Events – TrayTalk.org

Lunchtime celebrations add special experience for students

Across the country, school nutrition teams find creative ways to bring joy and connection to their cafeterias, going beyond simply serving healthy meals. Two districts in the Midwest are taking that mission to new heights with student-centered celebrations that make lunchtime celebrations more meaningful.

Produce Auction Helps PA District Serve Up More Local Foods

“Going once, going twice…sold to the Manheim Township School District!”

That phrase is heard weekly at a local produce auction in Pennsylvania, where the district is working to elevate school meals with a focus on fresh, local produce. The auction features local farms, many from the Amish community, offering colorful, seasonal fruits and vegetables that are bid on to be served in school meals that nourish the district’s 6,200 students.

School Meal Planners Share Lunch Tray Ideas for the Fall

Earlier this summer, Alamo City served up more than just Tex-Mex; it provided inspiration and fresh recipe ideas to fuel school nutrition teams from across the country.

More than 6,000 school nutrition professionals gathered in San Antonio from July 13–15 for the School Nutrition Association’s (SNA) Annual National Conference (ANC), the largest event of its kind in the country. ANC gave attendees a firsthand look at the tools, techniques, and tastes shaping the school meals.

School meal planners filled the nation’s largest exhibit hall in school nutrition to visit nearly 360 exhibits. From the moment doors opened, attendees sampled new recipes, foods and beverages for lunch trays, previewed cutting-edge kitchen equipment to help prepare and serve meals and exchanged ideas on replicating restaurant trends to meet school nutrition guidelines.

A Coast-to-Coast Look at Summer Meal Programs

Commitment to student health and nutrition doesn’t stop during summer break. Across the country, school nutrition professionals work diligently throughout the summer to ensure that children continue to receive the nourishment they need. Meal service locations are identified in communities to try reach children where the need for nutrition, from school campuses and city parks to rural routes of mobile meal delivery.

Some inspiring examples of how districts are fueling kids this summer include:

Career Fair Helps NC Students Explore School Nutrition

Students at Rocky River Elementary School in North Carolina learned about what it takes to be a school nutrition professional and practiced the art of creating school breakfast and lunch trays at the school’s Career Fair.

The event began with an assembly for fifth graders, where they worked on writing assignments about their career interests, followed by an all-school career fair. Students visited tables, browsed information and spoke with professionals from a range of fields, including school nutrition, the military and finance. Inquisitive students peppered the professionals with questions, and some even donned outfits that matched their career interests to fully embrace the day’s theme.

Kentucky Students Celebrate Their Special Day on the Birthday Bus

When the Grant County School District in Kentucky purchased an aging bus several years ago for their summer meal program, they wanted to find creative ways to utilize it during the school year. Most of the seats of the bus had been replaced with bench tables and a sink, warmers and a cooler were added, opening up opportunities to serve students meals in the parked bus.

Using festive decorations and streamers, the food service team repurposed the Lunch Bus Express into the Birthday Bus for monthly visits to schools during the school year. As students enter the bus, they are given a birthday activity book and provided a reimbursable school lunch, including pizza, fruit, vegetables, milk and a whole grain cookie or special applesauce birthday treat.

South Carolina Students Serve Up Creativity in Culinary Competition

Students from the School District of Pickens County (SC) offered up their best culinary creations in hopes of impressing the taste buds of judges in the Healthy Salad and Sandwich Culinary Competition. The annual event is designed to provide students with hands-on education in cooking, recipe development and producing and serving recipes in large quantities.

School Nutrition Directors Recognized for Outstanding Contributions

School Lunch Hero Day, observed annually on the first Friday in May, honors the dedicated women and men who work tirelessly to support the health and well-being of students in schools nationwide. The School Nutrition Association (SNA) is celebrating the accomplishments of regional honorees as well, including Director of the Year winners, exceptional leaders who exhibit an extraordinary commitment to their school meal programs. Directors are responsible for maintaining the quality of meal programs through student interaction, menu planning and a commitment to serving nutritious, tasty and well-balanced school meals. Through effective oversight of all aspects of food service operations, including budgeting, staffing, training, marketing and community outreach, school nutrition directors ensure the overall success of school meal programs.

School Lunch Heroes Receive National Honors

Coming up this Friday, May 2, School Lunch Hero Day celebrates the hard work and dedication of school nutrition professionals across the country. As a kick-off to these festivities, the School Nutrition Association announced national and regional winners for Employee of the Year, Manager of the Year and Director of the Year in a virtual award ceremony today.

Meet the outstanding individuals earning national honors here and learn more through the week about each of the regional winners. Be inspired by their exemplify dedication to their profession and deep commitment to the students they serve.

Students in WI Eat Their Way Across the Globe

While students in Wisconsin’s Prescott School District were not afforded the opportunity to sail in a gondola in Venice or visit England’s Buckingham Palace, their tastebuds got a chance to take a tour of the world via delectable cuisine spanning the globe.

The students recently took part in the Around the World in 80 Trays program, which encourages school nutrition programs statewide to incorporate international cuisines and culturally-significant meals into their menus.