Elementary Schools Serve Up Breakfast

This year will be the first year Ithan and Radnor elementary schools will be offering breakfast to students.

Breakfast is already available in the district on the middle and high school levels, but this will be the first year it'll be available on the elementary level.

Barb Nissel, food services operations consultant, said the new breakfast option is meant to ensure kids are ready to learn.

"Research has shown that children who eat a good, healthy breakfast do much better academically in the classroom," she said. "But surprisingly enough, some children aren't eating breakfast."

Nissel said reasons for kids not eating breakfast ranges anywhere from running late to school to not feeling like eating directly after waking up to not having it laid out for them in the morning.

After the success of a pilot program last year, where Nissel said as many as 100 elementary kids were eating breakfast, it was decided that the program should be installed permanently.

Students who qualify for free lunch can also qualify for free breakfast. But students can also pay for their breakfast through the system in which they already pay for lunch.

Breakfast foods offered will include a hot meal like French toast or an egg sandwhich as well as parfaits and the like.