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Central Falls, RI, is a densely populated city with a high poverty rate. Though the School Breakfast Program (SBP) has been available throughout the school district for several years, in 1992-93 only 14 percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals participated in the program. In early 1994, Central Falls' Kids First, a collaborative partnership between the Central Falls School Department and local community leaders, launched a pilot universally-free school breakfast program (UF-SBP) called "Operation Breakfast." One of the goals of Operation Breakfast was to improve SBP participation. Under the UF-SBP, school breakfast was made available to all children in the school district free of charge.
USDA research shows that in 1993 just under 20 percent of students eligible for the SBP participated in the program. Other studies suggest several factors associated with low participation in the SBP nationwide. Among these are employment status and educational level of mothers.
Operation Breakfast's objectives included:
- informing parents and teachers about the nutritional benefits of school breakfast
- encouraging students to try school breakfast, and
- making participation in school breakfast fun
Special promotional activities included Parent/Teacher Breakfasts, Breakfast in the Classroom, the Breakfast Club and promotional flyers and contests with gifts and prizes to participants.
A "rapid assessment" evaluation component was included in the implementation of Operation Breakfast to determine, how the promotion affected program participation and children's preparedness for school (e.g., school attendance, tardiness, and food and nutrient intake in the morning). The evaluation was conducted in a short time frame, using limited resources and with minimum disruption of school activities and routines. A detailed description of the evaluation study design is presented in the Appendix to this report.
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