Texas Strategy for Solving the "Poor Kids' Obesity Problem" | "Don't Feed them During the Summer"
The San Antonio Express News (tree-based news), July 16, 2006, Pages 3B and 7B alerted me to this strategy.
This newspaper column cites a study by the Food Research and Action Center entitled, "No Texas child deserves to go hungry."
It turns out that Texas leads the nation in applying this strategy, to the tune of $32.3 million US!
This is the amount of federal money that Texas did not collect because eligible children from low income homes were not fed.
Texas left almost as much money on the table (no pun intended) as the next five states combined!
Amount not claimed for feeding low income children by just six states - $77.3 million US
And, this is not calculated at swanky-restaruant (the kind that teachers frequent, where a tuxedo-clad valet parks the teacher's BMW) prices. This was calculated on US Department of Agriculture (USDA) provided food prices. This is food sold to schools at below wholesale prices, i.e., comodity food purchased by our government to keep the prices that we pay at the supermarket high; food sold at lower than market prices so that between ten to twenty children could eat lunch for the price that an afluent teacher might pay for one mediocre bottle of wine at said upscale eatery. This represents a lot of missed meals for poor children...a really lot of meals.
And, we're only talking about one, no-charge meal a day for these children.
The Texas Success Story
In Texas, only about 19% of the low income children that could have been fed (were eligible for the program), were fed.
Sure, Texas kids are among the heaviest in the nation.
But, feeding children nutritious food each day keeps their weight down.
Placing children on a "no food available" diet, just causes them to "pack on pounds" once they get food again. Everyone knows that dieting does not work as a weight managment solution.
So, Why isn't Texas Feeding its Children at Federal Expense?
"The reason Texas has fallen behind other states, according to the study's authors, is that people either aren't aware the program exists or lack transportation to a site. Also some communities don't have available sites or have limited hours. Last year, 76 (Texas) counties did not have a summermeal program.
Source: San Antonio Express News, 7-16-06, Study says state lost funds when kids missed free lunches, p-7b.
"I'm not sure why there's low participation in the program. Maybe people don't know about it, but we don't have money to do the big mega advertising...We advertise it as much as we can by sending press releases, sending letters home and posting flyers, but our funds are limited."
Source: San Antonio Express News, 7-16-06, Study says state lost funds when kids missed free lunches, p-7b.
Commentary
Aren't the same people that let all these children go unfed the same ones that demand increased teacher accountability, and the same ones who demand increased test scores?
And, aren't these summer feeding programs also required by law for districts with large numbers of students who receive free meals during the school year?
And wasn't outrage expressed about the obesity problem in our country? (Surprisingly, teachers were not blamed for the obesity problem. But, teachers should find a way to integrate nutritional skills into the on going curriculum, shouldn't they?)
But, there is still time for politicians to add requirments for the No Child Left Behind Law (NCLB).
"Whipping Boy" is not a Brand of Cream
Is there a parallel to the "whipping boy" concept here? That is, when the royal children misbehaved; because they couldn't be spanked, a substitute was called in to receive the beating.
One of the rules of "Blatant Bureaucracy" is, "Blame flows down the chain of command hierarchy" rests firmly on the shoulders, backs, backsides; of the lowest level employees. (This is the reason that they call it a "flow chart."
Guess where stuff flows where teachers are concerned.
There is no such thing as a free lunch!
Perhaps Texas school administrators would like to prove the adage: "There is no such thing as a free lunch."
But, this is misguided because the cost of the "free lunch" should be picked up by the poor kids' rich Uncle, Sam.
Since this situation demonstrates mismanagement, if not downright law breaking, do your want to start a nation-wide protest. How about making this protext so loud that it drowns out the
Only this time, it won't be teachers tootsies that get roasted if those responsible have their feet held to the fire.
Link to the Hunger Doesn't Take a Vacation Report (PDF Format)
Link to the Food Research and Action Center site
