[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 210 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 210

  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that providing 
breakfast in schools through the National School Breakfast Program has 
              a positive impact on classroom performance.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 4, 2009

Ms. Moore of Wisconsin (for herself, Mr. Baca, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Bishop 
 of Georgia, Ms. Bordallo, Ms. Corrine Brown of Florida, Mr. Carson of 
    Indiana, Mr. Castle, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Childers, Mrs. 
   Dahlkemper, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Filner, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. 
Gutierrez, Mr. Hare, Mr. Hinchey, Mr. Honda, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson 
    of Texas, Mr. Kildee, Ms. Kilpatrick of Michigan, Mr. Kind, Mr. 
 Kissell, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Levin, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mr. 
Lujan, Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Massa, Mr. McDermott, Mr. Moore of Kansas, Ms. 
    Norton, Mr. Obey, Mr. Rangel, Ms. Herseth Sandlin, Mr. Scott of 
Virginia, Mr. Serrano, Mr. Sestak, Mr. Sires, Mr. Space, Mr. Stark, Mr. 
 Towns, and Mr. Wexler) submitted the following resolution; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that providing 
breakfast in schools through the National School Breakfast Program has 
              a positive impact on classroom performance.

Whereas breakfast program participants under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 
        include public, private, elementary, middle, and high schools, as well 
        as rural, suburban, and urban schools;
Whereas at least 16,000 schools that participate in the National School Lunch 
        Program do not participate in the National School Breakfast Program;
Whereas in fiscal year 2008, 8,520,000 students in the United States consumed 
        free or reduced-price school breakfasts provided under the national 
        school breakfast program established by section 4 of the Child Nutrition 
        Act of 1966;
Whereas less than half of the low-income students who participate in the 
        National School Lunch Program also participate in the school breakfast 
        program;
Whereas in fiscal year 2008, 60 percent of school lunches served, and 80 percent 
        of school breakfasts served, were served to students who qualified for 
        free or reduced priced meals;
Whereas the current economic situation, including the increase of nearly 3 
        percent in the national unemployment rate in 2008, is causing more 
        families to struggle to feed their children and to turn to schools for 
        assistance;
Whereas implementing or improving classroom breakfast programs have been shown 
        to increase the participation of eligible students in breakfast 
        consumption dramatically, doubling, and in some cases tripling, numbers, 
        as evidenced by research in Minnesota, New York, and Wisconsin;
Whereas making breakfast widely available through different venues or a 
        combination thereof, such as in the classroom, obtained as students exit 
        their school bus, or outside the classroom, has been shown to lessen the 
        stigma of receiving free or reduced-price breakfast, which often 
        prevents eligible students from obtaining traditional breakfast in the 
        cafeteria;
Whereas providing free universal breakfast, especially in the classroom, has 
        been shown to significantly increase school breakfast participation 
        rates and decrease absences and tardiness;
Whereas studies have shown that access to nutritious programs such as the 
        National School Lunch Program and National School Breakfast Program 
        helps to create a strong learning environment for children and helps to 
        improve children's concentration in the classroom;
Whereas providing breakfast in the classroom has been shown in several instances 
        to improve attentiveness and academic performance, while reducing 
        tardiness and disciplinary referrals;
Whereas students who eat a complete breakfast have been shown to make fewer 
        mistakes and work faster in math exercises than those who eat a partial 
        breakfast;
Whereas studies suggest that eating breakfast closer to classroom and test-
        taking time improves student performance on standardized tests relative 
        to students who skip breakfast;
Whereas studies show that students who skip breakfast are more likely to have 
        difficulty distinguishing among similar images, show increased errors, 
        and have slower memory recall;
Whereas children who live in families that experience hunger have been shown to 
        be more likely to have lower math scores, face an increased likelihood 
        of repeating a grade, and receive more special education services;
Whereas studies suggest that children who eat breakfast have more adequate 
        nutrition and intake of nutrients, such as calcium, fiber, protein, and 
        vitamins A, E, D, and B-6;
Whereas studies show that children who participate in school breakfast programs 
        eat more fruits, drink more milk, and consume less saturated fat than 
        those who do not eat breakfast;
Whereas children who fail to eat breakfast, whether in school or at home, are 
        more likely to be overweight than children who eat a healthy breakfast 
        on a daily basis; and
Whereas March 2 through March 6, 2009, is National School Breakfast Week: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the importance of the National School 
        Breakfast Program and its overall positive effect on the lives 
        of low-income children and families, as well as its effect on 
        helping to improve a child's overall classroom performance;
            (2) expresses support for States that have successfully 
        implemented school breakfast programs in order to improve the 
        test scores and grades of its participating students;
            (3) encourages States to strengthen their school breakfast 
        programs by improving access for students, to promote 
        improvements in the nutritional quality of breakfasts served, 
        and to inform students and parents of healthy nutritional and 
        lifestyle choices;
            (4) recognizes the need to provide States with resources to 
        improve the availability of adequate and nutritious breakfasts;
            (5) recognizes the impact of nonprofit and community 
        organizations that work to increase awareness of, and access 
        to, breakfast programs for low-income children; and
            (6) recognizes that National School Breakfast Week helps 
        draw attention to the need for, and success of, the National 
        School Breakfast Program.
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