Understanding the Legislative Process of Child Nutrition And how to be a successful lobbyist for your program Leigh anne Peterson School nutrition & wellness director Scott county school district 2

Why is the government sticking it’s nose in my business? Because in 1946, President Harry Truman established the National School Lunch Program so that our military recruits wouldn’t be rejected due to malnutrition. In 1975, the School Breakfast Program was made permanent so that millions of school children could start their day with breakfast. These and other programs developed by Congressional Legislation & USDA regulation help fight hunger & obesity by reimbursing organizations such as schools, child care centers, and after school programs for providing healthy meals. Well over half of the USDA budget is dedicated to nutrition assistance programs. (this includes SNAP & WIC)

NSLP is the largest of the federal child nutrition programs in both spending and children served. 31 Million Students per day nationally. In Indiana, 721,923 children are served per day. 68.1% of students in our nation who participate in the school lunch program receive those meals free or at a reduced cost. 51% of Indiana students receive free or reduced meals. 12.9 Million children start their day with a school breakfast. 10.1 Million of those kids are free or reduced. Here it’s 258,157. In SY13-14, Indiana received $318,575,266.00 in Federal dollars. Total commodity value was $33,740,155.00

School Nutrition Association – You are Not Alone! The School Nutrition Association (SNA) was formed the same year the NSLP was founded! It was created because school nutrition professionals nationwide wanted to be heard. These professionals weren’t directors. They weren’t women with college degrees or SNS credentialed. They were staff members in the kitchen who prepared the food for the students. Today members include those cooks, cashiers, and cafeteria managers. District level employees who oversee menu planning, state agency employees, and industry members. WE are the authority on everything related to school meal programs.

Which is why they need to hear from YOU

Resources at your fingertips www.schoolnutrition.org/legislation https://schoolnutrition.org/Newsletters/TuesdayMorning/ http://www.theicn.org/Default.aspx https://schoolnutrition.org/LAC2016/

Regulations may change. But our objective doesn’t.