The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 allows school districts to provide free meals to all students if over 40 percent of them are directly certified as free-meal eligible. While emerging evidence documents positive effects on student behavior and academics, critics worry that CEP has unintended…

The IBSA forum is an important collaboration of India-Brazil-South Africa to address the social developmental challenges of developing countries through South-South Cooperation. All three countries share same colonial history and at present have developing economies and struggling to provide best public services to their citizens through the…

In 2019, 135 million people in 55 countries were in food crises or worse, and 2 billion people did not have regular access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food. COVID-19 has exacerbated these hardships and may result in an additional 121 million people facing acute food insecurity by the end of 2020. Further, since the beginning of the…

Experiencing hunger can negatively impact a child's health, behavior and overall performance in school. Though substantial progress has been made to increase access to school foods, ensuring adequate time to eat remains to be a challenge for students and schools. We know there are some Colorado schools and districts promoting best practices around…

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…

Food assistance programs--including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, or food stamps), the National School Lunch Program, and the School Breakfast Program--have been remarkably successful at their core mission: reducing food insecurity among low-income children. Moreover, writes Craig Gundersen, SNAP in particular has also been…

Purpose/Objectives: This study investigates the effect of meal component changes by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) on school lunch quality and consumption in elementary school students, grade 2-5 before and after the HHFKA guidelines were implemented in July 2012 using the Healthy Eating Index. Methods: In Spring 2012, before…

Purpose/Objectives: The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 includes pulses as a required component of the school lunch menu standard. Pulses are nutritionally important staple food crops, and include dry beans, dry peas, garbanzo beans, and lentils. This current study examined the short-term effectiveness of a Science, Technology, Engineering,…

The 2021 "KIDS COUNT in Colorado!" report examines how children fared during the first year of the COVID-19 crisis. The data included in the report illustrate the pandemic's far-reaching effects on Colorado kids, from increased housing instability and hunger to difficulty accessing health care, child care, preschool and K-12 education.…

This article explores the research on the relationship between two particular aspects of poverty and school achievement. In particular, it examines research on food insecurity and oral healthcare among elementary-school-age children. The argument here is that these sorts of experiences of children in poverty account for some of the achievement…

Purpose/Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine the perceived training needs of California school nutrition personnel. Methods: A questionnaire was developed using items from previous questionnaires administered to similar populations. New items were written based on feedback from stakeholders. Respondents were asked to rate their…

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,…

Wisconsin is a state that values cooperation and historically has been willing to invest in providing opportunities for success. But there are troubling signs. Childhood poverty is increasing in Wisconsin faster than the national rate. It is easy to think that making substantive changes in poverty in the communities and the state is just too hard,…