Beginning Nov. 1, all Mobile County Public Schools (include Phillips Preparatory School )students will be able to eat a free breakfast.

Alabama’s largest school system has just been approved for a federal program known as Universal Free Breakfast, which means any student – not just those who financially qualify for the free meals – can get a healthy, hot breakfast upon arriving to school.

The school system will be reimbursed either the entire cost of the breakfast, or a portion of the cost, based on each student's family's financial situation.

Currently, the school system serves 19,700 breakfasts daily, and more than 40,000 lunches, making MCPSS the largest restaurant in Alabama. The school system has about 59,000 students.

MCPSS Child Nutrition Director Suzanne Yates said her goal is to increase the number of students eating breakfast at school from 30 percent to 60 percent. Students who eat breakfast, she said, are more likely to perform well in class, come to school and be on time to school.

"We're also hoping this will help with behavior," Yates said. "The more food children have in their stomachs, the less likely they are to act out."

Schools will offer the free breakfasts in one of several different ways, depending on demand and the layout of the school. They are: in the cafeteria, in the classroom, or by having a kiosk in another location of the school.

Each school will need to decide what best suits their needs, Yates said. A couple of schools have been experimenting with serving the breakfasts universally.

The Universal Free Breakfast program is run by the USDA, which requires that grains, milk and juice be served. Yates said the cafeterias also try to provide a meat. A sample breakfast menu may be:
•A chicken biscuit, fruit and milk.
•A pancake on a stick, fruit and milk.

Mobile County Public Schools is the only district in Alabama to have all its schools meet the Healthier U.S. Schools Challenge by serving nutritious meals and emphasizing more physical activities.