Title: Kids Who Are Time-Crunched At School Lunch Toss More And Eat Less : The Salt : NPR
Headings: Kids Who Are Time-Crunched At School Lunch Toss More And Eat Less
The Salt
Eating And Health
Kids Who Are Time-Crunched At School Lunch Toss More And Eat Less
The Salt
These Days, School Lunch Hours Are More Like 15 Minutes
The Salt
Class Divide: Are More Affluent Kids Opting Out Of School Lunch?
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Content: Are More Affluent Kids Opting Out Of School Lunch? And there's another factor that may be adding to longer lines and less table time: As we've reported, the number of school children receiving free meals under the National School Lunch program has increased in recent years, according to a report last year from the Government Accountability Office. When we spoke to her in 2013, Bauscher also cited this increased participation as one factor behind longer lunch lines. She oversees nutrition services for Jefferson County Public Schools in Kentucky, where 70 percent of students participate in meals programs. Some Salt readers have told us in comments that longer lines may be behind another trend in the school cafeteria: fewer students are buying lunch. As we recently reported, the number of students who pay full price for school meals declined by 1.6 million, or about 5 percent, in recent years. After we posted that story on Facebook, many of our followers told us that long lines and short meal times were a significant factor in why their children were now brown-bagging it. Brenna Zesiger D'Ambrosio is a Chicago writer and mom with two children in the city's public elementary schools.