The Mountaineer ChalleNGe Academy participates in the National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs.

For immediate release: August 06, 2026 

MOUNTAINEER CHALLENGE ACADEMY PROVIDES MEALS TO STUDENTS AT NO COST 

Mountaineer Challenge Academy (MCA) Kingwood, WV and Huntington, WV - Students at MCA will have the opportunity to eat a no-cost breakfast and lunch and dinner through the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) program. The CEP was enacted as a result of the Healthy, Hunger- Free Kids Act and provides universal meal service to children in high- poverty areas. This is the fourth year for the option. 

The CEP serves as an alternative to collecting, approving and verifying household eligibility applications for free- and reduced-price eligible students in high-poverty Local Education Agencies (LEAs). If at least 25 percent of a school's student population is directly certified for free meal benefits, the entire school qualifies for the option. 

“I am proud that Mountaineer Challenge Academy will be participating in the CEP program to help meet a crucial need for many students in WV," says Dianna Reese, Director of Mountaineer Challenge Academy North in Kingwood, WV. "We know academic achievement increases when our students are well-fed and ready to learn, and we must provide secure and reliable access to nutritious meals so all students have a chance to achieve at the highest level possible." 

Both Mountaineer Challenge Academy schools participate in the CEP.  MCA is a quazi-military alternative school for 16-18 year olds and is provided by the WV Army National Guard. The program allows the school to feed every student for free each day. 

The 2017 Feeding America: Map the Meal Gap data reports high levels of food insecurity and hunger across the country. In West Virginia, more than 14 percent of residents, and over 79,000 children, live in food insecure households. 

For more information, contact 1-800-529-7700.

Click here to view the current Wellness Policy

In accordance with federal civil rights law and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

To file a program discrimination complaint, a complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form obtained at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA.  The letter must contain the complainant's name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alledged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation.  The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:

1.  mail:
US Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue SW
Washington, DC 20250-9410; or

2.  fax:
(833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or

3.  email:
program.intake@usda.gov

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.