As 2025 comes to a close, we are reflecting on a year of real challenges, including rising grocery costs and SNAP delays. At the same time, we saw remarkable progress in making sure children in Virginia have access to the meals they need to learn, grow, and thrive.
Thanks to the dedication of so many across the Commonwealth, including those serving meals, leading programs, shaping policy, and supporting families, 2025 brought substantial victories for Virginia’s children.
Expanding School Breakfast
Virginia continued to make meaningful gains in school breakfast participation, helping more students start their day with a healthy meal. An additional 32,000 students are eating breakfast at school since the start of the Youngkin Administration’s ALL in VA plan to address chronic absenteeism in 2023. These gains reflect the ongoing efforts of school nutrition teams, administrators, and community partners to connect breakfast with the school day through models like Breakfast After the Bell.
School breakfast is more than a meal. It supports attendance, academic success, and physical well-being, and mental health. As Virginia Secretary of Education Aimee Rogstad Guidera said,
“We know that starting the school day with a healthy breakfast has a profound impact on students’ attendance and academic success. Across the Commonwealth, we’re seeing stronger Standards of Learning test results, and a best‑in‑nation reduction in chronic absenteeism. These positive outcomes are the result of support and investment in our students, alongside the collaboration and dedication of Virginia’s incredible teachers, school leaders, and parents. Making sure students have access to the right nutrition is essential for whole‑child wellness, and a crucial part of this success.”
This milestone has been highlighted in local media coverage, showing how school breakfast programs are making a real difference for students across Virginia. Some of the coverage includes:
- Free breakfast improves Virginia students’ chronic absenteeism
- More Virginia students eating school breakfast as program fights chronic absenteeism
- More Virginia students are eating school breakfast and attending classes: report
Solving Summer Hunger
Summer is often the hungriest time of year for kids, but 2025 brought real progress in helping families access the food they need. Through SUN Bucks, expanded rural non-congregate meal programs, and targeted grantmaking, more children across Virginia were able to count on consistent nutrition when school was out.
Virginia SUN Bucks (Summer EBT) provided essential grocery support at a time when family food budgets are stretched the most. More than 664,000 children received benefits, with over $79 million issued statewide. Families shared that SUN Bucks helped them buy more fruits and vegetables, reduce stress, and keep healthy food on the table during the summer months.
At the same time, rural non-congregate summer meals continued to expand access in communities where transportation and long distances make traditional sites difficult to reach. In 2025:
- 64 counties offered at least one rural non-congregate meal site, up 25%t from 2024
- Food banks reached new kids in Albemarle, Bath, Buckingham, Floyd, Galax City, Greene, Rappahannock, and Shenandoah counties
- New school divisions adopted this critical flexibility, including Fauquier, Giles, Greensville, Harrisonburg City, Suffolk City, Rockingham, and King and Queen
To support this growth, No Kid Hungry Virginia awarded nearly $70,000 in grants to help implement and expand rural non-congregate summer meal programs. Funding supported equipment, staffing, distribution, and expanded operations, including evening meal options. These investments helped local sponsors reach more children in communities that have historically had limited access to summer nutrition.
Together, these efforts reduced barriers, strengthened family food security, and ensured that more Virginia children had the nutrition they needed to grow, learn, and thrive all summer long.
Listening to Virginia Families
The August 2025 No Kid Hungry Virginia Hunger Survey highlighted the financial pressures families across the Commonwealth are facing and why strong nutrition programs remain so important.
- Nearly 45% of Virginians said rising food costs have put them into debt in the past year, and 52% of parents with children in public schools reported the same.
- A large majority of respondents (84%) said that the cost of food is rising faster than their incomes.
- More than 60% of adults and 65% of families said they have had to choose between buying enough nutritious food and paying for other essentials like utilities, housing, or healthcare.
- Nearly half of families (49%) said they rely on at least one food program such as SNAP, SUN Bucks, school meals, or local food banks to help meet their needs throughout the year.
These findings remind us that families continue to face real hardship and that strong nutrition programs matter more than ever. Every meal, every week, makes a meaningful difference for children across Virginia.
The progress we’ve seen this year, from more students eating breakfast at school to expanded summer meal programs and stronger support for families, shows what is possible when we all work together. It inspires us to remain committed to making sure no child in Virginia goes hungry in the year ahead.
Ways You Can Help
New research by No Kid Hungry (see full report) reveals an overwhelming number of parents are struggling to put food on the table for their kids. This is especially true during the summer months when kids lose access to many essential free school meals. 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* to 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.
- Expand your school breakfast program. Visit our Center for Best Practices for more information on the rules, eligibility, grant information and more.
