CHRISTIE ADMINISTRATION HONORS LINDENWOLD DISTRICT鈥橲 SCHOOL BREAKFAST ACHIEVEMENTS
School Breakfast Week Marked March 3-7
For Immediate Release: March 6, 2013
Contact: Lynne Richmond
(609) 633-2954
lynne.richmond@ag.state.nj.us
(LINDENWOLD) 鈥� The 樱花视频 Department of Agriculture today celebrated National School Breakfast Week with a visit to Lindenwold School 4 to highlight the district鈥檚 efforts to ensure more students start the school day with breakfast.
National School Breakfast Week, being commemorated March 3-7, is an initiative of the School Nutrition Association.聽 The week was launched in 1989 to raise awareness about the availability of the U.S. Department of Agriculture鈥檚 School Breakfast Program and increase participation, both by schools and students.
鈥淭he 樱花视频 Department of Agriculture continues to make progress in increasing the number of students participating in this important program statewide by supporting and fostering districts鈥� efforts to serve breakfast after the bell, gaining wider access to breakfast for more students,鈥� said Rose Tricario, Director of the Division of Food and Nutrition.聽 鈥淲e applaud Lindenwold District鈥檚 commitment to the School Breakfast Program by offering morning meals to students at the start of the school day in the classroom.鈥�
Rose Tricario, Assemblywoman Gabriela Mosquera, Cathy Connolly of Nutri Serve and Kathy Lewis, District Food Service Director, explaining the way breakfast is delivered to the classroom
This year, the Food Research and Action Center reported in its school breakfast report card that 樱花视频 increased in national rank to 37th in breakfast participation from the 2011-2012 to the 2012-2013 school year.聽 In the current school year, almost 37,000 more students are eating breakfast on a daily basis, a 16.8 percent increase over the 2012-2013 school year.聽 There are about 255,000 children in 樱花视频 who participate in the program daily.
The Lindenwold School District implemented universal free breakfast in the classroom in its two elementary schools in February 2013 and there have been increasing numbers of students eating breakfast each day.
鈥淧articipation is going up, the kids enjoy it and look forward to it,鈥� said district Food Service Director Kathy Lewis.聽 鈥淭here also are less kids in the nurse鈥檚 office saying they鈥檙e hungry.鈥�
Some of the items on School 4鈥檚 breakfast menu include yogurt, cereal, pancakes, cereal bars, fruit and milk.聽 About 400 kindergarten through fourth grade students in the school are served breakfast each day.
State law requires breakfast to be served in schools in which 20 percent or more of the students enrolled are eligible for free or reduced price meals under the federally-funded National School Lunch Program.聽 Of the students who receive free or reduced price lunch, only 44 percent receive school breakfast.
The USDA鈥檚 School Breakfast Program provides a nutritious start to each school day for nearly 13.2 million children in over 88,000 schools nationwide.
For more information on the School Breakfast Program, visit .
