Taoyuan expands free milk program to junior high students, announces back-to-school measures

Taoyuan City's Education Bureau has unveiled a comprehensive set of new measures set to take effect with the upcoming school year, aiming to enhance the educational experience for students and ease financial burdens on families. Among the key initiatives is the implementation of an AI-powered automated document distribution system.

This system, which integrates large language models and nearest neighbor algorithms, analyzes document content and historical data to assist administrative staff in determining the appropriate recipients for official documents. Initially piloted at Tongde Junior High School with positive results, the system is slated for broader implementation in schools with 50 or more classes across the city.

Furthermore, the city is expanding its 'Every Student Drinks Fresh Milk' program, now including junior high students starting August 31. This initiative, aimed at promoting calcium intake and healthy eating habits, will benefit approximately 67,000 junior high students, bringing the total number of beneficiaries across the city to about 280,000. Students can redeem free milk or soy milk at partner locations using their student IDs.

In addition to these programs, Taoyuan is also introducing free textbooks for all public and private junior and senior high school students, a policy expected to save parents between NT$1,500 and NT$1,900 per student each semester. The subsidy for free school lunches will also see an increase of NT$6 per meal, and all junior and senior high school teachers and lunch supervisors will receive free meals.

The city is also investing significantly in educational infrastructure, with NT$13 billion allocated for the construction and expansion of 11 schools to accommodate a growing student population. Several new school buildings are scheduled for completion this semester. For early childhood education, two new non-profit kindergartens have opened, offering classes for both 2-year-olds and 3-to-5-year-olds.

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They're building them on our most valuable, most fertile farmland. Once our farmland is gone and paved over, we'll never farm it again.