MEMORANDUM
TO:
County Food Service Directors
FROM:
Richard J. Goff, Executive Director
Office of Child Nutrition
SUBJECT:
Breakfast in the Classroom – Teacher Participation and Accurate Point of
Service
MEMO CODE:
OCN Guidance Memo – Feed to Achieve BIC and POS
DATE:
September 18, 2014
In April of 2013, the West Virginia Legislature passed Senate Bill No. 663 creating the West
Virginia Feed to Achieve Act. One over-riding intention of the Feed to Achieve Act is to ensure
that school children have access to nutritious meals in order to achieve his or her highest
potential. A major provision of the new code requires all schools to adopt innovative breakfast
delivery system that are approved by the Office of Child Nutrition (OCN). These approved
systems shall include, but are not limited to; Grab-N-Go Breakfast, Breakfast in the Classroom
and Breakfast-After-First Period. This guidance memo is intended to clarify one particular
provision of the new law and provide school personnel with an explanation of this provision.
The Act repeals §18-5-37 of the Code of West Virginia which required each county board of
education to establish and operate a school breakfast program for all pupils enrolled. In the
original version of state code mandating school breakfast, was a provision protecting classroom
teachers from being required to participate in the operation of the school breakfast program as
part of their regular duties. At that time, school breakfast was restricted to the school cafeteria.
The intention of this provision was to protect teachers for being required to work in cafeterias
and kitchens as part of their contracted duties as a teacher. The provision was carried forward
to the new 2013 West Virginia Feed to Achieve Act (§18-5D-3) in order to afford classroom
teachers that same protection from being required to work in cafeterias and kitchens during the
meal service periods. The OCN defines “participating in the operation of the school breakfast
program” as being directly involved as a food service employee. Classroom teachers observing
breakfast in the classroom are not considered “directly involved” in the food service operations.
This provision is not intended to give classroom teachers recourse for not supporting and
participating in the Breakfast in the Classroom initiative.
Breakfast in the classroom has emerged as one of the most effective strategies to get school
breakfast to the large number of students who need it. It is especially effective for those schools
that can serve breakfast to all students at no additional charge, such as schools with high
Page 2 – Breakfast in the Classroom
concentrations of free and reduced-price eligible students or schools participating in the
Community Eligibility Provision Program. When conducting Point of Service in the classroom,
teachers need to ensure that the meal count is taken correctly and the number of leftover meals
returned to the kitchen matches the number of students that did not take a meal on the
classroom Point of Service sheet. Both the classroom Point of Service Sheet and the leftover
breakfasts should be returned to the kitchen and Point of Service operator at the same time and
on the same day of breakfast service.
In the past several years, many WV schools that have implemented breakfast in the classroom
have doubled their breakfast participation rates, therefore dramatically increasing federal
reimbursements and improving food service operations. The increased federal revenue from
high breakfast participation can minimize the county’s contribution to the food service program
but this cannot happen if the Point of Service is not taken accurately.
Teachers report they have actually gained instructional time due to fewer nurse visits, less
tardiness and absenteeism. Students participating in Breakfast in the Classroom do not have to
struggle through mornings on empty stomachs and experience significant academic and health
benefits.
Please ensure that local school administrators and teachers are notified of the aforementioned
guidance. Your continued support for the children of West Virginia is very much appreciated. If
you have questions regarding school nutrition policies or the Feed to Achieve Act, please contact
Kristy Blower at 304-558-3396.
Thank you.