How School Boards Can Put Breakfast First

Principal

As a school board member, there is so much you can do to make breakfast first in your community. School boards increasingly recognize the essential role that good nutrition plays in their students’ opportunity to succeed in school and afterwards.

Most school boards have already voted to establish breakfast programs at every school and many are taking action to make breakfast first.

Actions steps that all school boards should take:

one

Include breakfast components in your wellness policy. Every school district in the country now is required to draft and implement a Local Wellness Policy by September 2006. The Policy must include nutrition guidelines and should focus on school breakfast, given its untapped potential.

The school breakfast portion of the Wellness Policy should include:

  • Operation of a school breakfast program in every school.
  • Implementation of direct certification throughout the district.
  • Implementation of Provisions 2 or 3 in every high-need school in the district.
  • Implementation of the breakfast options so that breakfast is served free to every student after the bell at the place or places most likely to attract the most participants. These options include: universal classroom breakfast, second chance breakfast, grab-n-go, breakfast on the bus, and others. (click here for the toolkit)
  • Elimination of competitive foods sales during breakfast.
  • Establish nutrition standards for foods served as part of the School Breakfast Program.
two

Invite parents, students, teachers and food service staff to provide input to the board on breakfast. Hold a hearing on the School Breakfast Program to raise visibility and gather support across the district for efforts to make breakfast first. If the district doesn’t offer breakfast at every school, find out why. If participation is low, invite parents, school food service personnel and school health staff to present on factors influencing participation.