The National School Breakfast Program provides nutritionally balanced, affordable breakfasts to children each school day. Children are eligible for free, reduced, or paid breakfasts based on their families’ incomes.
Resources to make National School Breakfast Week fun and educational.
View additional funding options for implementing alternative breakfast models.
Breakfast helps children learn, improves attendance, and reduces behavior problems and tardiness. Children who eat breakfast at school – closer to test-taking time – perform better on standardized tests than those who skip breakfast or eat breakfast at home. Breakfast also promotes good health. Eating breakfast at school results in fewer visits to the school nurse, improves children’s diets, and helps build healthy habits. Moreover, children who start the day with breakfast are less likely to be obese. Virginia Hunger Solutions works to increase participation in school breakfast programs throughout the Commonwealth by promoting alternative breakfast delivery models, such as Breakfast in the Classroom, and innovative public policies, such as the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP).
children eligible for free & reduced-price meals participated in school breakfast on an average school day
children from low-income households ate school breakfast for every 100 that received free or reduced-price lunch
students attend a school currently enrolled in the Community Eligibility Provision across Virginia.
high-poverty public schools across 67 school divisions have adopted community eligibility, allowing them to offer free breakfast (in addition to lunch) to all students.
First Lady Pamela Northam Former First Lady Dorothy McAuliffe Food Research & Action Center No Kid Hungry Virginia Office of the Governor School Nutrition Association of Virginia The Dairy Alliance Virginia Department of Education Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth
Is your school the best? Prove it.
The Virginia Breakfast Challenge offers an opportunity for schools across Virginia to show that they are the best by participating in school breakfast. The school with the highest increases in breakfast participation will win prizes for students and teachers, and earn bragging rights! Is your school signed up?
Learn more at vabreakfast.org!
