Published Apr 13, 2025 • Last updated 12 hours ago • 4 minute readThe Town of Kentville provided a one-time $5,000 grant to help Kings County Academy’s Parent-Teacher Association cover a $10,000 shortfall in its breakfast program. Photo by Jason Malloy /Annapolis Valley RegisterKentville councillors are forgoing attending a national conference this year to help offset a funding shortfall with the Kings County Academy breakfast program.Councillors voted 6-1 in favour of a one-time $5,000 grant to the program following a 40-minute debate on March 31.“Good learning does not take place on empty stomachs and we all know that,” said Coun. Cathy Maxwell, a retired educator.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentWhile councillors spoke in support of the program, issues were raised around tying it to the conference.“I don’t think the two should be linked together,” said Coun. Samantha Hamilton.“I really struggle with these two being interconnected,” added Coun. Cate Savage.Maxwell had no issues with the motion.“We’re making a personal sacrifice for the health and welfare of students in our community.”“It’s really about choices,” added Mayor Andrew Zebian, who brought the idea to council. “Show me a conference that is going to be more meaningful than this or more impactful on the town of Kentville.”In an interview the next day, Zebian said it was the proudest moment of his five-year municipal career, knowing the students would be fed.The issueThe school was facing a $10,000 funding shortfall with its breakfast program. The parent-teacher association (PTA) runs the school cafeteria at the pre-Primary to Grade 8 school.“We wouldn’t be coming here if we weren’t in need,” said PTA president Joey Feith.Article contentA few things are impacting the program.The students using the program has doubled from 200 two years ago to 400 this year and grocery costs are increasing.The association also started offering a pay-what-you-can option for lunch in 2023-24. It required the school to earmark more of the funds raised for food programs to the lunch program, Annapolis Valley Regional Centre for Education communications officer Kristen Loyst said in an email.“Funding raised during the current school year has helped to cover these costs,” she said.A provincial pay-what-you-can program replaced the school’s lunch program Oct. 27. As part of the new program, schools are not responsible for any shortfall.The breakfast program costs about $4,000 a month to run.Feith noted the 2024 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Nova Scotia showed 23 per cent of children in Kings County are experiencing poverty.Coun. Rob Baker, a learning support teacher, backs the program.Article content“There’s no doubt that the kids need it,” he said. “My first question to a kid who walks through my door is, ‘Have you eaten today?’”Savage said she intends to recommend a line item be annually included in the budget for the breakfast program during budget deliberations.FundingThe breakfast program does receive annual funding from the school healthy eating program and needs to find other sources to cover the rest of its cost. The group applies for grants and hosts fundraisers.Feith said it has communicated the situation with the parents.“People are feeling pinched right now financially,” he said. “Our families are really struggling.”With the town’s assistance and other funding sources, the PTA has reached its $10,000 goal.ExpenseConference attendance has been raised as an issue by some councillors in the past.Council approved a policy earlier in the evening that permits the mayor and two members of council to attend the Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference each year.Article contentThis year’s conference is in Ottawa. The early bird registration is nearly $1,200 per person. Zebian estimated it would cost $4,000 or more per person to attend the event.Zebian, who noted some neighbouring municipalities don’t attend them, said he is not a fan of the conferences.“I personally don’t recall anything that came back that was groundbreaking,” Zebian said of the past term. “I just think it’s a lot of money that we don’t necessary have to toss away.”Hamilton, Savage and Baker expressed the importance of professional development and learning from others.“The more knowledge we have, I think it makes us better as a council,” Savage said.“If we miss these opportunities, we’re doing a disservice to the community,” Baker added.Maxwell said she agrees with education but councillors can find out information from the directors the town has on staff.Kentville’s council is comprised of a mayor and six councillors, so each of the six councillors will still have an opportunity to attend a conference before their four-year term ends.Zebian left the door open a crack when asked if he would ever attend one.“Will I ever attend one? Maybe. If there’s something really good on the docket, I might go one time.”By the numbersDetails about Kings County Academy school breakfast program.• Of the 689 registered students at the Kentville school, 400 participate daily in the universal breakfast program. The number of students has doubled in two years.• It costs $3,766 per month to run the program, which is close to $40,000 during the school year.Article content
Kentville provides Kings County Academy PTA $5,000 for breakfast program
