Our Challenge, Solution and Need

Our Challenge: Hungry Children, Summer Learning Loss

Each day in the greater Cincinnati area, more than one out of every five children experiences a hunger that significantly weakens his or her physical well-being, mental health and academic achievement. These children are hungry because their families are poor. Thanks to the USDA’s National School Lunch Program, many students in the Cincinnati Public Schools receive free or reduced-cost meals during the school year. At the beginning of each summer, however, the hunger returns—and the widening of the achievement gap resumes.

Our Solution: Summer Food Enrichment Program

Since 2005, Whole Again has provided free, full-day summer programming each weekday—including breakfasts and lunches, nutritional instruction, field trips and physical fitness education—to children from low-income families. Whole Again also partners with the Cincinnati Public Schools to provide nine hours of math and reading instruction per week, aligned to core curriculum standards, to better prepare each student for the upcoming school year.

Our Needs: Broad Support Creates Lasting Impact

While the USDA’s National Summer Food Service Program covers the cost of summer meals, Whole Again relies on charitable contributions to fund the educational activities that make this all-day program unique. Continued financial support from the community enables the Summer Food Enrichment Program to identify underprivileged children and work toward improving their minds, bodies and spirits. When every student is provided with a healthy opportunity to succeed in the classroom, Cincinnati is made whole, again.