Healey-Driscoll Administration Launches ‘Strengthening School Breakfast Challenge’ from Witchcraft Heights Elementary School
Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, Secretary of Education Dr. Stephen Zrike enjoy breakfast with WHES students
SALEM (Oct. 23, 2026) – Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll and Secretary of Education Dr. Stephen Zrike (former Salem Superintendent) convened at the Witchcraft Heights Elementary School Friday to announce Governor Maura Healey’s ‘Strengthening School Breakfast Challenge’ to urge schools across Massachusetts to expand breakfast access and provide healthy, locally sourced meals each day.
The initiative encourages schools to reach at least 60 percent participation in school breakfast programs by making breakfast more accessible and appealing to students. Strategies include offering breakfast at main school entrances, providing students with a second opportunity to eat breakfast during the school day, and promoting these options to students and families.
“Every student deserves to start their school day with a healthy meal, and every family deserves a little breathing room in their grocery budget,” said Governor Healey. “We made school meals free for every student in Massachusetts because no child should have to worry about being hungry in the classroom. Now, we’re building on that progress by challenging schools to make breakfast easier to access, more appealing to students and filled with nutritious, locally grown foods. This is about helping kids succeed, saving families money and supporting our local farmers and food producers.”
“We know that students learn better when they start the day with a nutritious breakfast, but too many kids are still missing out on this important meal,” added Lieutenant Governor Driscoll. “Our Strengthening School Breakfast Challenge is about finding creative ways to reach more students, whether that’s offering breakfast where kids enter the building, giving them a second chance to eat or serving fresh, locally sourced foods that reflect what students actually want to eat.”
Additionally, the Healey-Driscoll Administration is encouraging schools to incorporate locally grown fruits, grains and proteins, expand scratch cooking, and develop menus that reflect student preferences and feedback – areas of which Salem Public Schools has taken full advantage.
“In Salem we believe that all students should have access to a locally sourced, minimally processed, and delicious school breakfast to kickstart their day of learning,” said Michaela Short, Director of Food and Nutrition Services at Salem Public Schools. “Here at Witchcraft Heights Elementary School, we operate a kiosk grab-and-go model to meet students when they enter the building and give them the opportunity to enjoy a delicious school breakfast to take to their classrooms.”
Salem Public Schools has offered breakfast for students for more than a decade, and has dramatically increased sourcing meals from local farms the last three years. The District has established partnerships with nearly 20 farms statewide.
The goal, said Ms. Short, is to locally source 50 percent of items on students’ trays during the peak harvest months of September and October and April through June. For the remainder of the school year, the goal is to locally source 25 percent of items on students’ trays.
“In Salem, we’re making breakfast more accessible while serving delicious meals prepared with care and locally sourced ingredients,” said Salem Superintendent Dr. Tommy Welch. “When we make breakfast easier to access, more students participate. At one Salem elementary school, moving breakfast into the classroom increased participation from 42 percent to 90 percent. We’re excited to build on that progress through the School Breakfast Challenge, bringing high-quality meals to more students and helping them start the day ready to learn.”
“It was an honor to host Lt. Governor Driscoll, Secretary Zrike and so many of our partner organizations today at Witchcraft Heights Elementary this morning,” Ms. Short added. “Our goals are consistent with the Commonwealth’s goals and challenges for the remainder of food and nutrition service programs across the state: Increased scratch cooking, increased local sourcing, expansion where possible and supporting the whole student by serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, in addition to an afterschool snack program and fresh and vegetable program at the elementary school level.”
About Salem Public Schools
Salem Public Schools is an urban public school district in Salem, Massachusetts, a small, diverse city with a proud maritime and immigrant history. Our leaders and our teachers are passionate about education and understand the urgency of improving student achievement with equity and social-emotional needs as the lens through which we view our work. We respect and value the racial, cultural, and linguistic diversity of our students and their families, and have a strong commitment to the Salem community. Salem Public Schools staff unconditionally serves each of our 4,000 students across 11 schools regardless of ability or language.
