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Nixon announces initiative to help hungry Missouri kids

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Missouri state agencies and community organizations, including Feeding Missouri and the Midwest Dairy Council, will partner with national anti-hunger group Share our Strength to increase access to child nutrition programs, Gov. Jay Nixon announced Friday.

No Kids Hungry Missouri will work with school districts to increase access to school breakfast through the School Breakfast Challenge, after-school snacks and summer meals to help combat childhood hunger in Missouri, where one-in-five children deal with hunger.

Nixon SOTS 2“Child hunger is a serious problem – but it’s a solvable one. That’s why we’re teaming up with No Kid Hungry to connect more kids in Missouri to the healthy food they need where they live, learn and play,” Gov. Nixon said. “The No Kid Hungry Missouri campaign will work to break down the barriers that stand between kids and the nutrition they need to grow up healthy and strong.”

Evidence shows that students who eat breakfast are higher achievers. They are 20 percent more likely to graduate high school and score 17.5 percent better on math scores, according to the governor’s office. The program will look to get more students breakfast by serving it in “grab n Go” carts or in the classroom to help reach low-income students who depend upon school for free or reduced-price breakfast but find it’s often served to early or they are stigmatized by eating alone in the cafeteria.

“Hunger is one of the biggest obstacles to learning for students, affecting their behavior and concentration in the classroom,” said Dr. Margie Vandeven, Missouri commissioner of education. “Our schools lessen that obstacle every time they feed a child breakfast or lunch. No Missouri child should have to worry about finding his or her next healthy meal.”

The program will also create sites during the summer where free meals will be available while schools are closed.

Nixon’s announcement comes on the heels of Wednesday’s 2016 Missouri Poverty Summit, where the state’s increasing poverty rate was discussed.

Part of the seed funding for No Kid Hungry Missouri will come from a $500,000 federal Community Services Block Grant.

No Kid Hungry Missouri will also

  • Increase the number of school districts offering “Breakfast after the Bell,” through outreach and startup grants. In Fiscal Year 2015, an estimated 58 percent of students eligible for free or reduced price lunch also received breakfast at school. No Kid Hungry Missouri will seek to increase this to 70 percent over the next three years.
  • Increase access to meals during the summer months, when school is not in session.  By enhancing outreach and identifying new sponsors for summer meals in underserved communities, No Kid Hungry Missouri will aim to increase the number of summer meals served to 6.6 million over the next three years.
  • Increase the number of schools offering after school snacks and meals.  Last year, 647,279 snacks and meals were served at 350 sites. The goal is to ensure at least 30 percent of students who are eligible for free or reduced price lunch, also receive an after school snack or meal.
  • Ensure low-income children who qualify for federal benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program are enrolled.