Arkansas picks up school breakfast tabs
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The state will pay for breakfast for public school students who don't qualify for federally funded meals, including in districts that already cover such costs, education department spokesperson Kimberly Mundell tells Axios.
Why it matters: Arkansas has the highest rate of food insecurity in the nation. Ensuring all children have access to school breakfast improves their nutrition, health, behavior and ability to learn, according to Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families.
Driving the news: Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders recently signed SB59 into law guaranteeing breakfast to all students regardless of their families' income starting this fall.
By the numbers: Tax revenue from medical marijuana sales will help pay for the meals, which the state expects to cost $14.7 million annually.
State of play: About half, or 125, of school districts in Arkansas already guarantee free breakfast to all students, according to state education department data. That includes three of NWA's largest school districts — Fayetteville, Rogers and Springdale.
- About 19% of students at Bentonville Public Schools are enrolled in federally funded free or reduced breakfast, spokesperson Leslee Wright told Axios.
- Lincoln, Greenland and Decatur school districts also offer free breakfast.
What they're saying: Rogers began offering free breakfast to all elementary students in 2012 via a grant from the Arkansas Huger Relief Alliance.
- "Teachers reported that students were more engaged and alert in the mornings and there was a decrease in trips to the nurse during the morning related to hunger or lethargy," child nutrition director Margie Bowers told Axios in an email.
- Increased food and labor prices mean that Rogers will welcome the state assistance, Bowers said.
Zoom out: Lincoln and Decatur are the only NWA districts to also guarantee free lunch, which is also offered by 101 other districts in the state.