Evaluation of the School Breakfast Program Pilot Project: Findings from the First Year of Implementation

Participation in the School Breakfast Program (SBP) by children from low-income households continues to be less than their participation in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). There is concern that children might be coming to school without eating breakfast and still not be participating in the SBP for a variety of reasons, including a perceived stigma associating school breakfast participation with poverty. The aim of this pilot is to study the impact of the availability of universal-free school breakfast on breakfast participation and measures related to students’ nutritional status and academic performance. This pilot is not intended to evaluate the current SBP or the value of consuming breakfast.