‘The kids are just happier’: could California’s universal school meal program start a trend?

Parents, teachers and anti-hunger advocates hail new free-meal system, saying it improves academic performance and wellbeing

Before California became the first state to implement a universal meals program for its 6.2 million public school students, Alyssa Wells would keep granola bars in her classroom for students who complained of being hungry.

When the new program began in August at Foussat elementary school in Oceanside, California, which is primarily attended by Latino students from low-income families, the teacher noticed immediate changes in her students. The kids are eating way more and they're more focused, eager to learn and they're just happier," she said. They've got one less thing to worry about."