Starting the Day Right II Best Practices for Increasing School Breakfast Participation in Utah Schools School Years: 2014-2015 | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 Contents Overview ......................................................................... 1 Alternative School Breakfast Service Models ................................. 3 Offering School Breakfast at No Charge to All Students ....................... 4 Marketing the School Breakfast Program ...................................... 6 Serving Up Success in Granite School District: A Case Study .................. 8 School Breakfast Participation Data Tables ..................................... 11 Resources ........................................................................ 42 References ....................................................................... 44 Acknowledgments his report was prepared by Marti Woolford, with assistance from Casey Coombs, Lori Spruance, Nathan T Stokes, Kimberly Loveland, Tammi Walker, and Adrian Glover. This report was designed by Michael Wernert. The Utah Breakfast Expansion Team (UBET) was formed in 2014 in response to Utah’s consistently low participation in the School Breakfast Program (SBP). UBET works to increase participation in SBP among low income students. UBET is a collaboration of Utahns Against Hunger, Utah State Board of Education Child Nutrition Programs, Utah State University Extension–Food $ense (SNAP-Ed), Utah State University Extension–Salt Lake County, Dairy Council of Utah Nevada, Utah Department of Health-Healthy Living Through Environment, Policy & Improved Clinic Care Program, Brigham Young University–Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Science and Health Sciences departments, School Nutrition Association Utah, Canyons School District and Granite Education Association–NEA Healthy Futures. Utahns Against Hunger and UBET gratefully acknowledge major support for this report from Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom, an initiative funded by the Walmart Foundation. Utah State University is an affirmative action/equal opportunity institution. OVERVIEW n 2016, the Utah Breakfast Expansion Team (UBET) released Participation in SBP has improved since the release of Starting Starting the Day Right: Best Practices for Increasing School the Day Right. In school year 2015-2016, 38.1 low-income I Breakfast Participation in Utah Schools.1 This report included students ate breakfast at school, an increase of 3.8 percent school breakfast participation data from school year 2014- from the previous school year.4 Much of this progress was 2015.2 At the time of its release, the School Breakfast Program driven by Granite School District, which added roughly 2,800 (SBP) was severely underutilized, with only 34.3 low-income students to SBP during the 2015-2016 school year.5 This Utah students (students who qualify for free or reduced-price increase can be attributed to Granite expanding the number lunch) participating in the program for every 100 low-income of schools offering breakfast in the classroom (BIC) from 19 students who participated in the National School Lunch schools in 2014-2015 to 32 schools the following school year.5 Program (NSLP).3 When SBP participation was compared to (See “Serving Up Success in Granite School District: A Case NSLP participation among low-income students statewide Study”.) for school year 2014-2015, Utah was the lowest-performing During the 2016-2017 school year, statewide participation in state in the nation for school breakfast participation.3 The SBP rose slightly to 39 students eating breakfast at school Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) has established that for every 100 who ate lunch.6 If Utah were to reach the 70 a successful SBP is one that reaches 70 low-income students low-income students for every 100 goal established by FRAC, for every 100 low-income students who participate in the an additional 45,000 students would have started the day with NSLP. school breakfast in school year 2016-2017.7 Furthermore, Utah School Breakfast Underutilized in Utah 40 35 30 14/15 15/16 16/17 Increase in participation per 100 During the 2016–2017 A successful SBP is 45,000 low-income students. school year 39 low- one that reaches 70 additional students income Utah students low-income students would be starting the participated in the for every 100 low- day with breakfast if $13.2 MILLION program for every 100 income students who Utah reached the 70- in additional funding if Utah reached low-income students who participate in the NSLP. student benchmark. the 70-student benchmark. participated in the NSLP. Starting the Day Right II: UBET 2018 Breakfast Report 1 would receive an additional $13.2 million dollars in annual eat breakfast.10 It is important to note that low participation in federal reimbursement funding.7 (See “School Breakfast SBP does not always correspond with high rates of breakfast Participation Data Tables” for data specific to individual consumption at home prior to school. When school breakfast schools and districts.) As more Utah schools make breakfast is made a part of the school day, known as breakfast after a part of the school day, school breakfast participation will the bell, there are dramatic increases in participation. (See continue to rise. the “School Breakfast Participation Data Tables.”) Rather, increasing SBP participation allows kids who would otherwise Participating in the SBP is beneficial to all students, not just arrive at school hungry – due to lack of family resources or low-income students. The SBP has health benefits such as other barriers – to start the day well-nourished and ready to obesity prevention and increased consumption of fruits, learn. milk, and vegetables.8 Research shows that children who eat breakfast at school — closer to the start of the school This report provides valuable SBP information for schools and day and test-taking time — perform better on standardized districts, including a summary of alternative breakfast models tests than those who skip breakfast or eat breakfast at for increasing program participation, which many schools home.9 Correspondingly, when less time passes between in Utah are starting to implement. The section, “Serving Up breakfast consumption and class, students demonstrate Success in Granite School District: A Case Study,” shared later improved academic achievement.9 In Utah, the majority of in this report, details how implementing BIC can dramatically schools offer breakfast, but serve it in the school cafeteria increase participation in SBP. The “School Breakfast before the school day starts. This creates several barriers Participation Data Tables” section provides 3 years of school that can result in low participation. For example, kids are breakfast participation data, alternative breakfast models required to arrive at school early in order to participate, but schools have implemented, potential federal reimbursements busy morning schedules at home, as well as school bus funding, and the school breakfast participation rank for each schedules may prevent them from arriving in time to eat. district. The Resources section provides best practices for When children are able to arrive to school in time to eat they implementing alternative breakfast models. Lastly, the School may still face barriers; like having to choose between eating Breakfast Expansion Grant section provides information on or playing and socializing with friends; or facing the stigma grant programs that can help cover the cost of implementing of eating breakfast in the cafeteria where “only the poor kids” alternative school breakfast models. Starting the Day Right II: UBET 2018 Breakfast Report 2 ALTERNATIVE BREAKFAST MODELS Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) Breakfast on the Bus With this model, breakfast is delivered to the Bus schedules can make it hard for students to classroom by school nutrition staff or designated participate in the SBP when it is served in the students. It is then served either by the teacher, or each stu- cafeteria before the school day starts. Breakfast on the bus dent can pick up a meal before taking a seat at the start of makes the most of students’ morning bus ride, especially on the school day. BIC works best in elementary schools where longer bus rides that might be up to an hour or more. In this students start the day in the same classroom with the same method food is stored in temperature controlled containers teacher each day, making delivery, counting, and claiming and served to students as they board the bus. more streamlined for teachers and school nutrition staff. Breakfast Vending “Grab and Go” / “Grab and Go” Breakfast vending allows students to access a nu- to the Classroom tritious breakfast from a vending machine. Vend- This model uses key components of school ing machines can be set up to offer free and reduced-priced breakfast, conveniently packaged, so students can grab a re- options by linking vending machines to the school’s point of imbursable meal quickly from the cafeteria line or from carts sale (POS) system; students can then use their student ID or elsewhere on school grounds. Depending on the school’s PIN to pay without cash. rules, students can eat in the classroom, or elsewhere on campus. Breakfast after First Period or “Second Chance Breakfast” This model allows students time after their first period class to obtain breakfast from the cafeteria or carts in the hallway, which they can eat in the classroom or cafeteria. Computerized systems ensure that children receive only one breakfast each day. Starting