According to research, adequate nutrition is essential for a child's well-being and development. However, an estimated 1.54 million U.S. students cannot afford the meals offered at school. Studies show that students from low-income households who rely on free school meals for breakfast and lunch have a significantly healthier diet than those who…

Nutrition is a basic need that must be met for children to be successful. When students are inadequately nourished or food insecure, there are detrimental effects to physical health, mental wellness, and academic performance. To combat food insecurity in students, schools must support families to meet their nutritional needs. Supporting families…

AASA has always seen healthy eating in schools as a leadership issue. Meals are served in the cafeteria, vending machines dotted the hallways of schools, and sales of cookies, chips, candies, and other fundraisers took place all over the district. While many different people are "in charge" of these various forms of food…

The Trump Administration's rollbacks in nutritional standards for school meals have been the subject of much criticism and the basis for a lawsuit. Research into food insecurity and public school meal quality shows that food security and high nutritional standards are essential to any efforts to improve both school equity and student performance.…

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on Latino children's health and learning. This fact sheet examines the specific impact on Latino children's well-being and ability to learn and provides steps to keep children healthy and ready for school.

The next President of the United States has an enormous responsibility--and opportunity--to provide an equitable foundation for a new generation of learners. The magnitude of the coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated the importance of schools as community anchors that children and families rely on for much more than an education. This document…

One in four children in the state of Georgia is food insecure. In the city of Athens, 60 miles northeast of Atlanta, the number approaches one in three. More than 33 percent of residents have significantly limited access to healthy foods, living in areas of the city that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has identified as food deserts.…

Led by Advocates for Children of New Jersey and the New Jersey Anti-Hunger Coalition, the NJ Food For Thought School Breakfast Campaign is driven by a statewide steering committee that includes the New Jersey Departments of Agriculture, Education and Health, anti-hunger and health groups and New Jersey's major education associations. The…

Studies have substantiated the link between proper nutrition and success in the classroom and beyond. Research has also found that eating breakfast is associated with improved classroom behavior and higher math, reading, and standardized test scores. Manatee County, Florida offers free breakfast to all students in 14 schools. Many students arrive…

The numbers speak for themselves in terms of the crisis of hunger among kids in the United States: More than 16 million children--one in five--live in households that struggle to put food on the table. Nearly half of all food stamp recipients are children. But, argues Felling, the battle against childhood hunger can be won; the United States has…

This brief marks the start of "Advocates for Children of New Jersey's Food for Thought School Breakfast Campaign", which seeks to expand innovative approaches to serving school breakfast and significantly increase students' participation rates. This report provides a closer look at the data, including identifying districts that have high…

Students need more than just "any" lunch or breakfast to do well in school--the "quality" of these meals counts also. Studies have demonstrated the role healthy diets can play in students' academic achievement. That's why President Obama signed into law the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act in December 2010. This historic legislation provides free…

For more than 20 years, Advocates for Children of New Jersey has published the Newark Kids Count Data Book, a one-stop source for child well-being data on the state's largest city. Newark Kids Count includes the latest statistics, along with five-year trend data, in the following areas: demographics, family economic security, food insecurity,…

For more than 20 years, Advocates for Children of New Jersey has published the Newark Kids Count Data Book, a one-stop source for child well-being data on the state's largest city. Newark Kids Count includes the latest statistics, along with five-year trend data, in the following areas: demographics, family economic security, food insecurity,…

For over 20 years, Advocates for Children of New Jersey has published the Newark Kids Count Data Book, a one-stop source for child well-being data on the state's largest city. Newark Kids Count includes the latest statistics, along with five-year trend data, in the following areas: demographics, family economic security, food insecurity, child…