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NEA Issue Explainer

Child Nutrition

Students need healthy, nutritious school meals that are free to all and prepare them for learning.
School Lunch line
By: National Education Association
Published: March 18, 2025
This issue explainer originally appeared on NEA.org

School meal programs are important in fighting child hunger.

 When students participate in school meals programs, their behavior, comprehension, and attendance improve.

The meals they receive at home are just as important, and that’s why the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a lifeline for families struggling with food insecurity.

Nutritious meals prepare children for learning and shape their food choices and health outcomes as adults.  

Help students get the healthy meals they need. Ask Congress to fund free school meals for all students, hands-on training and professional development for school food-service staff, and up-to-date equipment for school kitchens, and to protect and strengthen SNAP—our nation’s most effective anti-hunger program. 

Our History of Fighting for Child Nutrition

1946

School Lunch Program Esablished

President Truman signs the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, providing low-cost or free school lunch meals to qualified students through subsidies to schools.
1966

School Meals now Include Breakfast

President Johnson signs the Child Nutrition Act, building on the National School Lunch Act and creating the School Breakfast Program.
1998

Expanded the Federal Subsidies

President Clinton signs the William Goodling Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act, extending authorizations for child nutrition programs.
2004

Tackling Nutrition and Physical Activity

President George W. Bush signs the Child Nutrition and Women Infants and Children Reauthorization Act of 2004, which requires school districts with federally funded school meal programs to have policies addressing nutrition and physical activity.
2010

Making School Meals Healthier, More Available

President Obama signs the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act, which funds child nutrition programs, sets new nutrition standards for schools, and creates the Community Eligibility Provision, allowing all students in certain high-poverty schools to eat meals at no charge.

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