We’ve all been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Skipping breakfast can leave you tired, cranky and hungry. Colorado lawmakers are looking at a bill that would ensure schoolchildren get a healthy breakfast. According to Hunger Free Colorado, The bill known as the “Breakfast After the Bell Nutrition Program” offers an affordable solution to thousands of children who arrive at school hungry and in turn less prepared to learn.
VIA Hunger Free Colorado
Breakfast is critical to learning and health, and it’s the number-one needed school supply for students to succeed. Yet, many kids in Colorado arrive at school hungry, focused on their rumbling bellies instead of being ready to learn. Those experiencing hunger—estimated to be 22% of all children in Colorado—are more likely to exhibit behavioral, emotional and academic problems. Simply put, hungry kids cannot learn. Teachers, doctors and parents agree—hungry children lack focus and have difficulty performing well in school. School breakfast served after the bell can make such a difference for students of all ages, especially for those who may not when and where they’ll get their next meal. We can—and should—increase the availability and accessibility of school breakfast by expanding after-the-bell serving models like Breakfast in the Classroom into more Colorado schools.Hunger Free Colorado and many other organizations strongly support HB-1006, sponsored by Reps. Dominick Moreno of Commerce City and Tony Exum of Colorado Springs, and Sen. Angela Giron, D-Pueblo. The bill would require Colorado schools with 70% or more students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals to offer a nutritious after-the-bell breakfast program, if they have at least 100 students in their school and 300 total in the district.
Read the bill in its entirety. HB-1006 offers an affordable solution to the hundreds of thousands of children who arrive at school hungry and less prepared to learn. It is a responsible and cost-effective way to set Colorado’s children up for academic success while staying healthy.
Learn more about HB-1006, why after-the-bell breakfast is needed, what this bill will do and how it works, as well as see the growing list of organizations in support of HB-1006.
Visit www.hungerfreecolorado.org for more information.
