Latest Resources and Research

Kids can't learn if they're hungry. From meeting a student's basic needs, to giving them the edge they need to succeed academically, school meals are a vital part of the educational day.

School nutrition teams can find the latest resources and research from No Kid Hungry below.

BLOOM INTO YOUR POTENTIAL

In sync with the "Bloom Into Your Potential" theme at the 2022 SNA-NC Conference, we've laid out the stages of growth for school nutrition programs that want to reach their full potential this school year. Learn more.

 

SUMMER RESOURCES

Find online toolkits to help promote your summer nutrition programs, along with tools to help families find meals, information for stakeholders, and more. Learn more.

HOW SCHOOL MEALS CAN SUPPORT SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL SCHOOL CLIMATES

Expanding participation in your school meals program can nourish students while simultaneously building social-emotional learning skills. Learn more.

 

A STUDY ON CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM AND BREAKFAST AFTER THE BELL

Schools are facing a crisis of chronic absenteeism: Before the pandemic, nearly 8 million students are missing at least three weeks of the school year.  Chronic absenteeism can lead to lower academic achievement, greater risk of dropping out, and worse employment prospects.

In 2019, the No Kid Hungry campaign commissioned a study to examine whether serving breakfast after the bell can reduce chronic absenteeism. The study found that Breakfast After the Bell programs can help reduce chronic absenteeism and improve other student outcomes. Learn more.

 

LETTER FROM STATE SUPERINTENDENT CATHERINE TRUITT AND THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: EXTEND CHILD NUTRITION WAIVERS

State Superintendent Catherine Truitt and the NC State Board of Education are among the many advocating for U.S. Congress to grant USDA the ability to extend critical child nutrition waivers.

 

STRATEGIES FOR WORKING THROUGH LABOR SHORTAGE CHALLENGES

This resource offers best practices used by school kitchens across the nation to recruit and retain staff. Practices such as recruiting volunteers, expanding staff benefits, utilizing creative logistics, and advertising at every opportunity! Learn more.

 

TIPS FOR NAVIGATING SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTIONS

This one-page resource provides tips and ideas for navigating supply chain disruptions related to driver, food, and equipment shortages. Learn more.

NUTRITION EDUCATION

Nutrition education helps children and families learn to make healthy food choices, and can help to promote healthy foods being served. Check out recipes, handouts, games, videos, coloring pages, and more. Start here.

 

COMMUNITY ELIGIBILITY PROVISION

Is your school or district taking advantage of one of the best tools available for increasing access to free meals for students? Make sure you know the facts about the Community Eligibility Provision, or CEP, including how it does — and does not — impact Title 1 funding. Learn more.

 

GRANTS IMPACT MAP

Since schools first closed because of COVID-19 in March 2020, No Kid Hungry has granted more than $1.5 million in North Carolina alone to schools and other organizations fighting child hunger. The grants impact map shares some of those stories. See it here.

 

COMING SOON:

  • Free & Reduced Outreach Toolkit
  • Increasing Participation Through Alternative Meal Service Models

 

MORE RESOURCES

The No Kid Hungry Center for Best Practices has a wealth of resources on all topics child nutrition. Start here.

 

CONTACT US

No Kid Hungry North Carolina's team at UNC stands ready to help. Contact us.