beginning of every school year. Those with income levels meeting guidelines set annually by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are eligible to apply.

School Districts that participate in the National Lunch Program report the number of students who received free or reduced-price meals to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Child Nutrition Services by Dec. 31. Those numbers are collected by districts every year in late October and are published by the state at the beginning of the following year.

Districts ranked by 2011 % of students receiving lunch subsidy

School district 2007 enrollment 2007 lunch subsidy 2008 lunch subsidy 2009 lunch subsidy 2010 lunch subsidy 2011 enrollment 2011 lunch subsidy Enrollment change since 2007
1. Index 25 68.0% 51.5% 57.9% 56.4% 40 65.0% 60.0%
2. Darrington 629 42.9% 45.3% 54.7% 56.0% 475 63.8% -24.5%
3. Marysville 11,399 32.8% 35.3% 41.7% 42.0% 11,352 50.5% -0.4%
4. Mukilteo 14,310 38.4% 43.2% 46.1% 47.8% 14,685 49.8% 2.6%
5. Sultan 2,153 33.4% 37.2% 40.9% 41.1% 1,919 47.0% -10.9%
6. Granite Falls 2,418 27.2% 33.7% 36.7% 41.6% 2,220 43.3% -8.2%
7. Everett 19,504 33.7% 33.6% 38.4% 38.6% 19,024 39.6% -2.5%
8. Edmonds 20,416 29.4% 30.4% 26.6% 33.6% 19,056 36.6% -6.7%
9. Lakewood 2,728 27.7% 28.2% 32.1% 34.5% 2,699 35.2% -1.1%
10. Monroe 5,847 18.9% 22.2% 23.5% 26.8% 5,633 34.7% -3.7%
11. Arlington 5,255 19.8% 23.7% 24.6% 25.6% 5,582 33.9% 6.2%
12. Lake Stevens 7,642 21.6% 25.8% 30.2% 32.1% 8,200 33.2% 7.3%
13. Stanwood-Camano 5,540 20.6% 21.7% 24.1% 25.9% 4,790 26.9% -13.5%
14. Snohomish 9,390 13.3% 14.7% 18.5% 20.3% 10,112 22.0% 7.7%
15. Northshore 19,647 11.8% 12.8% 14.8% 16.0% 19,592 16.8% -0.3%
All districts 73,582 32.9% 34.9% 37.2% 39.7% 71,470 42.9% -2.9%

Snohomish County school districts

Click to see enrollment and school-lunch data.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Everett police searching for missing child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive. The child was missing under “suspicious circumstances.”

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Everett
11 months later, Lake Stevens man charged in fatal Casino Road shooting

Malik Fulson is accused of shooting Joseph Haderlie to death in the parking lot at the Crystal Springs Apartments last April.

T.J. Peters testifies during the murder trial of Alan Dean at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Bothell cold case trial now in jury’s hands

In court this week, the ex-boyfriend of Melissa Lee denied any role in her death. The defendant, Alan Dean, didn’t testify.

A speed camera facing west along 220th Street Southwest on Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Washington law will allow traffic cams on more city, county roads

The move, led by a Snohomish County Democrat, comes as roadway deaths in the state have hit historic highs.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.