Blog
Oct
National School Lunch week shines the spotlight on the programs and nutritious food that’s served up every day all year long at schools across the country.
“We have the opportunity in the state of Alabama to reach approximately three quarters of a million children on a daily basis for meals,” said June Barrett, Alabama Child Nutrition Program Coordinator for the state Department of Education. Nationally, the School Lunch Program serves nearly 30 million students every school day.
“If a child is hungry, they cannot learn. And I think that that’s probably the biggest message that we need to provide to parents and to the community in general,” Barrett explains about the importance of the School Lunch Program. “Because if a child did not come to school, having eaten breakfast, did not have an opportunity to eat lunch, then they would not be able to sit in the chairs and learn from the teachers or listen to what the teachers are trying to present to them.”
The coronavirus pandemic has added some major challenges to the mission of making sure every child is fed.
“Some of the challenges our local Child Nutrition directors face were actually making contact with the children once the schools were released in March,” Barrett said. “We did provide meals, we had curbside pickup. We thought out of the box as much as you could possibly think out of the box and provide meals to children. And it’s been very, very valuable. We’ve partnered also with our Department of Transportation, and meals were actually delivered by bus drivers through certain communities. We’ve had all sorts of opportunities to encourage children to dine with us. We have the fresh fruits and vegetable program and USDA allowed us to extend that to the to the children who were at home learning during virtual learning processes. So we’ve really tried as diligently and served as many children as we could serve meals and food while they were away from the school grounds.”
The theme for this year’s National School Lunch week is “Now Playing” and it’s “centered around Hollywood themed processes,” Barrett explained. “So anything that could be done on a movie theater basis, fun and having tickets to go through lunch line, you know, go through the meal process or special things that could connect. Now Playing in the theater role with the National School Lunch Program would just be something that would add to the perspective of receiving a meal and having fun, and that’s what National School Lunch week is, just really all centered around having fun with children.”
Republished with permission WSFA 12 News.
Oct
Washington, DC – During National School Lunch Week, we celebrate our Nation’s commitment to providing nutritious food to millions of students, and we recognize the many dedicated food service professionals and administrators who help carry out this mission. In a typical year, the National School Lunch Program provides meals to nearly 30 million schoolchildren every day across the country. These meals enable students in need to eat nutritious meals, which helps them achieve academic success and reach their full potential.
The National School Lunch Program succeeds because of the strong partnerships between the Federal Government and State governments, food service professionals, and local school leaders. Our Nation’s farmers, ranchers, and producers are also essential to providing the food our children eat. Since this program was established in 1946, the collaboration between these key players has been vital to its success, and their cooperation has never been more crucial than during this pivotal time in our Nation’s history.
In recent months, it has become increasingly evident just how many families depend on the meals provided at school. As thousands of schools transitioned to remote learning in response to the coronavirus pandemic, I signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act to ensure schools could continue serving children the meals they need. My Administration also launched the innovative public-private partnership “Meals to You,” which delivered more than 40 million nutritious meals to children in rural areas while schools were closed. In the battle with this invisible enemy, resilience and flexibility have been critical to keeping our children safe and fed, and we are thankful for the extra efforts that have been made to achieve this goal.
Throughout the last few months, my Administration has recognized that our children’s well-being depends so much on their access to schools. I have encouraged all schools to safely reopen, and we want to ensure that they are as prepared as ever to provide healthy meals to all students. In June, my Administration invested in the health of students by awarding more than $12.1 million — a record amount — in Farm to School Grants. These funds will help bring clean, fresh, and locally‑grown foods into schools and communities as they reopen, and will help foster economic opportunity for America’s farmers as we continue our economic comeback. Additionally, on October 9, my Administration extended flexibilities and waived requirements to continue operating the summer meals program and the seamless summer option at no cost until the end of the school year. This program allows any child under 18 to get a free meal at a meal distribution site, and allows parents and guardians to pick up meals for their children. We are proud of these measures and others that we have taken to help ensure that all students have access to nutritious food.
To emphasize the importance of the National School Lunch Program, the Congress, by joint resolution of October 9, 1962 (Public Law 87–780), has designated the week beginning on the second Sunday in October each year as “National School Lunch Week,” and has requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this week.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 11 through October 17, 2020, as National School Lunch Week. I call upon all Americans to join the countless individuals who administer the National School Lunch Program in activities that support and promote awareness of the health and well-being of our Nation’s children.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this ninth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
THE WHITE HOUSE
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