March 9, 2011
Not Approved: School Breakfast
Reading over the cost of many budget items in Governor Walker’s proposal can make you jaded. A seven million dollars for this program, fifteen million for that one. So when the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) asks for a $935,900 increase in funding for school breakfast reimbursements, it seems like a small thing. However, this seemingly negligble amount, which was not approved for funding in Governor Walker’s budget, could have a huge impact in the daily lives of Wisconsin’s school children.
There are several ways in which a student can be eligible for the school breakfast program. Some children are automatically eligible, such as those whose family receives assistance from the Temporary Aid to Needy Families program or those enrolled in Head Start because they met the program’s low-income requirement. Students living in a family with an income at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty level can receive a free meal, and those with a family income between 130 and 185 percent of the federal poverty level can receive a reduced-cost meal.
The following graph shows the trend in the percent of Wisconsin school children who were eligible for free or reduced meals from 2003-2009. It shows the recent uptake in need following the beginning of the recession in 2008.
Graph produced by WI DPI
The Wisconsin DPI requested an increase in its free breakfast reimbursement program in order to maintain the same level of reimbursement per meal to Wisconsin public and private schools ($.116 per breakfast), and to extend school breakfast payments to independent charter schools in Milwaukee and Racine and state residential schools for the blind and the deaf. Without the increase in funding, schools may not be able to maintain the same quality of meals, or may have to decrease funding to other programs in order to sustain quality. Certain charter and state residential schools will continue to bear the burdern of financing school breakfasts. This is important because Wisconsin schools cited cost as the number one reason for not starting school breakfast programs.
Ensuring that students can have a good breakfast has important health consequences. According to DPI:
The nutritional intake of students greatly influences the educational process. Hunger leads to nervousness, irritability, lack of interest in learning, and inability to concentrate. The School Breakfast Program has proven effective in helping children maximize their academic opportunities by improving their nutritional intake and dietary practices. School breakfast also contributes to lifelong health as it helps students develop nutritious eating practices that contribute to physical and mental development.
Furthermore, the U.S. Department of Agriculture lists a number of benefits that come from eating breakfast, all proven in various academic studies. These include:
- Improving math, reading, and standardized test scores
- Decreased absences and tardiness
- Healthy breakfasts (high in fiber and low in sugar) help sustain the cognitive effects of breakfast
Maintaining quality school breakfast programs and expanding access to more students should be a priority for government. Increasing student performance will lead to better Wisconsin workers in the future, and improve the quality of our state.
