SDP’s Division of Food Services offers alternatives to traditional breakfast service in the cafeteria before the school day begins. Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) allows students to eat together in classrooms after the start of the school day, and Grab-n-Go carts located in hallways or other common areas allow students to access breakfast items on their way to class.

In 2016-17, breakfast participation across the District averaged 42%. As part of a District-wide effort to increase breakfast participation to 70%, SDP implemented two breakfast-related initiatives in 2017-18: targeting 30 schools to implement alternative breakfast models and implementing a breakfast challenge.

The Office of Research and Evaluation (ORE) analyzed two years of breakfast participation data. According to our analysis, schools that offered Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) to all students had the highest participation rate of all breakfast models (73%), and schools targeted to implement alternative breakfast delivery models that also joined the 2017 Philadelphia School Breakfast Challenge had a larger increase in breakfast participation rates than other schools.

Contact Dr. Erin Cassar, Senior Research Associate: ecassar@philasd.org.