Every Philly school now serves breakfast after the bell. Council's school meals hearing still has no date

Every student in the School District of Philadelphia can now get a free breakfast after classes start, the Inquirer reported Monday. Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. ordered the "Breakfast After the Bell" change for all 216 district schools this school year.

For families, that means a child who gets to school right at the bell, or late because of traffic or weather, can still eat. Meals are already free for every district student regardless of income. But breakfast participation had been uneven, partly because of stigma and partly because students arrived too late to eat before class, according to the Inquirer.

What changed

Eating isn't mandatory. Schools deliver breakfast in different ways: bags brought to classrooms, carts at classroom doors or carts in hallways, the Inquirer reported.

• At Potter-Thomas Elementary in North Philadelphia, which made the switch last year, participation rose from 19% to nearly 70%, according to the paper.
• Lisa Norton, the district's executive director of food services, said the change has added more than 65,000 meals districtwide. She said the switch takes significant coordination.
• Watlington said the change is meant to make sure students' basic needs are met, for example "if you get here right when class starts because traffic is bad or it's raining outside."

What our records add

City Council has been pressing the district on school food this fall, through two resolutions from 9th District Councilmember Anthony Phillips.

• A hearing, approved but not scheduled. Resolution 260930, adopted Oct. 29, authorizes the Committees on Children and Youth and Education to hold a joint hearing on the district's meal policies. That covers meal quality and nutrition, food preparation and procurement, kitchen infrastructure, student participation and the dining experience. As of Nov. 5, no hearing date is on our calendar, which lists committee meetings through Nov. 23. Our story.
• Seven sponsors. Phillips, Jim Harrity, Katherine Gilmore Richardson, Kendra Brooks, Mark Squilla, Nicolas O'Rourke and Rue Landau.
• The earlier resolution is still waiting. Resolution 260872, introduced Oct. 15, calls on the district itself to reexamine its meal policies. It was placed on the final passage calendar but hasn't been adopted. It's still listed as in Council, 21 days after introduction. It has eight sponsors, the same seven plus Cindy Bass. Our story.

Why kitchens matter

Breakfast after the bell changes when students eat, not what they eat. Many district schools lack full kitchens and serve meals made elsewhere and reheated, Chalkbeat reported in February. Phillips's first resolution cited reports that some meals were "prepared and packaged in Brooklyn, New York" before being shipped here (text).

Kitchens are also part of the district's building plans. At J.S. Jenks in Chestnut Hill, which sent students home Wednesday over a water problem, planned work includes a full-service kitchen, but not until the 2032-33 school year, the Inquirer reported. Our story.

A related push on food

Council President Kenyatta Johnson's proposed charter change creating an Office of Food and Nutrition Security gets a hearing Nov. 18 (our story).

What's next

• Resolution 260872 could come up at Council's next stated meeting, Nov. 12.
• The joint hearing under Resolution 260930 needs a date from the two committees. We'll add it to the matter page when one is posted.
• Norton told the Inquirer the gains at Potter-Thomas "could soon be replicated" in other schools.