Child Tax Credit is Helping Ohio Children go to School Fed, Healthy, and Ready to Learn
By Megan Cremeans, Legal Intern
Moritz College of Law at the Ohio State University
I student-taught with a truly extraordinary teacher, Marc, who kept a desk drawer full of snacks and fresh fruit on his desk. If a student asked for food, he gave it freely. He never interrogated their need nor desire, and he always offered anything he could. Marc is a unique and gifted educator, but he is not the first teacher I have met who goes out of their way to ensure a student is fed, and after a short time with him, I also picked up the habit of keeping extra snacks around for anyone who asked. Marc, like many educators, understands that nutrition is essential to child learning and development and that a child who is hungry cannot meet their full potential.
Educators see firsthand how their students, at no fault of their own, are denied equitable opportunities to thrive in their classrooms due to hunger and the lack of a social safety net to ensure all families with children are supported to afford necessities like food. Childhood hunger is pervasive in the United States – but what has given many Americans hope, especially current and former teachers, is the potential for a permanently expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) that, if passed, could help ensure students focus less on their empty stomachs and more on enriching educational experiences.