Christina Duran, student nutrition program supervisor, told the board Taos’ child nutrition operations are projecting a multi‑hundred‑thousand dollar shortfall by year‑end and outlined revenue and expense drivers.

Duran said the student nutrition fund’s year‑end cash balance was a negative $685,000 before adjusting for late deposits; adjusting for revenue that belonged to the prior year reduced that figure to about $446,699. Using current encumbrances and average monthly receipts, the department estimated total food service expenditures near $1.74 million and forecasted revenues of roughly $1.01 million, producing a projected gap in the $700,000–$750,000 range if current trends continue.

Why it matters: School meal reimbursement is partly tied to participation; the district is a CEP (Community Eligibility Provision) district that provides free meals to students but still depends on participation and operational efficiency to fund food‑service staffing and food purchases.

What the board heard and discussed:
- Participation is low at the high school compared with enrollment; Duran said high‑school lunch line length, block scheduling and an open campus for seniors reduce lunchtime participation.
- Major cost components include salaries and benefits (about $1.1M encumbered/paid year‑to‑date) and food costs; encumbrances for salaries and benefits were a large portion of the $1.74M estimated operating cost.
- Options discussed included: improving schedule to allow more time to eat (two lunch periods/A & B lunches), “grab‑and‑go” or breakfast‑on‑the‑bus pilots, volunteer engagement (retiree readers/monitors), applying for specific grants to support athletic or extra‑curricular meal needs, and infrastructure investments (kitchen upgrades and grab‑and‑go stations at the high school tied to an awarded capital grant).

Duran said she had started commodity procurement through USDA entitlement dollars (about $75,000) to lower food cost per meal, and she is planning a high‑school kitchen upgrade and grab‑and‑go station work as part of an infrastructure grant application. Board members urged short‑term fixes to increase participation (food cards, grab‑and‑go stands) and longer‑term planning for staffing and schedules. The board requested follow‑up data and options for an immediate, limited pilot to raise participation and to reduce the operating shortfall.