HARTFORD, Conn. -- Sen. Christopher Dodd attended a meeting in Hartford Friday on childhood obesity.

Dodd, the chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Children and Families, spoke during the Preventing Childhood Obesity Connecticut State Forum. He said the event was attended by health and nutrition experts.

Experts said at least 25 percent of high-schoolers in Connecticut are obese or overweight.

Among those who found the information alarming was University of Hartford sophomore Alexis Godden.

“Mom says, ‘Stick a donut in your mouth and go to school,’ and it's true,” she said. “Being younger, we used to stop at (Burger King) for breakfast on the way to school. It needs to stop."

The forum focused on ways to curb childhood obesity. Dozens of experts at the meeting discussed what works and what doesn’t with some other motivated attendees.

Claire Schonning, 17, created "Catch the Drive," a program targeting inactive overweight girls in Richfield.

“Rather than telling them to be active and healthier, we led by example from a peer-to-peer level, showing our passion in rowing,” she said.