School Starts Again With A Big Welcome Back To The Cafeteria!

School nutrition professionals are celebrating the start of the 2017-2018 academic year by educating students about new technology and menu options and creating a welcoming atmosphere for them as they walk through the cafeteria. Welcome back signs are hung and decorations line the walls!

Summer months are often dedicated to perfecting recipes and staff training to bring  new and exciting things to student menus come August/September! 

The common trend of parents taking photos of their beaming student holding a first day of school sign has taken off with school professionals too!  In Waterford School District (MI), lunch ladies are getting into the mix, posting their first day of school photos. Some school districts are even encouraging parents and staff to send their first day photos or hash-tag them to be shared on the school’s social media.

The Loudoun County School (VA) nutrition manager in Virginia kicked off the new school year with a good old-fashioned harvest day.

The school gardens, which are tended to over the summer months while students are away, had a fresh batch of produce ready to be picked by students. What a wonderful way to get students in on the eat local food craze right away!

Students in the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District (TX) will enjoy a new way of choosing their school meals via the district’s latest technology, an app called School Café! With School Café, parents and students will be able to see what is on the month’s menu, check specific allergens in school meals, manage the child’s cafeteria account and apply for free and reduced meal benefits.

In a fun twist, food service professionals were also welcomed back to school by students in Sumner School District (WA). Students taped a sign welcoming Miss Amber back to the cafeteria, thanking her for being the best at what she does, calling her “The Queen of the Snack Bar.”

For school nutrition professionals at Windham Raymond Schools (ME), lots of veggies are on the new school year menu. Just before school started, workshops were held, showing the importance of presentation and creativity when it comes to increasing the amount of vegetables served in school meals. Food service professionals were able to speak with each other about their past year successes and challenges. A great way to network and learn new recipes!

Basic vegetables, like cauliflower, corn, zucchini, broccoli, potatoes, were given new life with an array of creative and healthy recipes, all appealing to the student eye as well as stomach.

Grilled zucchini, zucchini lasagna, mashed butternut squash, squash soup, grilled corn, cornbread, corn salsa, roasted broccoli, garlic broccoli, the recipes didn’t end. Check out how delicious everything looks on the tasting table!