Mount Vernon board hears plan to expand school meals, pursue farm‑to‑school grants amid aging kitchen equipment

Donna Jackson, the district's new school food service manager, told the Mount Vernon City School District Board of Education on Oct. 14 that the district is pursuing farm‑to‑school and other grants while managing aging kitchen equipment and lower meal participation that could reduce program revenues.

Jackson, who said she officially began the job on Sept. 8, 2025, delivered a broad presentation on school nutrition that reviewed program history, federal rules and local operations, outlined grant deadlines, and asked trustees and the community to support increased student participation. "Every student in the Mount Vernon City School District can eat nutritionally sound, lovingly prepared, breakfast and lunch for free every day for free," she said.

The presentation covered several operational and funding points the district faces. Mount Vernon contracts with food service management company Sodexo to plan menus and run kitchens; Jackson said Sodexo's Amanda Plummer began as general manager just days before Jackson took her post. District enrollment used in the Sodexo bid was "over 7,000," Jackson said; current enrollment is just over 6,700, and lower participation in school meals reduces the federal reimbursements that sustain menu improvements and equipment replacement.

Jackson described frequent refrigeration and freezer failures; she said she recently lost about $1,000 of food when a freezer failed and is seeking digital temperature monitoring and a fixed‑asset inventory to alert staff sooner and to track equipment. She told trustees she is monitoring repair calls and that some equipment salvaged from closed schools has been reallocated but that a full inventory is still needed.

Jackson highlighted several program and policy items: - Mount Vernon participates in the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, After School Snack, and Summer Food Service programs and is exploring serving dinner and launching the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program at certain school sites. - The district's Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) identified percentage is 67.6%, a figure Jackson cited when explaining how federal reimbursement is calculated without household applications. - Jackson said she will apply for a farm‑to‑table grant with an Oct. 30 deadline and the USDA Farm to School grant with a Dec. 5 deadline. She said the farm proposal is being drafted as an ambitious project; she gave a current budget figure of $400,000 with a required $133,000 match that may include volunteer time and community contributions.

Trustees and staff asked for details and pressed on risks. Trustee Scott asked how Jackson is communicating possible SNAP cuts and preparing for increased demand; Jackson said the district should build local networks with Feeding Westchester, the Department of Social Services and community groups rather than rely on one partner. "We have to tread carefully so that it doesn't become political one way or the other," Jackson said about sharing advocacy resources, but she encouraged posting research links and connecting parents to social‑service information.

Superintendent Dr. Jonathan Strickland said county and state officials are discussing possible federal cuts and that the state may step in to mitigate impacts for large cities; he urged caution in public messaging. Trustee Brown said she will champion community engagement and gardening projects to support the district's farm‑to‑school goals.

Student and trustee speakers raised participation and stigma issues. A student ex‑officio member noted that social stigma — "the cool kids are eating the school lunch, they call it 'schoolie'" — can discourage use of meals and suggested student leadership to reduce stigma.

Jackson outlined next steps: finalize a principal's guide to food service, launch an evergreen student feedback survey, assemble a wellness committee per district policy, pursue the two grants, work with Sodexo to fill open staff positions, and evaluate digital inventory and temperature‑monitoring platforms. She invited trustees, parents and community members to join the wellness committee and to email her at djackson@mtvernoncsd.org for participation.

Why it matters: Jackson and trustees framed school meals as both a health intervention and a revenue‑dependent program. If students do not take reimbursable meals, the program loses federal reimbursement dollars that pay for menu quality and equipment — a cycle Jackson said the district must break by improving menus, increasing participation and replacing failing equipment.

Trustees asked Jackson to return with September participation data and with a plan for using cafeteria funds or capital resources to address long‑standing broken equipment. Jackson said Sodexo is onboarding remaining hires and that she will present a deeper fiscal review at a later board meeting.