Breakfast Spotlight: How Samueli Academy Hunger Heroes Are Tackling Hunger With Breakfast After the Bell
Serving Santa Ana’s Foster Youth and Students With a Healthy Meal
Hunger Heroes Are the Heart of Fighting Hunger
This May, Norms Restaurants teamed up with No Kid Hungry to honor eight local educators and school staff who go above and beyond to ensure kids have access to healthy school meals, both in and out of the classroom.
We are honored to recognize two of Samueli Academy’s very own, Lourdes Cervantes and Sarah Davis, who will receive NORMS Restaurants’ signature all-day dinner classic, the Bigger Better Breakfast for one year! In addition, their students will receive a NORMS kids eat free voucher.
Lourdes Cervantes, Food Service Supervisor
Lourdes Cervantes is being recognized as a Hunger Hero for her selfless dedication as a Food Service Supervisor at Samueli Academy. She makes sure that all students consistently receive free, nourishing breakfast, lunch and after-school snacks. Her commitment goes beyond logistics; she actively seeks student feedback to boost participation, incorporates preferences and uses special meals to create moments of celebration. By fostering trust and respect in the cafeteria, Lourdes enables students to feel seen, valued and well-fed, which directly contributes to their health, focus and ability to thrive academically and personally.
Sarah Davis, Student Success Coordinator
Sarah Davis’ unwavering and compassionate commitment to student well-being is heroic. As the Student Success Coordinator at Samueli Academy, she has been a tireless advocate, working directly with students in the foster system and those experiencing homelessness, to provide consistent access to meals on campus, supplemental food resources to take home, and ongoing support beyond formal school hours. Sarah provides an essential presence—offering an extra snack or a listening ear—which reinforces a school culture where every young person feels seen, supported and well-fed.
NORMS Restaurants and No Kid Hungry teams celebrating Samueli Academy Hunger Heroes
School Breakfast Changes Lives
Research continues to show that kids do better in school and in life when they start the day with a nutritious meal. The simple act of eating school breakfast benefits a child’s mood, motivation and the mental clarity necessary to learn.
While ALL students in California eat school breakfast and lunch at no cost, barriers still persist. Issues beyond their control, such as unstable housing, unreliable transportation, lack of access to health care, or stigma, continue to force students to go without breakfast. Hunger can lead to chronic absenteeism (missing 15 or more school days for any reason), difficulty learning, as well as increased behavioral and health problems.
Eating a school breakfast can reduce chronic absenteeism by as much as 6% and improve a student’s success in reading and math. Additionally, it helps teachers have calmer classrooms and there are fewer trips to the nurse’s office. Making school breakfast a seamless part of the school day by serving it after the bell can also have a huge impact at home.
Taking into consideration the needs of their students, community and the impacts of food insecurity, Samueli Academy partnered with No Kid Hungry to increase students’ access and participation in school breakfast with the breakfast after the bell program.
Samueli Academy is a public charter school located in Orange County in Santa Ana, California. The academy is uniquely designed to provide a transformative educational experience for a diverse student population (grades 7 through 12), who face significant external challenges, particularly those within the foster care system.
What Is Breakfast After the Bell?
There are three breakfast after the bell models that schools can adopt to ensure their scholars eat breakfast and start their school day ready to learn. The second chance breakfast model along with breakfast in the classroom , or grab-and-go to the classroom allow students who missed breakfast in the morning to have a nutritious meal to eat with their peers.
With a No Kid Hungry grant, Samueli Academy was able to purchase a reach-in refrigerator to properly store milk and reduce food waste, along with a mobile cart to create an additional access point on the other side of campus. The cart enables students to quickly and effectively access and receive nutrition during their morning break.
“In partnership with No Kid Hungry, we’re proud to stand behind the everyday heroes who make a difference in their communities. At NORMS, recognizing and celebrating our ‘Hunger Heroes’ is more than a program—it’s a commitment to giving back. By treating our heroes to a weekly Bigger Better Breakfast for a year and providing each nominee 25 complimentary kids meal certificates, we hope to extend the impact of their generosity and help ensure more families have access to the meals they deserve.” -Ingrid Martinez, VP of Marketing, NORMS Restaurants, LLC
“No Kid Hungry California would like to express our deep gratitude to Samueli Academy for opening their campus and hearts to us so we can celebrate Lourdes Cervantes and Sarah Davis. We are also incredibly proud to partner with NORMS Restaurants to celebrate the educators and school staff who serve as the backbone of our communities. Their unwavering commitment to end childhood hunger and uplift incredible Hunger Heroes like Lourdes and Sarah —providing them with weekly meals and certificates for their students—shines a vital light on the critical role school nutrition and support plays in student success.” – Jonelle Williams-Pagan, No Kid Hungry Senior Program Manager
Ways You Can Help
You can ensure kids have the nutrition they need to thrive in and out of the classroom and reach their full potential in a variety of ways:
- Donate. $1 can help provide 10 meals* for kids. Your support will help us fund meal programs all over the country and help us advocate for policies that will help kids get the meals they need.” *Donations help support programs that feed kids; No Kid Hungry does not provide individual meals. Meal equivalencies vary. Learn more at NoKidHungry.org/OneDollar
- Advocate for kids: Reach out to your elected officials and ask them to do more to end childhood hunger. Tell your lawmaker to advocate for policies that will help kids get the meals they need.
- Dine and Shop: Brands across the country are partnering with No Kid Hungry to donate a portion of their sales to help kids get the meals they need to thrive in the classroom and beyond like giving the gift of NORMS. Help support No Kid Hungry by rounding up your check when you visit NORMS Restaurants to help kids.
Last update: June 29, 2026
