ROWLEY — During National School Breakfast Week (March 3-7), Triton Regional School District celebrated the impact that free school breakfast has on students each day.
Staff members from statewide food security nonprofit Project Bread joined Sarah Littmann, director of food and nutrition services for Triton Regional School District and Kristina Webber, from Pine Grove Elementary School in Rowley on Tuesday, March 4, to enjoy a school breakfast. Items on the menu included student-favorite sausage, egg and cheese sandwiches served on pancakes, along with a variety of other items, including five different fresh fruit options. Students also enjoyed breakfast stickers, pencils and pencil case giveaways throughout the morning.
Students who start their day with a nourishing school breakfast attend class ready to learn, score higher on tests, and have a higher attendance rate. In Triton, the district is lifting up new scratch cooked items, such as egg bites, muffins, overnight oats, and breakfast pizzas, and provides grab and go breakfast at the start of the school day.
“This school year, we prioritized lowering sugar in our breakfast recipes, which has led to our kitchens doing more scratch cooking and baking,” Littmann said. “Through the culinary creativity of the Triton food service staff and new equipment from the support of Project Bread’s breakfast grant, our participation has significantly increased, and students are more excited about eating breakfast at school.”
Project Bread connects people and communities in Massachusetts to reliable sources of food while advocating for policies that make food more accessible—so that no one goes hungry. For more information, visit: www.projectbread.org.