You make a lot of assumptions that are incorrect; first and foremost, that a meal provided by the government is going to be nutritious. Most school meals are made up of surplus stocks purchased from industrial farms by the Department of Agriculture as a part of outdated farm subsidies programs. Some of these foods are GMO, devoid of nutrients and contain tons of fat and other possibly unhealthy components. In short, the purpose of these meals is not to provide good nutrition to children, but simply to use up excess food.

Second, you make an assumption that it is government's responsibility "to level the playing field." It is not. Many people come from disadvantaged backgrounds and grow up to do great things without government help. Further, where governments view leveling things out as their role, society typically becomes bifurcated, with many poor and a few elites.

Feeding children is a job best left to families.