Universal and Second Chance Breakfast
What is Universal Breakfast?
Universal Breakfast (offering meals free to all children) optimizes the impact of switching to an alternative breakfast model. The traditional means-tested school breakfast (in which the meal is free or the child pays, depending on family income) creates a sense among children that the program is just “for poor kids.” This deters participation by children from all income groups, including low-income children who most need the school meal. This is especially problematic in middle and high school as awareness of the social context grows. By offering breakfast at no charge to all children – and children, of course, are free not to participate – free breakfast for all ends the stigma, boosts participation among hungry children, and eliminates the burden of collecting fees.
If you want to learn more about Universal Breakfast, here is a useful link:
http://frac.org/pdf/frac-facts-offering-free-breakfast-to-all-students.pdf
What is Second Chance Breakfast?
With the Second Chance Breakfast (2CB) model, school breakfast is offered in the morning before school starts and during morning recess or snack/brunch break. 2CB is effective for serving students who, due to family schedules or transportation issues, are not able to eat in the morning before school begins. 2CB is also effective for students who are not hungry first thing in the morning, but do get hungry before lunch. 2CB is one strategy that helps bring the benefits of breakfast to all students.
By serving children when and where they are ready to eat, Second Chance Breakfast benefits students and schools.
About our Food Service Management Company
Better 4 You Meals (https://better4youmeals.com) proudly serves more than 250 schools across the Greater Bay Area, San Jose, Los Angeles County, Inland Empire and Orange County. Their passion and vision is to serve quality food to create a healthier future for the students of California and beyond. It is this passion and vision that continues to fuel their work and their relationships with schools.
Serving school districts, charter schools, private schools, summer camps and after-school care providers, Better4You Meals has helped drive major increases in school meal participation throughout California. With decades of combined school operation and food service experience, Better 4 You Meals is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of our schools and our students. We look forward to all that lies ahead in this Partnership between PUC Schools and Better4You Meals.