Here is something you might not know about chronic absenteeism in the United States: in school year 2013-14 seven million students were chronically absent nationwide. “Chronic absence” is defined as missing ten percent or more days of school for any reason; both excused and unexcused absences and suspensions. According to Attendance Works: Children living in…
With just a few weeks until the end of the school year, it’s time to start thinking about “what’s next” for your school nutrition program. Whether you want to implement summer feeding, plan a breakfast-in-the-classroom pilot for next fall, or catch up on your school nutrition reading we have resources to keep you busy all…
Our partners at the Food Research and Action Center have released their latest School Breakfast Scorecard for school year 2016-17, just in time for National School Breakfast Week, March 5-9. While the data shows school breakfast participation continues to grow, the rate of growth has slowed which means there is plenty of room for improvement.…
Attention, Ohio schools—the Ohio School Breakfast Challenge has been issued! Win recognition for your school or district by demonstrating your collaborative efforts to create, enhance, or expand your School Breakfast Program. Did you know only 36.3 percent of Ohio teens report eating breakfast every day? When it comes to improving school breakfast participation, breakfast-in-the-classroom is…
When we use the phrase “Hunger doesn’t take a holiday,” it’s because we, as school nutrition professionals, know how very true that is for our students and their families. As the holidays approach, our thoughts turn to those children who rely on school meals for daily nutrition. Millions of American children—one in five—struggles with food…
When we use the phrase “Hunger doesn’t take a holiday,” it’s because we know—as school nutrition professionals—how very true that is for our students and their families. As the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays approach, our thoughts turn to those children who rely on school meals for daily nutrition. Millions of American children—one in five—struggles with…
As school nutrition professionals we already know that hunger doesn’t take a vacation. Holiday breaks and summer vacation in particular mean extended periods without food for too many students. This week schools and agencies across the county have been celebrating Summer Meals Awareness Week with stories, resources, and messages of support for summer feeding programs.…
Turning our attention from school nutrition to another important link in the food safety net, today we’re taking a look at the charitable food network; specifically, food banks and food pantries, and how improving the nutritional quality of the foods that they distribute can have a positive impact on public health. We recently sat down…
“Hunger doesn’t take a holiday.” It’s a phrase school nutrition professionals hear—and use—often. As the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays approach, our thoughts turn to those children who rely on school meals for their nutrition. Millions of American children—one in five—struggles with food insecurity, and that need does not go away when school isn’t in session.…
We sat down recently with dietitian, school breakfast supporter, and longtime friend of SNF, Elizabeth Campbell, RD, to discuss her work on a series of recent articles that appeared in the September 2013 issue of the Journal of Hunger and …
