Acting Superintendent Taling Taitano said GDOE still needs to conduct a financial assessment to determine how much it will cost to implement the program and whether the department will be able to handle the anticipated rise in logistics, if it can break even, or even make a little money.
Taitano said the program covers secondary education as well. But for now, the department will focus on the elementary level.
Taitano said USDA will be subsidizing the program. For students who qualify for free and reduced breakfast, USDA will increase the subsidy for those students. For those who are able to pay, USDA will subsidize them as well, but at a lower percentage.
USDA’s mission is to feed all school children grades kindergarten through 12. Feeding free breakfast to students who can afford to pay avoids the stigma for students who can’t but don’t want everyone to know.
Taitano said in the elementary schools, students will be served breakfast in class while teachers take attendance and prepare for the day. In the secondary levels, students can pick up breakfast in the cafeteria and return to their first class period and eat breakfast in their classroom.
