Among the five major federal child nutrition programs Congress is expectedto act on this spring, the National School Lunch Program is the biggest and best-known of the five. LaFleur Stephens describes how the program provides an every-day lifeline for one family.

Meet Jasmine Hain. Like many children her age, 9-year old Jasmine likes art, writing, karate, and dance. Also like many children her age, when Jasmine comes to school each morning, she's usually hungry—and remains hungry until lunch is served.

This spring of 2003, Congress is set to rewrite the regulations governing some of the most basic and successful federal programs for low-income children—the ones providing lunches and breakfasts in schools; snacks and suppers for kids in child care and after-school programs; and summer meals when school is out. As part of our April focus on child nutrition, Caitlin Johnson reports on the far-reaching effect these programs have on the lives of children and families.

Getting business leaders to lobby for children’s issues may seem like a hard sell—but with state budgets shrinking, it’s worth the effort. Jean Tepperman reports on how some children’s advocates have won support from the business community. This article originally appeared in the January-February 2003 issue of the Children’s Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Chi

A steady paycheck and a career track are great; but some low-income school children dream of something different, like starting their own businesses and being their own bosses. Connect for Kids intern Kate Ashford looks at a national program designed to give these kids the tools they need to succeed.

From a program that uses peregrine falcons to teach inner city kids about nature, to one that turns public school parents into trained advocates for change, each year Connect for Kids profiles dozens of ways that people are working on behalf of children. For our year-end story, we checked back with some of them to see how they are faring.

Created by the vision and leadership of the Benton Foundation, Connect for Kids now takes a major step?to independence.

Even with a history of presidential endorsements, youth mentoring programs are disappearing. Inadequate funding, changing legislation and lack of commitment are some of the reasons of the decline. Bill Treanor of Youth Today takes a closer look.

Many community-based organizations ask for donations to make the holidays special for the kids and families they serve, or to encourage contributions to support their work all during the year. Here are a bunch of opportunities for you to help out with a check or a toy. These are requests submitted by fellow readers of the Connect for Kids Weekly!

Taking advantage of the wisdom that comes with age, the Travelling Grannies and Grandpas program in Grand Rapids, Michigan pairs low-income elderly volunteers with teens and school children in need of extra support. Kathleen Piggins reports on the program.