Baltimore schools will begin offering students free breakfasts in their classrooms, reports the Baltimore Sun. The district had already been providing free breakfasts in cafeterias, but participation has been low (around 22 percent or 17,500 students a day) due to the inconvenience and indifferent menu choices. In the new program, students will be able to grab portable breakfast choices that they could take and eat in their classrooms if their school’s principal agrees.
The initiative is the first major project for new Foodservice Director Anthony Geraci, a chef who designed the meal choices. The boxed breakfasts include milk, 100% juice, low-sugar cereal and a high-protein snack.
To boost participation, the district is partnering with the Baltimore Orioles and Baltimore Ravens on an incentive program that puts a prize such as sports tickets or music downloads into one of every 20 of the breakfast boxes. Ravens and Orioles players will also visit classrooms and film spots to promote eating breakfast.
