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Washington board approves new Sedexo contracts and backs 'Crave' high-school dining program
Summary
The Washington Community Schools board approved a new five-year Sedexo food-service contract and a separate Sedexo facilities agreement while hearing a presentation on a new rotating high-school dining model called "Crave," which emphasizes from-scratch, customizable items and student engagement events.
The Washington Community Schools board unanimously approved a new five-year food-service contract with Sedexo and a separate facilities contract while staff introduced a redesigned high-school dining program called “Crave.”
Evan, a Washington Community Schools food-service staff member, presented the Crave concept, a six-week rotating menu that will feature more from-scratch items, a larger condiment station for customization, and regular menu rotation to reduce repetition. “We're going to have things called pizzeritos '' where we take raw pizza dough and essentially make like a mini stromboli,” Evan said, describing menu items and plans to increase scratch-made offerings.
The administration said Sedexo developed the menu options based on student surveys and will operate the new platform at the high school beginning in July. Staff also listed student-facing activities tied to the food program, including a Future Chef competition, a Future Chef Duos contest for middle- and high-school students, and a recurring Kitchen Wars event in May.
Board members asked about the district's summer feeding program and praised recent catering for events and athletic teams. Evan said summer distribution numbers are down and that rain affected early distribution days, but confirmed catering and team meals had been well received.
In separate motions, the board approved a five-year Sedexo food-service contract and a Sedexo facilities contract structured as a one-year agreement with two optional one-year renewals. Administrators said the facilities contract is $75,000 less than the prior-year arrangement, a savings the district said will help amid tighter operations budgets. The board's votes on the contracts were unanimous (6 in favor).
What happens next: With contracts approved, the administration will implement the Crave platform and coordinate equipment and marketing for the high school. Staff asked the board to visit for lunch to sample the new menu once it is serving students.
