The National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), and related initiatives form the heart of America’s child nutrition safety net, feeding nearly 30 million students daily in 94,000 schools, and reducing hunger, improving health, and strengthening educational outcomes. But half a million students who are eligible for those programs are denied access solely because they attend virtual public schools.
This paper presents context, evidence, and recommendations to ensure all eligible students – regardless of learning modality – can benefit from the programs Congress began to put in place eighty years ago “to safeguard the health and well-being of the Nation’s children.” It argues that the federal commitment to child nutrition, embodied in the school meals programs, must be modernized to reflect the growth of virtual and flexible learning.
