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By Jill Yesko, University Relations
Contact (336) 334-3890
Posted:10-15-08
GREENSBORO, N.C. –For students in Guilford County, having access to universal-free school breakfasts has allowed school children to eat nutritional and substantive meals that they may otherwise have gone without.
Due to rising food costs and declining revenues, the Guilford County Schools have had to discontinue the universal-free breakfast program at several schools this year. The affected schools will continue to offer free and reduced-priced breakfasts for children from low-income families but will no longer offer free breakfasts to other children, a move that could lead to students missing what many say is the most important meal of the day.
To that end, Dr. Lauren Haldeman, associate professor of nutrition, and Dr. David Ribar, professor of economics, have received a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Assistance and Nutrition Research Program to study the budgetary, academic and health effects of a reduction in the number of Guilford County schools offering universal-free breakfasts.
Dr. Gongshu Zhang, chief accountability and research officer of the Guilford County Schools, is also a project investigator for the grant.
“Research shows that kids who eat breakfast perform better in school,” says Haldeman, noting that for children of low-income families, the free or reduced-cost breakfasts and lunches provided in public schools are sometimes the only meals children have access to.
Last year, Guilford Schools offered universal-free breakfast at 26 elementary schools where at least 70 percent of students qualified for free or reduced-price lunches. Because of rising costs, the school system has reduced the number of universal programs for 2008-09.
Ribar and Zhang will study participation data, attendance records and test scores from the schools.
As part of the research, Haldeman will meet with parents to assess their views about nutrition, in particular breakfast. “Parents play a huge role in attitudes toward breakfast,” she notes. “Parents are nutritional role models for their children.”
University Relations
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Mailing Address: PO Box 26170, Greensboro, NC 27402-6170
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