That share of Oregon students receiving free or reduced-price school meals crossed the 50 percent threshold in 2009-10. Last year, it reached 53 percent.
That's higher than the national average. During 2009-10, the most recent figure available, 47.5 percent of the nation's 49 million public school students had low enough incomes to qualify.
The federal government allows students from households earning 130 percent of the poverty level or less to eat school breakfast and lunch for free. Students whose families live at 180 percent of the poverty level or lower quality for reduced-price meals.
The Oregon Department of Education has been quietly tracking this, and I failed to notice it until today. Take a look at their striking chart.
The same phenomenon of rising shares of students eating subsidized school meals can be seen across the nation, as the recession and its aftermath take their toll, particularly on households with young children.