Children need to start their school day well-fed and ready to learn. Yet New Jersey’s participation in the federal School Breakfast Program is nearly the lowest in the country. That’s because many New Jersey districts serve breakfast before school starts when most children have not yet arrived at school.
The solution is to serve breakfast after school starts. Known as “Breakfast After the Bell,” this approach significantly boosts participation and gives more kids a nutritious start to the school day that can help them concentrate and learn.
Since the program is federally funded, most districts with high concentrations of low-income children can feed all students at little or no extra cost, significantly leveraging the considerable investment New Jersey makes in public education.
NJEA has joined forces with other advocates to challenge your school district to join the movement and increase school breakfast participation. Winning districts will receive grants and a pep rally with an NFL star! To learn more, visit acnj.org.