Breakfast may soon be available to the students at Long River Middle School (LRMS).

The breakfast will not be sit down, but instead there will be a “Grab and Go” option. The foods will consist of whole grain items like bagels, pancake pouches, cereals, and muffins.  Aside from the food, there will also be a variety of fruit juices, and milks available to students. The United States Department of Agriculture has a Breakfast Meal Pattern, which the foods offered must meet the requirements of.

According to Region 16’s Director of School Nutrition, Victoria Biello, the reason that a breakfast program is being discussed at LRMS is because the school is eligible for a grant from the State of Connecticut. The school qualifies for a grant because in during the 2011-2012 school-year more than 20% of the lunches served were to students eligible for free or reduced-price meals.

This grant will provide the school with an annual grant of $3,000 and up to $.10 per breakfast served within the limits of annual appropriations. Based on price estimates, the grant money will more than likely cover all the expenses of the breakfast program.  These expenses include those of the food, supplies, and labor.

Since the breakfast program is “Grab and Go” the food preparation will not be extensive and will be able to be handled just by the manger and assistant manager.

As of now the Region 16 administrators and LRMS school nutrition staff are working along with Biello in order to work out the logistics of the “Grab and Go” program.

“The breakfast will most likely be available when the buses arrive,” said Biello. “Those students that wish to participate will get off the bus and be supervised in the cafeteria.”

Biello also mentioned that the breakfast will probably cost around $1.50, but no price is has been officially determined.

Throughout Connecticut the number of students that participate in eating breakfast at school is lower than in most other states.

“Participation in our school breakfast program at Woodland is not as high as I would like to see, but it is there for students who don’t have time to eat breakfast at home,” said Biello.

While the participation at Woodland may not be as high as she would like, Biello is still very supportive of breakfast programs in schools.

“I hope to see all Region 16 Schools offering a breakfast to their students in the near future,” said Biello. “I have always advocated for a breakfast program because I realize the importance nutrition has on learning.”