Governor Gretchen Whitmer became an honorary school lunch lady Wednesday while pushing her free school nutrition program.

The governor was at Baker Middle School in Troy, serving waffles, whipped cream, and strawberries to the students and pushing her effort to provide free meals for all Michigan K-12 students.

Universal free meals mean child can eat with no forms to fill out and no income verification required. Currently, the program’s costs are negotiated in the state’s yearly budget, but Whitmer says the program should be Michigan law and is pushing the Legislature to act.

“The reason why it’s so good to do it universally is it destigmatized the act of getting a free meal,” Whitmer said. “And so more kids are eating, more kids are getting the nutrition that they need so that they can focus on the classroom.”

Research shows students who eat breakfast perform better academically, have fewer discipline issues, and attend school more regularly.

Opponents argue taxpayer dollars shouldn’t cover meals for families who can afford them.