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Bethlehem Central food-service director reports big enrollment-driven meal increases, $360,000 projected surplus for program year
Summary
Food-service director Claire Grodin told the board universal free meals drove a large jump in participation — breakfast rose from ~250 to about 780–800 daily — and said the program projects a $360,000 positive fund balance for the year, requiring no general-fund subsidy.
Claire Grodin, the district food-service director, told the Bethlehem Central School District board that universal free meals have dramatically increased participation and strengthened the program’s finances.
Grodin said breakfast participation rose from about 250 meals per day last year to roughly 780–800 per day this school year and that between September and February the district served over 65,000 breakfasts. Lunch counts also increased by about 30% districtwide. Grodin said the program this year is projecting roughly $2,600,000 in revenue against about $2,300,000 in expenditures, producing a projected positive fund balance of $360,000 and eliminating the need for a general-fund subsidy at year end.
The director described how the cafeteria fund operates separately from the district general fund, funded by federal and state meal reimbursements and cash sales and regulated by USDA and the state Child Nutrition Department. Grodin…
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