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Free or Reduced-Price Lunch (FRL) Briefing
New York
PRIMARY TALKING POINTS
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“The vast majority of Achievement First’s students receive free or reduced-price lunch (FRL). In
the 2013-14 school year, 85 percent of our New York students qualify for free or reduced-price
lunch.”

FACT: In New York, only 48 percent of our students’ statewide peers qualify for FRL.

FACT: A number of our schools serve more students who qualify for free or reduced-price
lunch than the community school district. Ninety-one percent of students AF Brownsville
Elementary qualify for FRL compared to 89 percent in the community school district, while
85 percent of students at AF Endeavor Middle qualify for FRL compared to 74 percent.
“Our free and reduced-price lunch population has increased 9 percentage points since 201011.”

FACT: Our FRL population has increased from 76 percent in 2010-11 to 85 percent in 201314. We are moving in the right direction toward serving more low-income students, though
we still have more work to do.

FACT: At individual schools, this increase has been even more dramatic. For example, the
free and reduced-price lunch population at AF Bushwick Elementary was 74 percent in 20102011, nearly a 20 percentage point jump from the prior year. In the 2011-2012 school year,
the free or reduced-price lunch percentage at the school rose by another 12 percentage
points to 86 percent.
“We support granting lottery preference to low-income students, and we are committed to
increasing our FRL percentages until they equal or surpass our host districts’. We are also
recruiting more students from low-income backgrounds to enter our lottery.”

FACT: Publicly reported FRL percentages may not be accurately represent our host districts’
true FRL populations. The districts in which Achievement First operates qualify for “Provision
2,” a federal policy that simplifies meal counting and claiming procedures by allowing
schools to give all students free lunch regardless of their qualification status. Those who
elect to give all students free lunch must pay the difference between the federal
reimbursement and the cost of free meals provided—effectively paying for those students
who received free meals but did not qualify as FRL. Therefore, publicly reported percentages
are often not an accurate representation of the percentage of students qualifying for FRL.

FACT: Street teams of current Achievement First parents visit low-income neighborhoods
near our schools to distribute recruitment materials and speak with families. In New York,
we also emphasize our FRL preference at info sessions to encourage low-income families to
Achievement First Talking Points | FRL NY
Do Not Use After 9/1/2014
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For support, email marketing@achievementfirst.org
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enter our lottery.
DATA
Free and Reduced-Price Lunch
Achievement First
Geography*
AF % FRL
AF Network
85%
Host District
Host District % FRL
Combined NY and CT
60%
Traditional Public Schools
AF Connecticut Schools
89%
Connecticut Traditional
35%
Public Schools
AF New York Schools
85%
New York Traditional Public 48%
Schools
*While our data is from 2012-13, Connecticut host district data is from 2011-12 and New York statewide
data is from 2009-10.
New York
AF School
AF % FRL
Host District
Host District % FRL
AF Apollo Elementary
88%
CSD 19
90%
AF Aspire Elementary
89%
CSD 19
90%
AF Brooklyn High School
71%
CSD 17
87%
AF Brownsville Elementary
91%
CSD 23
89%
AF Brownsville Middle
80%
CSD 23
89%
AF Bushwick Elementary
92%
CSD 32
94%
AF Bushwick Middle
87%
CSD 32
94%
AF Crown Heights
Elementary
81%
CSD 17
87%
AF Crown Heights Middle
78%
CSD 17
87%
AF East New York
Elementary
90%
CSD 19
90%
AF East New York Middle
80%
CSD 19
90%
AF Endeavor Elementary
81%
CSD 13/16
74%
AF Endeavor Middle
85%
CSD 13/16
74%
AF University Prep High
88%
CSD 17
87%
*While our data is from 2013-14, New York host district data is from 2012-13.
Achievement First Talking Points | FRL NY
Do Not Use After 9/1/2014
Page 2 of 3
For support, email marketing@achievementfirst.org
Not For Public Distribution
Achievement First Talking Points | FRL NY
Do Not Use After 9/1/2014
Page 3 of 3
For support, email marketing@achievementfirst.org