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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, More than 15% of Illinoisans struggle to provide
3enough food for their families and more than 22% of Illinois
4children are food-insecure, meaning they do not have consistent
5access to adequate food; and
 
6    WHEREAS, In the 2013-2014 school year, Illinois: (1)
7dropped from 36th to 40th in the nation in school breakfast
8participation; (2) provided only 36.2% of Free and Reduced
9price eligible children with federally funded school
10breakfasts; (3) left $90.4 million in unclaimed federal funding
11for school breakfasts; and (4) achieved school breakfast
12participation rates of 70% or higher in only 4 of the 100
13largest school districts; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Children in food-insecure households are less
15likely to have access to nutritious food that supplies the
16nutrients required for healthy brain development; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Low-income children who eat school breakfasts
18have better overall diet quality than those who eat breakfast
19elsewhere or skip breakfast; and
 
20    WHEREAS, School breakfast participation is associated with
21a lower body mass index (BMI, an indicator of excess body fat),

 

 

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1lower probability of being overweight, and lower probability of
2obesity; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Eating breakfast at school is associated with
4positive behavioral outcomes, such as lower rates of chronic
5absenteeism, fewer classroom disruptions, and less-frequent
6visits to the nurse; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Alternative breakfast models, such as Breakfast
8in the Classroom or Grab N' Go breakfast, are proven models to
9boost school breakfast participation and related positive
10outcomes; and
 
11    WHEREAS, States across the nation have introduced
12legislation requiring schools with high Free and Reduced Price
13eligibility to provide an alternative model breakfast service;
14and
 
15    WHEREAS, The 1,376 schools throughout Illinois with 70% or
16higher Free and Reduced price eligibility provided breakfast to
17only 45% of eligible students in the 2013-14 school year; and
 
18    WHEREAS, If all Illinois schools with at least 70% Free and
19Reduced Price eligibility implemented alternative breakfast
20models and increased school breakfast participation to 70% of
21their students, an additional 106,726 students would receive

 

 

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1breakfast every day; therefore, be it
 
2    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL
3ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we encourage schools
4participating in the School Breakfast Program, and schools with
570% or higher Free and Reduced Price meal eligibility in
6particular, to utilize alternative delivery models such as
7Breakfast in the Classroom and Grab N' Go to provide
8alternative breakfast models to all students at no cost; and be
9it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That we acknowledge the importance of increasing
11participation in school breakfast in Illinois schools and
12recognize that establishing State requirements for schools to
13participate in alternative breakfast models are the most
14effective means to increase school breakfast participation;
15and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That the Illinois Commission to End Hunger's No
17Kid Hungry Working Group shall provide the General Assembly
18with a report showing the impact of providing alternative
19breakfast models at all schools with an emphasis on schools
20that have 70% or high Free and Reduced Price eligibility by
21November 4, 2015; and be it further
 
22    RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be delivered to:

 

 

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1the co-chairs of the Illinois Commission to End Hunger; the
2Governor; and the State Superintendent of Education.