Jul 28, 2022

Community Eligibility: Supporting Families and Communities

The Community Eligibility Provision allows high-need schools to offer breakfast and lunch to all students at no cost. Two recent papers published by the National Bureau of Economic Research highlight the benefits of community eligibility for families with school-age children and entire communities. These are working papers, meaning they have not yet been peer-reviewed.
Together, these papers demonstrate the value of community eligibility to fight inflation, reduce expenses, and improve food security. As the cost of living continues to increase, expanding access to healthy school meals is a critical way to help families and communities struggling to make ends meet.

Jul 28, 2022

Research Finds Continuing Food Hardship and Strong Public Support for SNAP Expansions

SNAP Director

Since the onset of COVID-19, several temporary Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) changes have allowed enrolled households to receive more robust benefits and eased access for unemployed and underemployed adults and college students. The changes  are tied to the duration of the federal COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Declaration (PHE). Recent research has confirmed strong public support around continuing these temporary SNAP improvements beyond the pandemic, and stakeholder engagement is on the rise.

Jul 27, 2022

Vermont Passes Healthy School Meals for All Legislation

The governor of Vermont, Phil Scott, recently signed the Universal School Meals Act (S.100). This legislation makes free breakfasts and lunches available to all students in the state for the 2022–2023 school year. Vermont is the third state to pass Healthy School Meals for All legislation, following California and Maine. Several other states are working to enact similar policies.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, schools have been able to offer breakfast and lunch to all students at no charge, allowing all children to experience the critical health and educational benefits associated with school meals. This was done through Congress giving the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) nationwide waiver authority.   
FRAC spoke with Faye Mack, the Advocacy and Education director at Hunger Free Vermont, to learn more. Read her interview below.

Jul 25, 2022

FRAC on the Move: A Taste of Street Advocacy

On June 5, alongside FRAC’s Chief Government Affairs Officer Ellen Teller, FRAC’s Nomi Small, network and events coordinator, and Steve Hayward, senior communications coordinator, staffed an advocacy table in New York City at the West Side Campaign Against Hunger’s (WSCAH) inaugural ‘Rock the Block’ party. They describe their experience in the following blog. Follow the hashtag #FRAConTheMove on social to learn more about FRAC staff participation in state and local events throughout the year.

Jul 20, 2022

White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health Hear What People with Lived Experience with Hunger Shared- Maria Judith Alvarez

Food Research & Action Center

FRAC, along with other anti-hunger organizations underscored five priorities for the conference.  

To ensure these priorities are put into the forefront during the conference, FRAC nominated several people to speak about  their lived experiences with hunger during a series of virtual, regional listening sessions  hosted by the White House. They shared their stories and recommendations during these sessions.

In a blog series, we will share the remarks  of a few of the advocates who spoke during these sessions

Maria Judith Alvarez spoke at the White House’s Spanish language listening session. Her testimony has been translated from the original Spanish.