Catholic Relief Services is working with Catholics on the ground in Arkansas to lobby U.S. Sen. John Boozman to intervene in the cancellation of the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the cancellation of 17 grant-funded projects under the McGovern-Dole program May 21, following a directive from President Donald Trump to align foreign aid with domestic interests. July 1 is the deadline for remaining commodities to be disposed of, meaning Arkansans are working against the clock to contact Boozman, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, and express their concerns.
The program’s cancellation means daily meals — often the only meal that many children are guaranteed each day — will be canceled too, for more than 900,000 children in 13 countries. One of the organizations especially impacted by this is Catholic Relief Services, which is heavily involved in distributing aid through the program.
“This decision isn’t just a policy shift—it’s a life-altering blow to hundreds of thousands of children who rely on these meals to stay healthy, stay in school and stay hopeful about their future,” said Sean Callahan, CRS’ president and CEO, in a press release May 21.
For decades, CRS has supported global school meal programs, which in 2024 were shown to boost literacy, reduce absences and support local economies. Through this USDA funding, CRS partnered with governments and communities to sustain these efforts and improve education. Local involvement is crucial to the McGovern-Dole program’s lasting impact, providing the resources and support needed to keep children fed and in school.
Campaign against the clock
Clare Pressimone, manager of CRS’ partner and campaigner engagement and support, told Arkansas Catholic that they need Arkansas residents to talk to their congressmen.
“This advocacy outreach aims to have constituents encourage their members of Congress who have particular influence to connect with the administration and request a reversal of the terminations for McGovern-Dole School Feeding and Food for Progress programs funded by (the) USDA,” she said. “Constituents in (Arkansas, Kansas, Maine, North Dakota and South Dakota) … have all been invited to reach out to their senators who have positions on the Senate Agriculture Committee and Senate Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittee, which we believe gives them a particular level of leverage in discussing these programs with the administration.”
The cancellation of the McGovern-Dole program will impact nearly 1 million children abroad as well as Arkansas farmers.
“Generally, Arkansas farmers do contribute to the growing of food for these programs and others,” Pressimone said.
Local Catholics hard at work
One of the local Catholics that CRS has tapped for help is Dr. Sherry Simon, a parishioner at Christ the King Church in Little Rock and national chair of the Pax Christi USA National Council.
“The funding for the CRS Dole-McGovern school food program will be discontinued on July 1 unless Congress intervenes, informing the administration how cutting that program will hurt their states,” she said. “We want to convince (Boozman) that, first of all, the decision to cut funding to feed these children goes against our values as Americans and people of faith. Secondly, the discontinuation of this vital program will harm Arkansas farmers.”
According to the most recent data Simon has found, two of the programs — the McGovern-Dole program and the Food for Progress program — used 370,000 metric tons of U.S. commodities, such as beans, rice and corn in a single year.
“So when these programs are cut, it is going to directly affect Arkansas farmers,” she said. “We are trying to get that across to (Sen. Boozman), that he needs to go to the administration and say, ‘Hey, wait a minute, you’re really hurting our state by cutting off these programs.’”
Sister Deborah Troillett, RSM, is another local voice working hard on this issue. The Sister of Mercy and former president of Mount St. Mary Academy in Little Rock is helping compile data before meeting with Boozman.
“Catholic Relief Service has such a wonderful record and reputation for really responding to urgent needs around the world,” she said. “… This is the least we can do — to try to mobilize more of a network of folks around our state, in our diocese, who would certainly want to encourage (Sen. Boozman) to take a look at this program, not only how it impacts all these vulnerable children, but also the impact that it will have on Arkansas farmers.”
Sister Deborah said that CRS’ involvement in the McGovern-Dole program is often the only thing standing between children and hunger.
“This program provides a meal, sometimes a child’s only meal, in school, and certainly promotes their learning and their engagement in their learning and their overall health and motivation. It certainly helps the parents,” she said. “And from what I understand, it’s a well-rounded program because it only supplies the quantities that the U.S. sends in terms of rice or beans or whatever, but it also encourages local farmers to supplement this with their own produce. So it really builds the local community in terms of providing for itself.”
There are several aspects to the message Catholics are sending to Sen. Boozman, Sister Deborah said.
“We’re calling on him to be our representative of his constituents in this state, and that … this is an agricultural state. It impacts so many farmers to be able to participate in USDA and sell their commodities through the government, so the government can then support these aid programs,” she said.
Sister Deborah pointed out the irony in the bipartisan name of the program itself.
“It’s interesting because I talked to my 98-year-old mom, and … I love what she remembered. … She said just the name of this program — McGovern-Dole — represents a time when our leaders respected each other and found ways to work things out. … That’s the true American value of our democracy. We demonstrate our capacity to think of the common good and to respect each other and work for those who are the most vulnerable. I’ve heard arguments that part of the reason for cancelling the program for some countries is that they don’t represent our American values. And I keep thinking, ‘Well, we want to represent our American values wherever we are, right?’”
“This is, to me, a very clear right to life issue,” Simon said. “These children… sometimes this is their only meal that they get in a day. The absence of USAID has already impacted millions of children, their physical health, as well as their lives. Many children have died. Once we pull back aid, they don’t have enough food to exist on. So as Catholics, I feel like it’s our moral obligation when we can to help others who don’t have the ability to sustain life. We have so much here in this country. Why wouldn’t we reach out and assist others who don’t have as much?”
How you can help
Are you concerned about the cancellation of the McGovern-Dole program? Contact Sen. Boozman by visiting the CRS website at crs.org/act/mcgovern-dole. You can also call and tell Sen. Boozman’s office staff that you’re a Catholic concerned about the cancellation of the program. Reach Boozman’s office in D.C. at (202) 224-484 or in Little Rock at (501) 372-7153.
USCCB’s letter to Congress
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) recently wrote a letter to Congress regarding H.R. 1 — also known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. It was signed by the Bishop Chairs of six major conference committees.
