Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Programs And Wellness topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board hears updates on extended-day, wellness and indoor-air programs; extended day to pass on card-processing fee
Summary
Administrators and staff reported stable extended-day attendance, popular new classes, plans to keep rates unchanged while passing a 4% credit-card fee to families next year, and wellness/farm-to-school successes including a grant for bulk milk and a Connecticut farm-to-school award.
Board members heard three related program reports on May 19 covering the extended-day program, school wellness and the district's Tools for Schools indoor-air-quality work.
Extended-day staff said daily attendance typically ranges from about 85 to 100 students and noted strong interest in new offerings such as cooking, Minecraft and 3D printing. Program leaders said the EDAY budget is currently running a surplus of about $29,000 for the year and that the program ended the year with roughly $9,000–$10,000 of fund balance. The presenters recommended keeping EDAY rates unchanged for 2026–27 but passing on a 4% credit-card processing fee to parents; administrators said families can still pay by check or cash to avoid the card fee.
On wellness and cafeteria programming, the wellness lead described a triannual assessment that placed the district 'above average' and highlighted farm-to-school taste tests, a Connecticut State Department of Education 'Great Plates' award for a menu item and a New England Dairy Council grant to pilot bulk pourable farm milk in the cafeteria. The farm-milk pilot is intended to reduce single-use cartons, introduce students to local dairy production and yield cost and environmental benefits, though administrators acknowledged implementation challenges (cups, lids, spill mitigation) that will be addressed in training and with equipment purchases supported by the grant.
The Tools for Schools presenter reviewed the indoor-air program timeline and 2025–26 improvements: a new water-based cleaning system being introduced, replacement of worn kindergarten area rugs, improved HVAC awareness among staff and increased pest-monitoring measures. The presenter said staff participation on the tools-for-schools staff survey was 66 responses and set goals to raise participation next year to 80–90.
What’s next: administration will proceed with EDAY communications about the card fee, use grant funding and training to pilot the bulk-milk program next year and continue tools-for-schools follow-up steps and reporting.
