Learn why we're advocating for Breakfast After the Bell legislation

Opportunity

Evidence shows that breakfast makes a tremendous impact on student’s ability to learn. Eating breakfast helps decrease food insecurity, improves academic performance, reduces behavioral problems, and improves children’s diets [i]. Unfortunately, Illinois is ranked 41^st among states in school breakfast participation [ii] and analysis shows that the state leaves nearly $100 million in school breakfast benefits on the table due to the low participation [iii].

Far too many families lack the resources to provide breakfast at home. Unfortunately, transportation and scheduling barriers and stigma prevent many students from accessing cafeteria-style breakfasts. Breakfast After the Bell (BAB) models [iv] make school breakfast more flexible, making it easier for students to access the most important meal of the day. Alternative breakfast models, like BAB, increase participation and consumption, and improve diet quality and classroom behavior. Participation increases shown across school types and geographies [v]. And more than two thirds of Illinois teachers surveyed said that BAB resulted in students that are calmer and more focused, with increased performance at school.

In 2016, the General Assembly passed legislation aimed at ensuring that schools with 70% or more students eligible for free or reduced-price meals adopted BAB models. Unfortunately, only 10% of schools were known to have adopted a BAB Program when first implemented in SY2017-18 pre-COVID [vi]. During the pandemic, Illinois schools demonstrated unparalleled innovation and flexibility to connect children with meals, whether providing grab and go meals, breakfast in the classroom, or take-home meals. Many of those flexibilities were rolled back and we don’t have verified data now of which schools have adopted BAB programs.

In response to this opportunity, the Greater Chicago Food Depository and our partners successfully advocated for the General Assembly to include $300,000 in thefinal FY2025 budget to fund breakfast after the bell grants (up to $7,000) to schools to help them start or expand BAB program models. The grants were modeled on SB 2209, SA2 [viii] that Senator Christopher Belt introduced in partnership with the Food Depository. The final legislation in the budget also included language requiring the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) to track and report on which schools are operating Breakfast After the Bell programs.

Recommendation

Motivated by the huge gap in breakfast access and building on the creativity and flexibility schools demonstrated during the pandemic, we have a unique opportunity to help schools transition to more flexible breakfast models for the long-term and improve breakfast participation overall.

As part of our ongoing administrative advocacy, the Food Depository will work with Illinois School Board Association to implement the funded BAB grants and optimize school participation in BAB models across the state. We also will continue to work in partnership with other advocates to strengthen statewide school meals funding to increase the number of low-income children accessing free meals.

[i] Benefits of School Breakfast - Food Research & Action Center (frac.org)

[ii] school-meals-2023.pdf (frac.org)

[iii] Greater Chicago Food Depository analysis of FRAC’s “The Reach of School Breakfast and Lunch: During the 2021-2022 School Year.”

[iv] Breakfast After the Bell models include Breakfast in the Classroom, Grab and Go, and Second Chance Breakfast

[v] Strategies to Increase Student Participation in School Meals in the United States: A Systematic Review (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)

[vi] No Kid Hungry, “Illinois Breakfast After the Bell Legislation: Impacts and Lessons Learned.”

[vii] Bill Status of SB2209 (ilga.gov)

[viii] Child Nutrition Data Analytics (isbe.net)

[ix] Child Nutrition Data Analytics (isbe.net)