Last week, No Kid Hungry announced the winners of its annual School Breakfast Hero Contest, which recognizes members of the local community for going above and beyond to ensure kids eat school breakfast. This year’s lineup of champions includes educators and administrators from school districts across the country. With so many nominations received this year, other award nominees were inducted into a new School Breakfast Hall of Fame.
Here’s a roundup of how these School Breakfast Heroes are helping end childhood hunger through school breakfast.
- Escabana, Bark River-Harris employee named ‘School Breakfast Hero’ [Michigan]: Food Service Director Nancy LaFave was named one of just five national winners of No Kid Hungry’s School Breakfast Hero contest, and the first winner from Michigan. This past year, LaFave has been working with the administration of both schools to make sure that all kids, kindergarten through sixth grade, eat breakfast in the classroom.
- Rialto Principal Honored in National Breakfast Hero Contest [California]: On March 5, Dr. Monte Stewart, principal of Hughbanks Elementary School in Rialto, was presented with No Kid Hungry’s School Breakfast Hero award at a National School Breakfast Week celebration that welcomed more than 200 guests, including administrators, elected officials, PTA representatives, and teachers and school staff. Dr. Stewart was an early adopter of the Breakfast in the Classroom program in the district.
- Lincoln Elementary Principal Jon Konen Nationally Recognized with Breakfast Hero Award [Montana]: Montana First Lady Lisa Bullock presented Principal Jon Konen with his School Breakfast Hero award at a ceremony this week at Lincoln Elementary. Konen’s school was one of the first in Montana to apply for and receive a Breakfast After the Bell grant from Montana No Kid Hungry in 2014.
- Little River Cook Honored [Kansas]: Head Cook, MaiThy Jesseph, from Little River Junior Senior High School, USD 444, was inducted into No Kid Hungry’s 2019 School Breakfast Hall of Fame. Jesseph, nominated by Little River Junior Senior High School Principal Audrey Herbst, was selected for her creative planning and hard work to provide a wide array of choices for healthy eating in the school menu.
Inspired by the national School Breakfast Hero awards, several states have implemented their own statewide hero contests, including Pennsylvania and Tennessee, underscoring just how important educators and school administrators are in the fight to end childhood hunger.
