Jessie Hewins
Child Nutrition Policy Analyst
Food Research and Action Center
jhewins@frac.org - www.frac.org
FOOD RESEARCH AND ACTION CENTER
• National anti-hunger organization in Washington DC
• Nonprofit and nonpartisan
What we do
• Conduct research and policy analysis
• Serve as a clearinghouse
• Provide technical assistance
• Lobby Congress
SCHOOL BREAKFAST AND HEALTH
• Decreases the risk of food
insecurity, especially for lowincome children.
• A healthy breakfast each day
helps prevent obesity.
• Children who eat school
breakfast eat more fruits,
drink more milk, and eat a
wider variety of foods.
SCHOOL BREAKFAST AND LEARNING
• School breakfast improves student behavior
and reduces tardiness and absenteeism.
• Children who eat breakfast at school:
• Increase their math and reading scores
• Perform better on standardized tests
• Improve their speed and memory in
cognitive tests
SCHOOL BREAKFAST PARTICIPATION IN NEW YORK
2012-13 SCHOOL YEAR
• 546,576 free and reduced-price eligible
students participated on an average day
• 44.1 free and reduced-price eligible
students eat breakfast for every 100 that eat
lunch (national rate is 51.9)
•
If New York met FRAC’s goal of 70:100, an
additional 321,171 free and reducedprice eligible students would eat breakfast
each day
• 96.6 percent of schools that offer school
lunch also offer breakfast (national rate is
89.8 percent)
•
New York ranks 41st out of 50 states (and
DC) for student participation and 16th for
school participation
BARRIERS TO PARTICIPATION
•
•
•
•
•
•
School buses don’t arrive at school early enough;
Children arrive too late due to rushed morning
schedules at home;
The 30 cent co-payment for reduced-price breakfast
is a problem for struggling families;
The cafeteria is too small or children want to socialize
or play outside;
Parents are only vaguely aware of the program, or
The program is stigmatized as being “for the poor
kids.”
STRATEGIES TO INCREASE PARTICIPATION
• Schools with a high percentage of low-income
students can offer free breakfast to all students
• Community Eligibility Provision
• Offer “Breakfast After the Bell”
• Breakfast in the Classroom
• Grab-N-Go
• Second Chance
COMMUNITY ELIGIBILITY PROVISION (CEP)
• Any school, group of schools, or districts with 40
percent “Identified Students” (e.g., directly certified)
• Offer breakfast and lunch free to all students
• Eliminate school meal applications
• Identified student percentage x 1.6 = free claiming
percentage
Ex: 50 % ISP x 1.6 = 80 % of meals reimbursed at
free rate, 20% at the paid rate
WHO ARE “IDENTIFIED STUDENTS”?
• Includes children who are directly certified (through data
matching) for free meals because they live in households that
participate in:
oSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
oTemporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
oFood Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), or
oMedicaid (in districts participating in USDA’s demonstration
project)
• Includes children who are certified for free meals without
application because they are in foster care, Head Start, homeless
or migrant.
MEAL REIMBURSEMENTS
WITH COMMUNITY ELIGIBILITY
Percentage Identified
Students
Free Claiming Percentage
Paid Claiming Percentage
40%
64%
36%
45%
72%
28%
50%
80%
20%
55%
88%
12%
60%
96%
4%
65%
100%
0
HOW SCHOOL DISTRICTS CAN PARTICIPATE
o By individual school
 Individual schools with 40% or more Identified Students
participate in community eligibility
o By group
 Districts may choose to group schools any way they wish and
calculate the free claiming percentage for the group of schools
as a whole, using their combined enrollment and total number
of Identified Students, as long as the percentage is 40% or
higher
o By school district
 All schools in the district participate as a single group with the
same free claiming percentage as long as it is 40% or higher
GROUPING SCHOOLS
• Any criteria—ex: neighborhood, grade level, ISP
• You can be very strategic with ISPs by grouping schools that have
ISPs over 62.5% with lower schools
• There is no limit to the number of groups
• Within the same school district, some schools can participate
individually and some can participate as a group
School
Enrollment
Identified
Students
Identified
Student %
Free
Claiming %
School A
500
350
70%
100%
School B
750
450
60%
96%
School C
350
120
36%
57.6%
Total Group
1,600
920
57.5%
92%
CEP INCREASES SCHOOL BREAKFAST
PARTICIPATION
FRAC/Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities Report, Oct.
2013:
• Breakfast participation
increased by 25 percent for
schools in second year of
CEP
• Lunch participation
increased by 13 percent
BREAKFAST IN THE CLASSROOM
• Meals delivered to the classroom
• Students eat in the classroom after the morning bell
GRAB AND GO
Students pick up meals from carts or kiosks located in the….
Cafeteria
or
Hallway
…and eat breakfast in the classroom after the morning bell.
SECOND CHANCE BREAKFAST
• Breakfast is provided after 1st
period
• Meals are served from
cafeteria or carts located in
the hallway
• Middle & High Schools
GRANT FUNDING AND RESOURCES
• Action for Healthy Kids – www.actionforhealthykids.org
• Food Research and Action Center - www.frac.org
• Contact Jessie Hewins at jhewins@frac.org or 202-9862200 x3966
• Fuel Up to Play 60 - www.fueluptoplay60.com
• American Dairy Association and Dairy Council
www.adadc.com
CONTACT INFORMATION
Jessie Hewins
Child Nutrition Policy Analyst
Food Research and Action Center
202-986-2200 x3966
jhewins@frac.org
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