Another school year is on the horizon, and that means getting ready to serve your students. A new year also brings changes and an opportunity for trying something you’ve never done before. Although new can sometimes feel scary, it’s also exciting, because you know you could be working with new people, serving new students or trying new processes and policies.
In this July/August issue of School Nutrition, we’re eager to take a closer look at what “new” could potentially mean for your program. We’ve got an introduction to the incoming President of SNA’s Board of Directors, Chris Derico. We also have highlights on longstanding school nutrition professionals who are finally getting their deserved time in the spotlight, and unusual approaches to operations that some programs have found surprisingly successful—you just might want to try some of these out yourself!
Here’s what you can expect to find in the July/August issue:
Man of the People
As SNA’s new President for the 2023-2024 school year, Chris Derico understands that school meals are a crucial part of a child’s success, and he wants to empower the professionals who prepare and serve those meals. Get to know more about Chris and his background, as well as his vision for SNA’s year ahead, which includes creating an environment where everyone feels they can increase their involvement, grow in their skills, and serve the association.
We See You
Not every school nutrition professional is onsite in the cafeteria to prepare and serve meals every day—they might be supervising the warehouse or balancing the financial books. Even if they aren’t the face of school nutrition for their district, they are still vital to the program’s success! Here we highlight several outstanding behind-the-scenes team members who have long been underrepresented for their valiant professionalism.
Yes, Chef!
Schools can offer all kinds of incentives for good behavior, but one reward that has resonated particularly well has been the chance to be a school nutrition professional for a day. Here’s why students at McHenry School District 15 love the idea of going behind the serving line, and how the program went about creating this inexpensive but easy-to-implement opportunity.
Getting Down to Business
Of all the goods available in a school store, nothing gets kids more excited than food (hey, who can blame them?). With that in mind, the Business program at Prairie View High School teamed up with Nutrition Services to give the school store a much-needed boost, which not only brought in revenue for both parties involved but also got students more excited about business education.
Beyond Browsing
We don’t have to tell you that managing your program means a lot of paperwork—and sometimes (often) it can get overwhelming! But the online world has plenty of free resources, such as the suite of tools from Google, that can help you cut back on the digital clutter and work more efficiently.
Food Focus: Get Smart About Scratch Cooking
Don’t think of scratch cooking as something that has to be an all-or-nothing affair! You and your team can start by simply offering a la carte options that meet Smart Snacks nutrition standards to gauge student interest, test out menu options, build your skills and ultimately lead to more scratch cooking in your program.
Read the July/August 2023 issue of School Nutrition today!
Related Articles
