Food service reports 180‑meal‑a‑day uptick; menu changes and USDA grants noted

Food‑service director Rodriguez presented the semiannual food‑service report, saying the district has seen an increase of about 180 meals per day so far this school year (based on August and September figures) and that both breakfast and lunch participation are up.

Rodriguez credited part of the gain to promotional efforts for free breakfast and new menu choices such as higher‑protein breakfast sandwiches at the elementary level and a ramen bar at the high school that day that served nearly 450 servings. The director also said the department is removing added sugars from menus to comply with updated USDA requirements.

The district’s free‑and‑reduced percentage stands at about 43% for the year, and Rodriguez said federal shutdown concerns have not changed the free‑meal status; USDA funding was listed as funded through October and no immediate interruption was expected.

Staffing and training: the department hired several managers and assistants (named managers and promotions were listed), purchased six warmers, four coolers and two steamers through a recent bid approved in June, and received a Farm‑to‑School grant to fund a Project PA culinary knife‑skills training for staff. Rodriguez also introduced a Penn State graduate‑student intern who has completed 250 of the required 1,000 supervised internship hours and has led programming such as an “eat the rainbow” event and staff allergy‑training materials.

Next steps: continue menu modernization, introduce training funded by the grant, and monitor participation data as October results become available.