The Provincial School Nutrition Program is being expanded for the coming school year.

Alberta Education Minister David Eggen announced last week that the 14 school boards participating in a 2016/17 pilot nutrition program will each receive $250,000 in grant funding, and the 46 remaining provincial school boards will each get $141,000.   

The Alberta School Nutrition Program rolled out in 2016 as a pilot project, with 14 school boards in the province receiving $3.5 million in funding.  The programs have reached over 5,000 students in 33 schools, providing either a daily nutririous meal or snack. 

Angela Spanier, Rocky View School Division, Director of Communications, says  " Rocky view has learned  we are going to be receiving $141,000 in grant funding. Because RV Schools have been so involved in school nutrituion we already have a number of programs up and running so what we will be able to use this money for is to enhance these programs."

Nikki Demyen, RV School Division Community Partner Program Coordinator, says that the nutrition programs presently running in Rocky View Schools are " all done by fundraising or donations, as there has not been a school budget for food."  

Demyen adds that these programs have been supported by community partners such as the Activettes and Cochrane Food Bank and local businesses such as Cobs, which donates breads and buns for breakfasts and lunches.  

In Cochrane, there are 2 full time school nutrition programs at Glenbow and Manachaban schools. Each morning volunteers or staff serve students a complete breakfast. Modified nutrition programs are offered at Cochrane Christian Academy, Mitford and Bow Valley High.  These programs provide either a basket of fruit, granola bars, tuna snacks and crackers or cheese strings on an as-needed basis.

Demyen said that the school division is not yet certain how the new funding will be allocated to nutrition programs.  "We are doing our due diligence right now, getting our facts together, then there will be some strategizing to figure what the best means is to allocate the funding, making sure we set up programs that are sustainable and hit the highest needs".  

Demyen adds that it costs about 42 cents per day to run a breakfast program in conjunction with existing community donations, so the funding will go a long way to help feed nutiritous meals to students so they can focus on learning.