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Board considers feasibility audit of food service after complaints about menu, waste and vendor performance
Summary
District staff proposed a feasibility audit of the district’s food service program to review procurement, storage, efficiency and market costs and to guide a potential future RFP. Board members sought clarity on scope, employee feedback mechanisms and whether the work duplicates mandated ISBE audits.
Waukegan CUSD 60 leaders presented a proposal on April 15 to hire an outside firm to perform a feasibility audit of the district’s food service operations, a review trustees said is intended to go beyond routine ISBE compliance audits and to inform whether the district should seek a new vendor.
Deputy Moulton described the review as “above and beyond” standard compliance checks. The scope would examine receiving, storage, procurement, program management and market research so the district can evaluate efficiency and, if warranted, design an effective RFP process to solicit other vendors. "This goes above and beyond that, that reviews it does review the program, but it also looks at areas of potential improvement for efficiency," Moulton said.
Trustees raised several concerns during discussion: potential duplication of work already done by state or internal auditors, the likely cost of reimbursables and travel for consultants (estimated at $5,500 plus reimbursables in the agenda), and whether the audit will collect employee feedback. Board member Miss Lensing specifically asked that the vendor describe how it gathers employee input; administrators agreed employee voices are important and said they would ask the vendor to include that in the scope.
Several board members described practical problems prompting the audit: students throwing away raw vegetables (raw broccoli was cited), inconsistent meal acceptance and concerns about the current provider’s daily operations. "If they don't actually eat and it goes into the garbage, what did that actually mean?" a trustee asked, noting selection and waste affect program value.
Administration said the audit was requested by the board to evaluate whether the district should continue with the current contractor; staff identified the current arrangement as a D'Excel contract with operational oversight by Sodexo. The consultant would produce a market-cost analysis, a timeline and a list of items to address should the district pursue a new RFP.
Staff said they will return findings to the board and that the final recommendation could be to maintain the current provider if the audit supports that course. Trustees asked that the vendor evaluate employee feedback mechanisms and provide cost-savings or contract-performance metrics when the report returns for board consideration.
No final board vote was recorded at the April 15 committee meeting; staff said the work would proceed and results would be returned to inform a later renewal or RFP decision.
