Free breakfasts for all Pa. schoolchildren to start on Oct. 1

New program offers free breakfasts to Pa. students

Gov. Tom Wolf announced the launch of a universal free school breakfast program for all Pa. public and private school students will begin Oct. 1 and continue through this school year. He made the announcement at Steelton-Highspire Elementary School before a group of students and faculty. Sept. 9, 2022 Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com

Pennsylvania parents will soon be able to check making breakfast off their list of things to do in the morning rush to get their children ready for school.

Starting Oct. 1 and running through the remainder of the 2022-23 school year, that morning meal will be provided in schools.

Gov. Tom Wolf announced on Friday the state is going to foot the breakfast bill for public and private school students.

“It is completely unacceptable for a child to start the day hungry,” Wolf said. “I’m taking hunger off the table for Pennsylvania kids.”

He made the announcement at Steelton-Highspire Elementary School in Dauphin County where three-quarters of the students come from economically disadvantaged families but the district qualifies for federal reimbursement to provide free breakfasts and lunches to all of its students.

Family income will not come into play in determining who can be offered a free breakfast through the program that was announced on Friday, Wolf said. All students can receive a school breakfast regardless of whether they qualify for free or reduced-price meals eliminating the attachment of any stigma associated with the free meal.

“Pennsylvania’s gonna make sure every school district does what your school district does and that is provide free breakfasts and we’re going to reimburse school districts all across the state,” Wolf said to a group of 13 students seated on the carpet before him.

The benefits of breakfast for kids is plentiful, according to No Kid Hungry, a national campaign to end childhood hunger in America. They are not only more focused, they score higher on tests and miss fewer days of school.

Additionally, School Nutrition Association of Pennsylvania spokeswoman Melissa Froehlich said students are more apt to participate in classroom discussions.

“Universal free breakfast for all students in Pennsylvania will strengthen child nutrition programs and address equity and stigma around school breakfast so that more children will have access to nutritious meals and set our students up for success in the classroom,” Froehlich said.

The $21.5 million needed for this breakfast program for the state’s 1.7 million students will be funded through money left over in last year’s school food services budget from state and federal funds.

Because it uses funding that already was appropriated, Wolf spokeswoman Beth Rementer said no legislative approval is required to launch the program in schools and child care centers that participate in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast program. House and Senate GOP leadership officials indicated they were unaware of this forthcoming announcement when contacted on Friday morning.

But if it did require the General Assembly’s blessing, count Sen. Lindsey Williams of Allegheny County, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Education Committee, as a yes vote.

“It takes a village to tackle an issue as important and impactful as food security for our children,” Williams said. “These investments in school meals relieve the pressure on our families as grocery prices rise and ensure that all students can access nutritious food without shame or stigma.”

Kari King, president and CEO of Harrisburg-based Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children called this initiative to addressing student hunger a great first step.

“We hope it will entice policymakers to expand it to include universal free lunch, as the antiquated system of application and eligibility for free or reduced school lunch often leaves too many students behind,” King said. “Ensuring funding for these programs is one way to help children reach their full potential, particularly those living in poverty, which is 292,000 or 17% of school age children in Pennsylvania.”

Throughout the pandemic from March 2020 through the last school year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, through a federal nutrition waiver, covered the cost of free breakfasts and lunches for all students. The COVID-19 relief funds that paid for that initiative are no longer available this year, which was concerning to area school officials.

The Wolf Administration compared the free breakfast consumption rates from last year to 2018-19, the year immediately before the pandemic when these meals were not provided universally, and found 16% more students ate breakfast last year than in that prior school year.

Wolf said he found having 16% of students starting their day hungry to be unacceptable. Since taking office in 2015, his administration has put an emphasis on increasing funding for programs to address hunger and increase food access in communities and on college campuses.

Wolf said, “This investment in free school breakfast for all is an investment in a better, healthier, happier life for our kids now and in the years to come.”

But for now, the universal free breakfasts will only last through this school year. Whether it continues in future years will be up to the next governor and General Assembly, said the term-limited Wolf who leaves office in January.

“I’m hoping it seeds the system,” Wolf said. “We’re priming the pump. This is what we really ought to be doing for a long time. Let’s start right now. We know we have the money right now. Let’s get this started.”

Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JanMurphy.

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