Breakfast After the Bell - Benefits of Breakfast in the Classroom Policy (2015)
Undergraduate: Bays Coppedge
Faculty Advisor: Patrick Akos
Department: Health Policy & Management
The common phrase, ¿¿¿breakfast is the most important meal of the day,¿¿¿ is supported by various studies, professionals, and most importantly, academic results. A student beginning their school day hungry can lead to negative behavior as well as impact their performance in the classroom. The purpose of this research is to provide a supportive position for the Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) policy. The current policy in place gives free and reduced breakfast to qualified students before school starts, excluding other students who would also benefit from this meal. The BIC policy provides breakfast to all students and moves breakfast to being provided in the classroom, rather than in the cafeteria. The need for BIC is demonstrated by results from various studies. All of these studies show the benefits on students¿¿¿ behavior, performance and attention span. By moving breakfast from the cafeteria to the classroom, students will not lose valuable instructional time and ensure 100% participation from the student population. Various stakeholders¿¿¿ participation will be needed in order accomplish the implementation of the BIC program.