By KIM CLEMENTS-JOHNSON
Manager of Communications, Indiana State Teachers Association

Indiana has been selected to participate in Breakfast in the Classroom to provide much-needed healthy and nutritious morning meals to local students and help increase participation of the federally funded School Breakfast Program. Indiana school districts can now apply for grant funds from Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom. School districts will be selected based on the number of students who qualify for free- or reduced-priced meals, average daily participation in the school breakfast program and district- and school-level support.

Through a $5 million grant from the Wal-Mart Foundation, the Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom initiative reworks how school breakfast is delivered, by offering it to all students at no charge and moving it from the cafeteria to the classroom in an effort to improve participation in the federally funded School Breakfast Program and to boost learning and health.

“Breakfast in the Classroom is a great opportunity for school districts to not only help eliminate hunger by infusing nutrition into students’ daily diets, but build a classroom community by starting the day with a meal together,” said Teresa Meredith, president, Indiana State Teachers Association.

“We encourage schools across Indiana to apply for a grant from the Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom because of the positive impact it can have for students in our communities.”

Early 2015, ISTA will host a summit to explore how to make the Breakfast in the Classroom program work in Indiana schools and discuss the grant opportunity in greater detail including: the qualifications for eligible schools, the needs assessment and action plan for potential schools and training for school building staff.

About Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom: A consortium of national education and nutrition organizations, Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom includes the Food Research and Action Center, the National Association of Elementary School Principals Foundation, the National Education Association Health Information Network and the School Nutrition Foundation.

About ISTA: The Indiana State Teachers Association, Indiana’s largest professional education employee organization, is committed to advancing the cause of public education. More than 38,000 ISTA members work at every level of education. ISTA has affiliate organizations in every Indiana county and in nearly 300 local school districts statewide.