Pushing Hunger Off the Table

Opportunity

Minnesota nonprofit Hunger Solutions had been working toward universal school meals for 15 years. As part of this effort they had assembled a coalition for the cause, consisting of 28 endorsing partners, from nonprofits to Fortune 500s. The coalition was dedicated to getting free school meals over the legislative finish line, and had the funding to bring in external partners to make it happen.

Solution

Advokate was brought on, alongside Jennifer Trebisovsky running media and PR, to lead communications for the Hunger-Free Schools campaign. We mapped out a multi-faceted strategy to build the Hunger-Free Schools brand, spread awareness and generate support, and shepherd the proposed legislation into becoming law.

Media – Jennifer established a robust media relations plan to build broad awareness of the Hunger-Free Schools campaign and lift up key voices.

Social – We created social channels for Hunger-Free Schools with robust content, ran targeted ads focusing on

Legislative – Throughout the campaign, we provided legislators with materials like policy one-pagers, letters of support from the Hunger-Free Schools coalition, talking points for hearings and floor sessions, and rebuttals for common arguments and proposed amendments against the legislation.

Community – It was critical that this campaign and legislation remain rooted in the community it was going to serve. We conducted interviews and parent listening sessions, developed a community resource toolkit, and ran a postcard campaign to demonstrate to legislators the community support.

Result

Free school meals legislation passed through the Minnesota House and Senate, and was signed into law by Governor Tim Walz on March 17, 2023. Students across the state of Minnesota no longer need to worry about where their next meal might come from. They can rely on eating breakfast and lunch at school, at no cost to them or their families. Since the legislation went into effect, Minnesota schools have served millions more school meals than in previous years. Hunger Solutions is currently conducting a study in partnership with the University of Minnesota to ascertain the full scope of impact.