Food insecurity in your schools?

[GemTwist]

Hello everyone. I was just curious how often children come to you with tummy aches or what-not due to being hungry from lack of food at home. Do you have resources available to help? I am a nursing student and food insecurity in children has really become a passion of mine. A few months ago I had read an article that there were 250 homeless students in our school district alone. This blew my mind! The school district also has a Homeless Liaison dedicated to helping these kids and families.

I am very interested in becoming a school nurse and was just curious as to what your roles are in assessing these children's needs and how responsive the schools are to your findings. I started up a permanent snack drive here through a local business and a mom's group on facebook. Each week we deliver snack bags to the district office to be handed out to the kids. Now I am working on getting a backpack program set up here as well with the assistance of the homeless liaison.

This program is such a wonderful thing for the kids. I wanted to share it with you all to see if you or anyone you may know would want to start this program up in your district. This is a great resource- and could also be an educational point to discuss in school meetings and community meetings to rally support as hunger affects a child's learning. This program can be started anywhere in the nation. Here is the link to the program: http://end68hoursofhunger.org/

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Although I'm not a school nurse or anything like that, I did come to school hungry on some mornings during my early and middle childhood years when the household food ran out. I was ineligible for free/reduced breakfasts and lunches because my parents' income was above the poverty level.

Also, I never visited the school nurse because my parents trained me to not tell any adults about the situation at home. Their rationale was this: I'd be at risk of being removed from their care by CPS if teachers, school nurses and other adults knew about their food-insecure household. So I kept quiet about it.

The free/reduced school lunch program prevents a great deal of hunger during the school year for many children. However, it does not help children whose family incomes are above the poverty level but too low to meet basic household expenses. And I imagine these are the very children who have been trained to not advertise their food insecurity out of fear of intervention from authorities.

[GemTwist]

If a letter was sent home explaining a food program where a backpack would be filled with food by a volunteer organization and sent home with the child on Fridays would your parents have declined this offer due to being worried about DSHS involvement? The letter sent home would just need a parent signature allowing involvement and the organization would not know the names of the individuals, but the school would so they can distribute them. Just trying to figure the best way to get the most people involved that need it.

As you were saying, there is a large problem in that population that falls above the poverty line but not enough to be in the free lunch/breakfast program yet can't afford the needed staples at home either. Such a difficult area and frustrating. Not everyone is capable of reaching the food banks.

-Thank you for your input and response

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

If a letter was sent home explaining a food program where a backpack would be filled with food by a volunteer organization and sent home with the child on Fridays would your parents have declined this offer due to being worried about DSHS involvement?

There's a good chance they would have declined the offer out of the unrealistic fear of being 'tracked' because they would have had to provide their signature(s) to receive the backpack of food.

They probably would have agreed if the food program involved more anonymity (no signatures, just visit a designated place to pick up a bag of food items).

[JenTheSchoolRN, BSN, RN]

This is why some school districts (Boston, for example) are switching to free lunches (and breakfast) for all children - not just the ones that qualify. It eliminates the stigma and ensures all children can get a meal at school.

I have food in my office. Nothing much, usually crackers and juice. I work with a smaller school (~450), and have built up a relationship with some kids that I know need a juice or crackers if they are late to school and miss breakfast. We have emergency lunches for any student that forgets their lunch as well. It is a very sensitive subject and it is true, so many folks are struggling, but just above the line where help is much harder to get.

[jsundhausen]

In the school that I work in, we have a program called "backpack buddies". This is a program offered by an area food bank that delivers food weekly. A selected number of students that have been identified as having the need go down on Fridays and their backpacks are filled with easy to prepare meals for the weekend. While there are many other students that need to be in the program I am sure, this does help some of them that teachers, administrators and myself have identified. When we started, I, as the nurse made a quick phone call to the identified students parents about what we were doing and if they would be okay with their child participating. We really try to keep it discreet but 7 and 8 year olds have a way of letting the world know! :)

[Ilovegiraffes]

Our district offers the "Boomerang Backpack" program for our students. It's managed by a high school service group, they fill the bags with nutritious foods to be sent home on Fridays. They had to switch to disposable plastic bags.....because the sturdy cloth re-usable drawstring bags were too often not returned. It's an imperfect program because it's only offered to families already receiving free/reduced breakfast & lunches.....which excludes working parents who still struggle with bills.....and some of the little ones feel left out because they'd like to get a goody bag, too.....but nothing is perfect! It does do some good!

[rbytsdy]

We have free/reduced breakfast and lunch available. We also have the weekend backpack program. A letter was sent home in the beginning of the year that parents signed and returned. We don't ask about immigration status when kids register in the school so that shouldn't be an issue though it has been for a couple students. I have quite a few kids that come hungry even though they can come for breakfast. The parent still has to actually bring them in early and many can't be bothered. I keep extra food in my office. I have the sweetest little girl that comes in several times a month with a stomachache due to lack of food. It turned into a little game for us. I would just wink and ask her if she needed a little snack. She told me last week that her parents would be able to buy snacks on Friday. But then i learned that Friday was her last day - her family is moving. I'm planning to call the school nurse in the school where she is moving to give her a heads up.

[GemTwist]

Rbytsdy great of you to follow up with the girls next school nurse. Thanks for all the info from everyone. Our district has free/reduced lunches and some have breakfasts. But, some of the kids are not getting there in time for the breakfasts. We have a small weekend backpack program and I am hoping that with this additional program we open we can reach more kids. Include those kids that are middle/lower income that are not qualifying for other help. We can send them with backpacks at least on fridays with meals for the weekend.

[GemTwist]

Wow, that is really great they are moving to free meals for all kids. Ensures everyone is having something to eat.

[toomuchbaloney]

I have a grandchild who attends public school in Toledo Ohio. I believe that all students may access free breakfast without providing evidence of poverty. I don't know about lunch but I believe that if the school has identified students who are without food or funds they provide for their nutritional and hunger needs.

It is so sad, all while our wealthy congressional members are cutting the SNAP program and the unemployment benefits of the parents.

[NutmeggeRN, BSN]

We have a summer lunch program. A 1x weekly drop off of peanut butter jelly tuna mayo bread etc.The goal is to target the families who do not have access to free and reduced lunch over the summer, but will feed anyone if the paperwork is done just stating they need it. We know we will get burned, but we may also make a difference for some one who is needy but not qualified. this is supported by voluneteers and community donations.