Children who experience hunger lack a fundamental building block to health and academic success. The School Breakfast Program (SBP) fights hunger, improves nutrition and is a readily available federally-funded resource to address child hunger, yet it has been consistently underutilized in New York State and more specifically in the Bronx.

Within New York City, the Bronx has the highest number of eligible low-income students at 85 percent amongst all five counties. Therefore, it should be the county with the highest participation rate. But instead, it lags behind Kings County (Brooklyn), which has fewer eligible students, despite the fact that the Bronx continues to be one of the hungriest counties in New York City, with 37 percent of children living in food insecure homes. Much of this disparity is because the programs are underutilized.

The Domestic Nutrition Assistance Programs (DNAP), which is administered federally by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), targets food insecurity and hunger in the United States by providing food and nutritional programs to thousands of Americans. Some of the DNAP programs include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — formerly known as the Food Stamp Program — as well as the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and Breakfast and School lunch programs. Unfortunately, the new administration is looking to cut a severe amount of funding to these very crucial programs. While the persistent hunger in the Bronx is partially because the programs are underutilized, food insecurity and hunger in the U.S. is the result of policies and programs that do not prioritize low-income Americans.

Thankfully, there are some helpful strategies communities can implement to increase the participation in these crucial programs. One strategy is to provide free universal breakfast, otherwise known as Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) – a federal option that allows high-poverty schools to offer free school meals to all students. Additionally, providing alternate SBP models like “breakfast in the classroom”, “grab and go”, and a “second chance program”, which would extend the time breakfast service is provided or providing alternate locations like kiosks and carts in the hallways, are additional ways schools can improve program participation rates. Research shows that combining these programs is the best and most effective approach to increase SBP participation.

For example, the “Grab and Go” program implemented in Fort Wayne, Indiana led to a participation increase of 73 percent while attendance rates increased overall over the course of two years. Likewise, Hempstead, New York, provided affordable vending machines at the school entrances that served a nutritional breakfast, leading to a participation increase of 67 percent within a year. Last but not least, Kendall High School in Norwalk, Connecticut implemented the “second Chance Breakfast” program, which extended breakfast time into third period, and participation increased by 63 percent in two years.

The state of New York must make increasing SBP participation a priority, but it begins with residents, state and city officials, and school board members and associations. Every child should start the school day properly nourished, and the Bronx is no exception. It is up to you to work together with the local officials in the Bronx to initiate and implement a program that effectively addresses and ensures that every public school student has access to school breakfast and starts the school day free from hunger, properly nourished, and prepared for a day of learning.