Petersburg highlights revamped school nutrition program as participation and menu options rise
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Summary
The district’s new school nutrition administrator told the board participation is up, menus have been diversified through a partnership with Tahir Inc., and new initiatives (faculty meals, themed days, salad bars and a high-school pizza station) and a pilot hot-breakfast rollout are planned.
PETERSBURG — Petersburg City Public Schools’ new school nutrition administrator presented an update Oct. 1 saying meal participation has increased and the district is expanding menu options and student engagement activities.
Tali Smart, introduced by the superintendent as the program administrator for school nutrition, told the board that participation rose 1% across the first nine days of the school year and that September participation was 10% higher than the same time last year. She said the high school alone was up 36% and that the district served about 1,800 additional meals in the first 14 days of service compared with last year.
Smart described a partnership with Tahir Inc. that the presentation said brought three chefs, a general manager and a registered dietitian to support menu development and operations. The program highlighted a culturally-focused ‘‘Taste of Japan’’ event led by visiting chef Josh Sugimura (mentioned by the presenter), which staff said was aimed at inclusive experiences for special-education students and drew media attention. Smart said the district has passed recent Virginia health inspections at most sites and is preparing for a formal audit in January 2026.
Planned program expansions include themed meal days (for example, Tailgate Thursday), a monthly “harvest of the month” feature using locally sourced produce, broader family engagement through newsletters and ParentSquare, and stations such as a high-school “personal pizza” maker and salad bars. Smart said the district will pilot a hot-breakfast program in January 2026 starting in secondary schools and then roll to an elementary pilot at Blakemont.
Smart also announced a faculty participation launch allowing staff to purchase $5 meals via School Bucks accounts; the program is intended to increase adult visibility in cafeterias and build school culture. Board members and staff praised the cafeteria teams and the new model, noting the district kept existing employees while contracting menu services with an external vendor.
Board members asked about next steps for CTE (career and technical education) integration; Smart said she had begun discussions to involve CTE students in kitchen prep, to provide hands-on experience and certification opportunities such as ServSafe. Board members and the superintendent praised the program’s early results and urged continued compliance checks ahead of the audit.
Smart closed by thanking the board and noting that the department will continue working on quality, compliance and student engagement.