Colorado voters could decide fate of Healthy School Meals for All
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As Colorado lawmakers grapple with $1.2 billion in budget cuts, child nutrition advocates are turning to voters to protect funding for the state's Healthy School Meals for All program.
Dr. Sandra Hoyt Stenmark, clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado, said when a child has inadequate nutrition, they are more susceptible to acute and chronic illness, and more likely to miss school and fall behind academically and socially.
"We know that malnourishment and stress impair a child's immune function, and worsens chronic diseases such as asthma," Hoyt Stenmark explained.
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Healthy School Meals for All serves more than 600,000 meals every school day, regardless of a student's ability to pay. Funding was meant to come from capping tax deductions on people earning $300,000 or more per year but the program's popularity has driven up projected costs. House Bill 1274 would put two measures on November's ballot asking voters to maintain existing funding and ensure long-term stability.
Thai Nguyen, executive director of Kaizen Food Rescue in Denver, said investing in students now will help them be better prepared to land jobs that pay enough to be financially independent as adults. She pointed out for many Colorado kids, the only real meal they get all day is at school.
"It improves students' academics performance," Nguyen emphasized. "Once they have full stomachs, they tend to focus better, score higher on assessments and have fewer behavioral problems."
The ballot measures would also expand the Local Food Purchasing Program, which allows schools to purchase fresh foods directly from Colorado farmers and ranchers.
Roberto Meza, a first generation farmer and CEO of the food distributor Hearty Provisions, believes the program is critical to maintain the viability of independent food producers.
"They have a reliable market for their product," Meza stressed. "That just eases so much stress and uncertainty on the farmer's part. And to know that it's going to feed kids, is just that extra layer of purpose and meaning."
