County of Northampton

FOOD FOR GOOD PROGRAM

The Northampton County Public Schools have been approved for the Food for Good Program, through the PepsiCo Foundation and the Virginia Department of Education.
Beginning on Thursday, May 21, 2020, Northampton County Public Schools will resume meal service utilizing this program. Through the Food for Good Program collaboration, students receive meal kits consisting of shelf-stable, nutritious, individually packaged foods. Each box’s components must meet the USDA’s meal program nutrition guidelines.

The Food for Good Program provides one box per child every two weeks for the period of the school closure. Each box will contain shelf-stable components for 20 meals: 10 breakfasts and 10 lunches.
When picking up boxes, the driver of the vehicle must present some form of ID for each child. 

Site Location: The designated day for pick-up will be every other week on Thursday at Northampton High School, 16041 Courthouse Road, Eastville, VA 23347 from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

If you are receiving SNAP or any other form of assistance you may still participate in this meal program. These foods are shelf-stable which means you do not have to worry about the foods expiring anytime soon. The boxes will be packaged securely, so there should not be any problems with ants or other tiny pests getting into them. Additionally, you do not need to worry about getting foods refrigerated immediately.

NOTE: You will need to refrigerate the milk and some other foods once you open them. In addition, some food items contain PEANUTS so please be aware if someone in your household has peanut allergies.

Each household can receive one box per week for each child, ages 0 to 18 (though the boxes include food items typically appropriate for children two and older), living in the household, provided he or she has neither graduated nor dropped out of school before the age of 18.

ID REQUIREMENT: When picking up boxes, the driver of the vehicle must present some form of student ID for each child. If your child is not currently attending school, attends a private school, or is home-schooled, a report card, school ID, or photograph of the child will suffice.

Additional options for food are available as follows:

● A hot meal is available every Monday at the First Baptist Church in Capeville, 25283 Lankford Hwy, Cape Charles, VA 23310 from 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. (757) 331-4315

● The mobile food pantry will be located at Northampton County High School on Tuesdays from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. 

For more information please see the NCPS Press Release from May 15, 2020.

The Head Start Program which covers both Northampton and Accomack Counties are still providing nutritional USDA meals to Head Start children and their siblings. Meals are delivered Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. 

Community Food Task Force created to prevent disruption to Northampton school food distribution during COVID-19 crisis.

Northampton County Public Schools is actively working with local community groups to create the Community Food Task Force. This task force, made up of key community leaders and select school personnel, was created to ensure that Northampton's public schools have a strategy in place to address school food distribution and to make sure all eligible families and children have access to food on a twice-weekly basis during the Covid-19 crisis.

Northampton County Public Schools’ administration became aware that two employees were affected by COVID-19. Both of these individuals had been part of the system, that was instituted by the schools in late March, to distribute food to children and families after the schools were closed due to the pandemic. Out of extreme caution, the school district suspended all its food services as of April 20 until at least May 12.

Just over 80% of the county’s public-school students receive free and reduced lunch, which indicates a high level of food insecurity among children and their families in Northampton County. School breakfast and lunch for many of these children are their only reliable source of food. An interruption to school distributed food is a challenge for most of these families, especially because of the current high levels of unemployment and under-employment due to the shutdown.

The Community Food Task Force is working with the Northampton County Public Schools to distribute food to children until the school food program is up and running again. The Task Force will also continue to meet to create strategies to address any possible future interruptions to the school food program.

The Northampton County Education Foundation (NCEF) is spearheading this effort, in partnership with The Food Bank of the Eastern Shore, Shore Delivery Corps, The Shanty Restaurant in Cape Charles and the Oyster Farm. The initiative is being directly coordinated with the Northampton County Public Schools.

The planned food distribution schedule is as follows:

Tuesday, April 28th: The Food Bank Mobile Pantry will be passing out non-perishable food boxes at Northampton High School from 10am to 12pm. All families should pick up their food at Northampton Middle/High School.

Thursday, April 30th: Non-perishable food boxes, supplied by the Food Bank, will be distributed from 10am to 12pm at Occohannock Elementary School, Kipteopeke Elementary School and Northampton Middle/High School.
Tuesday, May 5th: The Food Bank Mobile Pantry will be passing out non-perishable food boxes at Northampton High School from 10am to 12pm. All families should pick up their food at Northampton Middle/High School.

Thursday, May 7th: Non-perishable food boxes, supplied by The Community Food Task Force, will be distributed from 10am to 12pm at Occohannock Elementary School, Kipteopeke Elementary School and Northampton Middle/High School.

All children who attend Northampton County Public Schools are eligible to participate in this program

The NCEF is a conduit for community support to the public schools and is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. Any community member interested in volunteering or contributing to efforts to support the schools at this time can do so through the NCEF website, ncedufoundation.com. All donations made to or through the NCEF are tax deductible. More information about NCEF can be found on its website.

UPDATES for April 23, 2020

The NCPS Meal program has been temporarily suspended due to two employees being exposed to COVID-19, with one testing positive for the virus. School Superintendent, Eddie Lawrence, is hoping to restart the program in the near future.




In the meantime, there are partners working to fill the void. On Monday April 27, 2020 the First Baptist Church in Capeville will be providing hot meals to families. Pick-up is at the church from 12:45 PM to 2 PM.  

On Tuesday, April 28, 2020 the Eastern Shore Food Bank with the help of Shore Delivery Corps and Northampton County Education Foundation will distribute food from 10 AM - 12 PM at Northampton High School in Eastville. 

On Thursday, April 30, 2020 the Northampton County Food Task Force will distribute meals at all three NCPS campuses- Occohannock, Elementary, Kiptopeke Elementary and Northampton Middle/High School from 10 AM - 12 PM.  

We will keep you posted for further information regarding the meal distribution program for the month of May. 

For more information about this program please see the COVID-19 Food Service Program Press Release. 

Dear Families: While our schools are closed, our State Superintendent has urged School Divisions to provide for continuity of learning. Teachers have put together the learning packets and we have posted them here for students. The recommended activities will not take the place of regular classroom instruction but will supplement learning at home. Assignments will not be required or graded. These activities are meant to provide optional opportunities for student learning while they are away from school. Students should continue to check their email or Google Classroom accounts for communication from their teachers. For those families who do have Internet access, packets will be available at food pick up locations.