Breakfast After the Bell Program enjoys delicious success in Bound Brook schools
Students in the borough’s public schools are getting their days off to a better start because of a program that provides, at no cost to the school district, a free and nutritious breakfast.
The program’s success was lauded on Thursday morning during a visit to Lafayette School by Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno and state Secretary of Agriculture Douglas Fisher.
Not only has participation in the program increased from 20 percent to more than 80 percent, educators are also noticing that the students are in a better mood after breakfast.
“They’re eager to learn,” Lafayette School Principal Beth Fischer said. “They’re a little bit more awake.”
The principal said it was too soon to tell if having a good breakfast at the start of the school day has an impact on students’ academic performance. However, she said, attendance has improved and the number of tardy students has decreased.
While the students are having their breakfasts in the first 10 minutes of the school day, teachers take attendance, make announcements and get a “feel” about how their students’ days are going.
The breakfast also delivers a subtle educational message about the importance of having a nutritional breakfast.
Cheryl Babulak, [Pomptonian’s] food service director, said food service workers pack the breakfasts into insulated containers for each classroom. The breakfasts for students with allergies are marked.
“A principal goal of the School Breakfast Program is to ensure that all school children have access to a nutritious breakfast to promote learning readiness and healthy eating,” said Patricia Dombroski, USDA, Food and Nutrition Service, Mid-Atlantic Region administrator. “This is why we are proud and excited for Lafayette School for being one of the top performing schools in New Jersey that provides nutritious breakfast to their students. Their accomplishments is a reflection of why New Jersey is currently ranked 28th in the nation for school breakfast participation, up from 37th last year and 46th a few years ago.”
READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT: