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. 2015 Apr 1:124:91-104.
doi: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2014.12.003.

Nutrition and Cognitive Achievement: An Evaluation of the School Breakfast Program

David E Frisvold  1
Affiliations

Nutrition and Cognitive Achievement: An Evaluation of the School Breakfast Program

David E Frisvold. J Public Econ. .

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of the School Breakfast Program (SBP) on cognitive achievement. The SBP is a federal entitlement program that offers breakfast to any student, including free breakfast for any low-income student, who attends a school that participates in the program. To increase the availability of the SBP, many states mandate that schools participate in the program if the percent of free or reduced-price eligible students in a school exceeds a specific threshold. Using the details of these mandates as a source of identifying variation, I find that the availability of the program increases student achievement.

Keywords: School Breakfast Program; achievement; education; nutrition.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
State Mandated Thresholds Notes: If the percent of free and reduced-price eligible students in the school exceeds the state mandated threshold, then the school is required to provide breakfast through the School Breakfast Program. These thresholds are based on state laws in 2004. Source: See Appendix Table 1.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Trends in Math Achievement Notes: The dashed lines are the estimates from local linear regressions with a triangle kernel and a bandwidth of 5. These graphs are estimates for the first plausible value for math achievement. The solid line shows the mean achievement scores for all states with a threshold of 20 percent and the dashed line shows the mean achievement scores for all states with a threshold of 25 percent. The corresponding vertical lines highlight the threshold values. Source: National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) 2003 Grade 4 Math Assessment
Figure 3
Figure 3
Math and Reading Scores by the Percent of Free and Reduced-Price Eligible Students in the School, NAEP data Notes: The points on the graph represent averages for students grouped in bins with a width of three percentage points. The dashed lines are the estimates from local linear regressions with a triangle kernel and a bandwidth of 5. The top panel displays estimates for the first plausible value for math and reading achievement. Predicted math achievement is constructed using the observable characteristics included in Table 2. Source: National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) 2003 Grade 4
Figure 4
Figure 4
Participation of Schools in the School Breakfast Program, Math Achievement, Reading Achievement, and Science Achievement by the Percent of Free and Reduced-Price Eligible Students in the School, ECLS-K Data Notes: The points on the graph represent averages for students grouped in bins with a width of three percentage points. The dashed lines are the estimates from local linear regressions with a triangle kernel and a bandwidth of 20. Source: Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Cohort
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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