Honoring School Nutrition Employees Who Make a Daily Difference

Often the first friendly faces students see at breakfast and lunch, school nutrition employees play a vital role in creating a welcoming, supportive environment. They’re often the first to notice a student’s mood, offering a smile or kind word when it’s needed most. On School Lunch Hero Day, the School Nutrition Association proudly recognizes its regional Employee of the Year winners for their exceptional commitment to nourishing students and supporting their school meal programs.

Karen Atherton, Nutrition Services Secretary, Raytown School District, Missouri: Mountain Plains Region Employee of the Year

Karen Atherton has worked in the Nutrition Services Department for more than 20 years and possesses a wealth of knowledge in child nutrition program operations. Atherton’s dedication and customer service skills are exemplary. She supports families navigating negative school meal balance challenges, assisting them with managing payments and encouraging completion of free and reduced applications for families who qualify. Working closely with the district’s finance department, she developed a plan to collect community donations to assist families struggling to pay for school meals.

Atherton has been an agent of positive change and a problem solver. She created a Google Form to simplify the work order process after kitchen managers expressed frustration, resulting in improved operations and increased employee satisfaction. Although she works in the administration building, Atherton gladly volunteers in the kitchens and cafeteria when needed to do whatever is required to ensure students are fed without interruption. She works efficiently to resolve everything from equipment repairs to issues with nutrition software or point of sales systems.

Elvia Flores, Head Cook for Terreton Elementary School, Idaho: Western Region Employee of the Year

Elvia Flores has built a strong connection with her students through her upbeat personality, positive attitude and radiant smile. She is known as a problem solver who adapts swiftly to challenging situations, whether brainstorming alternative ingredients for recipes or finding creative ways to make menus more inclusive. Flores leads the kitchen staff with calm strength and a dash of humor, earning the admiration of co-workers. A bilingual team member, she successfully promotes the school’s menus and always encourages students to try new foods. She takes initiative, like with the Cinco de Mayo themed menu, to create visually appealing and culturally authentic food. Flores encourages students to explore and appreciate different cultures through food, resulting in increased meal participation and spurring excitement among the students.

Flores consistently sets an example of excellence in maintaining production records and ensuring food safety. Her attention to detail and commitment to consistency in these critical areas have been invaluable in upholding the high standards of food safety protocols in the kitchen.

Linda Harris, Assistant Cafeteria Manager, Seaford Middle School, Delaware: Mid-Atlantic Region Employee of the Year

Linda Harris has left a lasting impression on her students during her many years in the school nutrition field. Former students remember her fondly from their time at the Seaford Middle School because of the kindness and patience she demonstrates each school day. Her dedication is unwavering as she often does more than one job during times of staff shortages and never misses a day of work.

Harris is active beyond school hours and can be seen working the after-school program and urging students to come grab an after-school snack or meal. Students love seeing her smiling face outside of school months when she works on food trucks all summer. Harris is always striving to learn, improve and keep up with current trends and practices.

Lavette Hutchinson, Nutrition Services Assistant, Gilbert Public Schools, Arizona: Southwest Region Employee of the Year

Lavette Hutchinson demonstrates an unwavering commitment to making her school a welcoming environment by greeting each student by name during breakfast, helping them feel seen and valued. She leaves a lasting impression in the school community and consistently encourages students to make healthy food choices. Hutchinson stresses the importance of teamwork and creates a positive working environment by offering an abundance of support to staff and colleagues. She happily steps in to help during busy times, and effectively communicates with her manager about students’ dietary needs and preferences.

Hutchinson’s efforts reach beyond her regular duties as she provides invaluable support for school events, including Muffins with Mom, Doughnuts with Dad, and Grandparent’s Day. She is involved with all aspects of events, from setup to preparing and serving the food, all while welcoming families with a warm smile. Her hard work helps to make each occasion special and reinforces the importance of a strong connection between community and school.

Barbi King, Food Service Assistant, Centennial Middle School, ISD#12, Minnesota: Midwest Region Employee of the Year

Barbi King makes it her daily mission to provide students with tasty and nutritious meals that keep them coming back for more. She created signs in the kitchen to grab students’ attention and promote healthy school meals. She decorates parts of the cafeteria for holidays and brings fun headbands for the staff to wear. She is always willing to help students, putting in extra effort to ensure forgetful students have their barcodes for the cashier to scan and providing small rewards when they remember. King contributes ideas to help mealtimes run smoothly, suggesting a reorganization of the cafeteria to make it easier for students and staff to collect their meals.

She is an exemplary team player and is often first in line to train new employees, help others and stay late when needed. King took it upon herself to translate and type out work roles for a new employee who spoke little English to ease their transition. Always keeping busy, King gladly wears many hats in the kitchen and never hesitates to work the register, wash dishes, grab cases from the cooler or do whatever needed to finish on time.

Cheyenne Trynor, Cook at Windham Primary School, Maine: Northeast Region Employee of the Year

Cheyenne Trynor is a beloved member of the Windham Primary School team who consistently shows kindness and attention to detail. She has created trust among parents and a strong bond with students who have food allergies and religion-based food restrictions. She is committed to creating delicious meals, such as gluten and dairy safe pizza or meatless chili, in addition to providing healthy and delicious foods for all students, embracing the challenge of scratch cooking with fresh ingredients. She worked to master batch cooking techniques so students in all lunch periods can enjoy a hot and fresh meal.

Decorating the kitchen with fun fruit and vegetable Squishmallows and dressing up in her hamburger hat are examples of ways she brings fun and joy to students. Trynor also initiated Try It Days to encourage students to try new foods, rewarding them with stickers. Trynor make a conscious effort to engage with students and staff, often bringing suggestions to building or district management to further align with its mission and goals.

The Employee of the Year Award was created to recognize outstanding school nutrition employees who influence the quality of school meals through customer service, an interest in young people, cooperation, work attendance, creativity, participation in professional development and their willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty. 

The winners were announced as the Regional Employee of the Year during an online awards ceremony on April 30 in advance of School Lunch Hero Day, celebrated on May 2, 2025, to honor all of America’s dedicated school nutrition professionals. The accomplishments of all SNA award winners will be profiled on Facebook.com/TrayTalk and TrayTalk.org around School Lunch Hero Day. SNA award winners will also be highlighted in SN Magazine, on schoolnutrition.org and related social media platforms and at SNA’s Annual National Conference in San Antonio, TX, in July.