New School Pantry Program Aims to Meet Families Where They Are
For decades, your Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank has worked to reach children in schools who are food insecure through our BackPack Program. The program is typically funded through donors, and it provides shelf-stable food for kids who are at risk of missing meals over the weekend while not receiving free or reduced cost meals through the school.
The program has been very effective in reaching over 3,400 food insecure kids in our 11-parish service area, but it is rather complex to operate and expensive to fund. While this program will continue to serve children as long as needed, a new School Pantry Program is underway to more effectively reach not only children but also local families who may be struggling with food insecurity.
“The School Pantry Program uses a model that addresses the challenges that low-income families may face in getting access to food assistance. Families in need are often unable to access their local food pantry because of limited transportation options or work schedules that conflict with the pantry opening hours,” said KiEtha Gage, Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank Senior Agency Relations and Programs Manager.
“We have three active school pantries underway now. These school families appreciate the convenience and familiarity of visiting a school pantry that provides regular access to a variety of nutritious food items for their children,” said Gage. “Schools appreciate the ability to improve children’s nutritional status, helping children to attend school without the distraction of hunger so they can focus on academic challenges and opportunities.”
How It Works
Once we secure a commitment from a school site and decide on the model to be implemented, the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank works with leaders to determine equipment needed, including shelving, tables, refrigerators, freezers and opening hours. The schools are responsible for funding the recommendations for the space. Once the space is ready, our staff on-boards the school as an official TFAP pantry site.
Schools then use their communication channels to inform the school families of the availability of this service, including flyers, social media and robocalls to remind families of dates/times of food distribution.
“We encourage school pantries to open at least once a week and to stay open during school holidays, if possible, as these can be times of higher need,” Gage said. “We encourage school pantries to use a choice model, allowing families to select the groceries they need as if they were shopping at a store, and we also ask that they allow families to visit weekly. This model seems to be working well for our current school pantries, and we have interest from seven more schools who are looking to implement a pantry on their campus.”
For more details on how the School Pantry Program works or to visit one of our existing school pantries to learn more, contact us online at brfoodbank.org or call (225) 359-9940 and ask for KiEtha Gage.
Nutrien’s Commitment to Providing for Families in Their Community
