RICHMOND, Va. — Fifteen school divisions across the Commonwealth received the Dorothy S. McAuliffe School Nutrition Award. Three of them were in the Hampton Roads area.
Suffolk City Public Schools, Newport News Public Schools and Southampton County Public Schools received the award that "celebrates Virginia school divisions that have gone above and beyond by operating all available federal child nutrition programs and achieving exceptional participation in the school breakfast program."
The award, launched in 2017, is presented by No Kid Hungry Virginia.
“Schools play a critical role in connecting children with the nutrition they need to fuel their bodies and their brains,” said Claire Mansfield, No Kid Hungry Virginia state director. “We’re excited to honor more schools this year. It’s thanks to strong public-private partnerships and commitments from community members, school leadership, teachers and school nutrition teams that we’ve been able to connect more schools, and students, with federal nutrition programs.”
It was named for former First Lady of Virginia Dorothy McAuliffe to recognize her efforts to end childhood hunger in the state.
“Virginia has become a national model for ending childhood hunger because of the hard work and innovative approaches of this year’s School Nutrition Award recipients,” said McAuliffe. “We’re thrilled to celebrate districts like Suffolk City Public Schools for their ongoing commitment to making sure students can access the meals and other resources they need to succeed.”
To qualify for the award, school divisions must have at least 70% of students who qualify for free or reduced meals and eat school lunch and school breakfast, and if eligible, sponsor and serve meals or snacks through the At-Risk After School Child and Adult Care Food Program and sponsor and serve summer meals through the Summer Food Service Program or National School Lunch Program Seamless Summer Option.
No Kid Hungry Virginia partners with schools and districts to connect eligible students with federal nutrition programs like Breakfast After the Bell, after school meals and summer meals.