Guidelines for implementing and operating a school breakfast program in New York are provided in this document. Following an introduction that explains the need for school breakfast programs, sections describe program history, meal pattern requirements, eligible participants, and available state and local financial assistance. Program requirements are described for the approval procedure; nutrition standards and pupil service; reports and records; and food service operation and supervision. Recommendations are made for increasing parent and student involvement. The next section examines perceived barriers to breakfast programs and concludes that a program can be run without causing major disruption if commitment is high. Strategies for merchandizing the program are described in the next section. The conclusion notes that the correlation between breakfast and good health, development, and educational performance makes school breakfast programs a priority. Answers to 15 commonly asked questions are provided in the final section. The appendix contains school breakfast meal patterns, sample menus, forms for student and parent surveys, an outline of a speech to a parent group, and sample news release. (LMI)