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Breakfast with Buddies Brings Reading to the Cafeteria

Children who eat breakfast are more likely to reach higher levels of achievement in reading and in math. With that in mind, Haleyville City School District in Alabama incorporated reading as a core focus of their recent National School Breakfast Week celebrations.

Child Nutrition Director Emma Anne Hallman was looking for a reason to open up the elementary school cafeteria to students’ loved ones. After a little brainstorming, the “Breakfast with Buddies” character breakfast came to life to celebrate the importance of breakfast and it’s positive impact in the classroom.

Celebrating National School Breakfast Week

The first week in March is set aside to recognize the important role school breakfast plays in helping students succeed. School nutrition teams nationwide celebrated National School Breakfast Week with this year’s theme “Dig In To School Breakfast” with a variety of special activities, from putting big trucks on display to re-naming nutritious foods, such as “dirt parfaits”.

Aprons and hair nets were traded for safety vests and hard hats in Alabama. The Hoover City Child Nutrition program brought in tractors and treats for students as they started school with the most important meal of the day.

Tennessee Students Get Hands-on for Breakfast Week

Morgan County students really dig school breakfast – more than 90% of students in the eastern Tennessee district have breakfast at school every day. To celebrate the benefits of school breakfast, Morgan County Schools planned a jam-packed week of celebrations for National School Breakfast Week (NSBW), March 6-10, 2023. They are embracing the theme “Dig In To School Breakfast” at all seven schools in the district.

Working toward zero waste in the cafeteria

One Florida school district has been making great strides toward its goal to reduce the amount of waste it sends to the local landfills. Alachua County Food & Nutrition Services is enlisting its youngest community members to help get there!

Students at Stephen Foster Elementary School separate their lunch leftovers and trash for compost and recycling, with some food scraps repurposed to feed pigs at a local farm. The Food & Nutrition Services department received a grant from the State of Florida to launch its new accelerated composting system.

More Students Opt for School Meals in MA

Massachusetts is one of five states offering free school meals for all students in the 2022-23 school year following the expiration of federal waivers that provided free meals for all last year. As a result, about 77% of students in the North Andover Public Schools district are eating school lunch every day – and enjoying all the great options the program is offering.

The increase in meal participation is a win for the school district and the students. Additional funding means the nutrition department can focus energy on making improvements, from enhancing menus and increasing scratch cooking to implementing new service options to ensure students can start their day with a healthy breakfast.

Student interns help in the cafeteria

A conversation between colleagues from different departments spurred some expanding opportunities for students in Ohio. The school nutrition team for Cleveland Metropolitan School District needed some help in the cafeteria and Justin Willis Sr., Transition Coordinator for the Special Education Department at John F. Kennedy High School was looking for jobs for his students – that’s when the idea for an internship program started.

Seven high school students are taking part in the pilot program, interning in the school’s cafeteria three days a week after lunch is served. In addition to developing the students’ work skills, the internship helps alleviate some strain caused by staffing vacancies in the school nutrition program.

Taking school meals on the road in Louisiana

The Curbside Café will soon be hitting the roads in southeastern Louisiana. The Livingston Parish Public Schools’ child nutrition team hopes to increase meal participation at some of the district’s larger campuses by offering a variety of specials through the mobile food trailer. The team will also be working with the district’s Career and Tech Ed Department to involve students in the Curbside Café.

Holiday Creativity in the Cafeteria

‘Tis the season for school nutrition professionals to show their creativity in the kitchen, with holiday meals and celebrations around the cafeteria.

School meals in WA include cultural flavors

School recipes that reflect culturally relevant flavors from within the school community are welcoming to students in the cafeteria. When Highline Public Schools in Washington asked for student feedback about new lunch and breakfast menu ideas, requests included Hispanic food, vegetarian options, and Foods Native to WA, such as Salmon and berries.

Providing free fresh produce all day

Carts full of fresh fruits and vegetables provide options to nourish elementary students through the school day in McLean County, Kentucky. Students looking for a healthy snack are able to grab one off the hallway cart at any time of day in school, thanks to a grant.