Thriving Students Need Adequate Nourishment

Breakfast is widely considered the most important meal of the day. Chronic hunger and food insecurity are significant barriers to achieving physical and mental health, and a lack of nourishment has wide-reaching impacts. Studies have shown that eating breakfast positively impacts cognitive performance in children, specifically memory and attention. Lunch also plays an important role, as good nutrition throughout the day fuels the brain and supports good academic outcomes.

Students across the country battle food insecurity each day, a battle that costs us dearly in the present and the future. It’s unfortunate that we must discuss this topic in the year 2023 in one of the richest countries on the planet, but we must. Food insecurity impacts an estimated 11% of American families. Students who are asked to learn skills while also fighting hunger pangs are at an extreme disadvantage.

SEMCOG’s 2023-2024 Legislative Policy Platform reflects necessary changes to federal and State policy to support quality of life in Southeast Michigan. The policies are grounded in sound data to balance the needs of all who live in this region. The policy that speaks to the importance of addressing hunger to strengthen education is:

Fighting Hunger in Oakland Schools

Source: Oakland Schools. Logo.

Efforts are underway in schools and colleges across Southeast Michigan to help solve this crisis and strengthen long-term academic outcomes. The importance of eliminating chronic hunger may seem straightforward to many, but we can learn a lot from the perspectives of students who experiencing food insecurity. To understand this issue better, I spoke with individuals from three local institutions of learning who have been focused on these students.

Theresa Rich, Vice President of Oakland Schools and Chairperson of SEMCOG’s Legislative Policy Platform Task Force, was my first interviewee. During the pandemic, all US students were provided with free breakfast and lunch at school. This was a huge saving for families, but funding to support these meals expired on June 30, 2022. While Michigan’s Congressional delegation has remained focused on working toward a long-term solution to child hunger in schools, some leaders from other states disagreed.

U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow and U.S. Representative Haley Stevens have been pushing for free meals. Governor Whitmer has a plan in place for free meals for school-aged children. Oakland County Commissioner Marcia Gershenson led the charge to get funding up to $100,000 from March 1 to the end of the 2023 school year, enough to feed roughly 5,500 kids.

Free breakfast and lunch services are delivered based on the classification of families into three basic tiers:

1. Family pays for everything,
2. Reduced price for breakfast and lunch
3. Family pays nothing.

Post-pandemic, some families received pay raises. While earning more than $35K might seem like a moderate blessing, it came with the unfortunate loss of nutrition assistance. These same families are now back paying for school breakfast and lunch, but the modest gains (especially when they have to be spread over other essential priorities such as rent, transportation, and heat) in earnings are not enough to provide adequate nutrition.

There is an option to pay later with an IOU system, but this has resulted in simply increasing an unmanageable debt load for many families. Some states/districts had money in their budget to continue paying for student meals. Students are legally required to be at school but there’s no law mandating free meals. Theresa Rich received free lunch as a student, so this issue is personal to her. She understands the importance of nutrition but also remembers the stigma of the “lunch of shame.” The food provided was inferior to what most students had, and free lunch participants would be made to do small tasks around the school while the others got to play.

Increasing Food Access at Monroe County Community College

Source: Monroe County Community College

Kojo Quartey, President of Monroe County Community College, recalls a survey the college did to assess food insecurity in 2020. They identified the need for a food pantry, which opened in 2021 just before Thanksgiving. They served over 400 individuals during a “soft opening” to gauge the need and have been open ever since. While the pantry currently has volunteers to man the space, funding to run the food pantry comes from private donations and the Monroe County Opportunity Fund.

The college has a farm on campus to help provide students with healthy options, which is nice because the college is in a food desert. President Quartey discussed potential opportunities to solve food insecurity issues on campus. There is a need to revamp ALICE funding guidelines, which could generate money for colleges to provide meals for those in need.

Balancing Impossible Choices at Henry Ford College

Source: Henry Ford College

Many Henry Ford College students are also experiencing hardships with food insecurity. This challenge is exacerbated by the other adversities students face while attending college. For example, what happens when a student has to pay for an emergency (like a blown tire, which has been known to happen on Michigan roads)? One unexpected and essential expense could exhaust all their funds, so food comes second.

Students also need toiletries and other essential items such as hats and gloves during the winter. One faculty member saw students grappling with competing priorities and also the potential embarrassment many people feel when asking for help with basic needs. Instead of simply pointing students to the highly visible food pantry that is located in the administration building, students can choose to attend “office hours” and receive the help they need. Only a learning environment that meets ALL the needs of its students can truly be considered conducive for success.

Moving forward

There is hope on the horizon, especially for K-12. All Michigan children could see free breakfast and lunch at schools under an executive budget recommendation. Governor Whitmer is expected to recommend spending an estimated $160 million from the state’s School Aid Fund to go toward the program. That’s expected to impact 1.4 million children in-state, with the administration indicating the move could save families at least $850 a year.

While this doesn’t solve the college-age student hunger crisis, it would be a significant step forward. Unfortunately, hunger is very much alive in America, but there are things you can do to help. Some people are helping to pay off students’ school lunch balances, which are owed in districts across the country. Others are donating to food pantries on college campuses. The challenge is widespread, and it is going to take all of us to eradicate hunger in our schools.