Since 2005, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) has recommended that whole grains comprise at least half of total grain consumption. This study used nationally representative food consumption datasets (spanning 1994-2018) to examine trends in whole-grain intakes before and after the establishment of this recommendation. Trends were examined…

This report summarizes findings from the School Meals Operations Study (SMO), part of an ongoing series to assess school meal operations on a school year (SY) basis. This volume of the study covers July 2021 through the end of September 2022 and includes SY 2021-2022. When the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, the Families First Coronavirus…

The Utah State Board of Education Child Nutrition Programs (CNP) administers several federal food programs and sub programs, appropriated under United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and administered by Food and Nutrition Services (FNS). The federal food programs are primarily designed to ensure sponsors have the necessary knowledge and…

The 2024 North Carolina Education Primer serves as a fact-based guide to public education in North Carolina. The Primer provides a comprehensive overview of how education policy is made, along with the current state of public education and the policies guiding it. The Forum produces this guide in order to inform current policymakers, candidates…

Public spending on children is an investment in the nation's future, as it aims to support their healthy development and human potential. To inform policymakers, children's advocates, and the general public about how public funds are spent on children, this 14th edition of the annual "Kids' Share" report provides an updated analysis of…

Public spending on children represents an effort to invest in the nation's future by supporting children's healthy development and human potential. To inform policymakers, children's advocates, and the general public about how public funds are spent on children, this 15th edition of the annual "Kids' Share" report provides an updated…

Public spending on children aims to support their healthy development and help them fulfill their human potential. As such, federal spending on children is an investment in the nation's future. To inform policymakers, children's advocates, and the general public about how public funds are spent on children, this 13th edition of the annual…

This report presents findings from the Access Evaluation, a study component that is designed to assess the potential impacts of direct certification-Medicaid (DC-M) on students' access to free school meals by conducting retrospective simulations of DC-M in school year 2011-2012, the year before the demonstration began. For the Access Evaluation,…

Since 1997, Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ) 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, child health, child…

Public spending on children aims to support their healthy development, helping them fulfill their human potential. As such, federal spending on children is an investment in the nation's future. To inform policymakers, children's advocates, and the general public about how public funds are spent on children, this 12th edition of the annual…

These technical appendices are intended to accompany the study, "Low-Income Students and School Meal Programs in California." Two appendices are included. Appendix A provides tables detailing: (1) the variables included in the main models and the datasets(s) used to construct each; (2) observations in each dataset and categorizes them…

Public spending on children by federal, state, and local governments is an investment in the nation's future because it supports children's healthy development, helping them fulfill their potential. To help interested stakeholders assess the government's investment in children, this 11th edition of the annual "Kids' Share" report…

"Paterson Kids Count" is a statistical profile of the well-being of Paterson children in critical areas, such as poverty, health and nutrition. This second edition also documents the success of a data-driven, collective local effort in three key areas that were targeted for sustained advocacy and attention: (1) low school breakfast…

"Kids' Share 2016: Federal Expenditures on Children through 2015," a 10th annual report, looks comprehensively at federal spending and tax expenditures on children. Federal spending on children has remained fairly flat over the past four years, in real dollars. Broader budgetary forces will restrict spending on children over the next 10…

"Kids' Share 2015: Report on Federal Expenditures on Children in 2014 and Future Projections," an ninth annual report, looks comprehensively at federal spending and tax expenditures on children. Federal spending on children has remained fairly flat, in real dollars, over the past three years. Broader budgetary forces will continue to…