For Immediate Release: March 14, 2024
Media Contact: Adam Keigwin | akeigwin@actumllc.com | (916) 256-5758
School Breakfast Changes Lives: No Kid Hungry Issues Grants to Sustain Child Nutrition Programs
The California State Legislature Unanimously Declared March 4-8th as School Breakfast Week Pursuant to ACR 143 by Assemblymember Steve Bennett
Sacramento, Calif. – No Kid Hungry California is pleased to announce the awarding of $256,700 in new grants to support child nutrition programs in California. These funds will be distributed to five school districts dedicated to expanding access to nutritious meals for children.
Eating breakfast has a real and powerful effect on kids. Breakfast After the Bell (BAB), a key initiative championed by the No Kid Hungry campaign, provides every student the opportunity to start their school day with a nutritious meal. Studies have shown that kids who eat breakfast are more focused, score significantly higher on tests, miss less days of school and have fewer discipline programs and visits to the nurse’s office.
Thanks to California’s Healthy School Meals for All, all California schools are able to offer breakfast and lunch at no cost to all students.
Every meal served is a building block in children’s education and overall well-being. However, last fall, the USDA’s most recent Household Food Security Report and its findings saw an increase in food insecurity. Thirteen million children, or 18.5 percent, live in food insecure households. This means, 1 in 5 children are facing hunger in the United States.
“Starting the school day with a healthy school breakfast ensures California students start the day energized and ready to learn,” said No Kid Hungry California Director Kathy Saile. “No child should ever face the challenge of starting the school day on an empty stomach. Schools who offer Breakfast After the Bell increase access to nutritious meals for the most children and those students experience more success in their long-term health and education indicators.”
No Kid Hungry has provided an additional $256,700 in grants to the following California school districts to adopt, strengthen, and expand school breakfast programs:
Morongo Unified School District
West Contra Costa Unified School District
Desert Sands Unified School District
San Bernardino City Unified School District
Rialto Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District
This February, Assemblymember Steve Bennett introduced ACR 143, proclaiming March 4-8, 2024 as School Breakfast Week. The unanimously passed proclamation recognized the importance of school breakfast for student success, and the invaluable work of school nutrition teams to plan, prepare and serve meals to thousands of students across the state each day.
“Providing nutritious and healthful meals consistently to our students is critical to their success inside and out of the classroom. Let’s recommit to our efforts in supporting families in need with access to resources and programs to ensure their necessities are met,” said Assemblymember Steve Bennett.
The text of ACR 143 is as follows:
WHEREAS, Nearly one in five California children live in food insecure households, meaning they do not have consistent access to adequate food; and
WHEREAS, California ranks 33rd in the nation in school breakfast participation, and only 39 percent of pupils who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals are eating school breakfast; and
WHEREAS, More than 58 percent of California public school pupils qualify for free or reduced-price school meals, yet many of those low-income pupils are not eating the nutritious school breakfast offered due to barriers such as social stigma, late buses or carpools, long cafeteria lines, and tight class schedules; and
WHEREAS, Eating breakfast as part of the school day is associated with positive pupil behavioral health and academic performances, such as better test score results, improved concentration in class, lower rates of chronic absenteeism, fewer classroom disruptions, and less frequent visits to the school nurse; and
WHEREAS, Breakfast After the Bell programs, such as breakfast in the classroom, grab and go breakfast, and second chance breakfast, are proven meal delivery methods that boost school breakfast participation and related positive outcomes; and
WHEREAS, School breakfast participation is associated with a lower body mass index, which is an indicator of sustainable body fat, lower probability of being overweight, and lower probability of obesity; and
WHEREAS, States across the nation have introduced legislation to require that schools with a high percentage of pupils who are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals implement a Breakfast After the Bell program; and
WHEREAS, If California schools increased school breakfast participation such that 70 percent of the pupils who eat free or reduced-price lunch also participated in their school’s breakfast program, an additional 335,997 pupils would receive breakfast every day and school districts would receive more than $100,000,000 in federal meal reimbursements for their school nutrition budgets; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature proclaims March 4, 2024, to March 8, 2024, inclusive, as School Breakfast Week; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
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About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty. Join us at nokidhungry.org.
Last reviewed: March 14, 2024