Evaluation of Demonstrations to End Childhood Hunger - VA (EDECHVA)

USDA Food and Nutrition Service

Status: Completed

Conditions: Food Insecurity Among Children

Treatments: Behavioral: VA 365 Demonstration Benefits

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; Other U.S. Federal agency

Identifiers

NCT04218747

AG-3198-C-14-0019 (Virginia)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The 2010 Child Nutrition Reauthorization provided funding to test innovative strategies to end childhood hunger and food insecurity. Demonstration projects were funded in Chickasaw Nation, Kentucky, Navajo Nation, Nevada, and Virginia. This study focuses on Virginia. A selection of schools were randomly assigned to either a treatment or control group. Children in treatment schools received: (1) three meals during the school day and food packages for weekends and school breaks; (2) $60 monthly Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) benefits during summer months if they were eligible for FRP meals; and (3) nutrition education for their parents. The control group operated under "business as usual."

Full description

Objective: To reduce hunger 365 days a year in households with schoolchildren by transforming schools into food hubs and providing nutrition education to parents.

Target Population: Elementary (n=30), middle (n=6), and high schools (n=2) in rural and urban VA. All schools had low academic performance and at least 50 percent of children eligible for free and reduced-price (FRP) meals.

Intervention: Schools were randomly assigned to either a treatment or control group. Children in treatment schools received: (1) three meals during the school day and food packages for weekends and school breaks; (2) $60 monthly Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) benefits during summer months if they were eligible for FRP meals; and (3) nutrition education for their parents. The control group operated under "business as usual." Note that the $60 monthly benefit was not included in the evaluation of the demonstration.

Enrollment: 4,750 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 5 to 18 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• A selection of elementary, middle, and high schools in rural and urban Virginia, USA.
• Schools must have had low academic performance and at least 50% or children eligible for free and reduced price through the National School Lunch Program or participating in the Community Eligibility Provision.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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4,750 participants in 2 patient groups

VA 365 Demonstration Benefits

Experimental group

Description:

Children in treatment schools received: (1) three meals during the school day and food packages for weekends and school breaks; (2) $60 monthly Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) benefits during summer months if they were eligible for FRP meals; and (3) nutrition education for their parents.

Treatment:

Behavioral: VA 365 Demonstration Benefits

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

Schools in the control group operated under "business as usual."