The idea that hungry children exist in a country as prosperous as ours elicits strong emotions and a sense of urgency. Children who are underfed struggle to learn, and they are more likely to experience chronic illnesses that may hinder their growth.
Federally funded free or reduced school lunch programs provide students with a meal while they are at school. However, these programs don’t extend to the weekends or holidays when school isn’t in session. The Brazos Valley Food Bank’s Backpack Program addresses this problem by discreetly distributing backpacks of healthy and life-saving food to participating students every Friday afternoon so they can go home with food to last through the weekend and show up at school on Monday morning ready to learn.
Studies show that students who receive backpack meals demonstrate better academic outcomes than those who don’t. These students are also more likely to have less behavior problems and visit the nurse fewer times, which means they have more instructional time in the classroom.
If you are interested in starting a backpack food program at your school or a community center, start by researching existing local backpack programs to see what resources they have and what their needs are. Then set up a meeting with the school principal to discuss the need and how you can work together. Then recruit volunteers to help with backpack compilation and distribution, marketing and other administrative tasks.
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