Note: This article primarily discusses the food service programs available in the United States. While individual provinces offer subsidized food programs on a limited basis, Canada is one of the few developed countries in the world that does not have a national school food program. Parliament pledged to begin a nationwide program last year, but no money has yet been allocated (Ruetz and Kirk).
When it comes to ensuring the physical health of students, schools can play a major role by influencing what food students eat. Hot lunch programs, nutritional education in science or health classes, and even community gardens can all help schools encourage healthy eating habits for students. The US government realized this all the way back in 1946. That summer, President Harry S. Truman enacted the National School Lunch Act, which set in place funding and guidelines for its use in providing affordable, healthy lunch to students at K–12 schools (Woolley and Peters). These National School Lunch Programs (NSLP) provide healthy, balanced lunches (and often breakfasts) daily to almost thirty million students around the country, and the cost to schools is partially subsidized by the government. Perhaps most beneficially, schools can also provide these meals to low-income students at no cost or for a lower price (known as “free and reduced lunch”), ensuring that even the most vulnerable students are getting one or two square meals a day (“National School Lunch Program”).
National School Lunch Programs (NSLP) provide healthy, balanced lunches (and often breakfasts) daily to almost thirty million students around the country
NSLP are available to both public and private schools, but they are not often found at many Christian schools. Christian schools may choose not to participate for many reasons. The programs require schools to follow many rules and keep careful records—this may seem daunting to small schools without extra staff or resources. Perhaps size also plays a role—a program like this may not seem efficient or necessary for a school with just two hundred students. Additionally, many Christian schools are built without any sort of large kitchen or cafeteria space—students eat in their classrooms or even in the hallways.
However, NSLP provide many benefits and can help ensure that every student has access to nutritious food every day at school. Christian schools would do well to consider these programs, especially as their populations continue to diversify socioeconomically thanks to increased scholarship programs. To help provide some basic info about how NSLP work and to get some advice about how small schools might get involved, the Christian Educators Journal talked to Nancy Michaels, a school food service expert who has worked for over twenty years advising schools—particularly Christian ones—in the West Michigan area. She has consulted for or run programs at Holland Christian, Grand Haven Christian, Grand Haven Public, Allendale Christian, Grand Rapids Christian, Forest Hills Public, Ada Christian, Living Stones Academy, and Jenison Christian.
Christian Educators Journal talked to Nancy Michaels, a school food service expert who has worked for over twenty years advising schools—particularly Christian ones
Programs Have Nutrition Requirements to Ensure Healthy Meals
One major benefit of NSLP is that they set requirements for what kind of food is served—this isn’t just the slice of pizza or “mystery meat” you see kids eating at school in movies or on television shows. Along with meeting particular calorie requirements (flexible daily but totaled at the end of each week), Michaels says, “We have to meet certain vegetable requirements. A certain amount of legumes, red/gold vegetables, green leafy—there’s all sorts of requirements that we have to meet.” Lunches must also include all whole grains, a fruit option, and milk that is 1 percent or lower. It can be challenging to get students to eat fruits and vegetables, Michaels says, “because we all want to have french fries every day.” She combats this by advertising the food to students, being careful to word meal descriptions in a way that’s appealing. “I really market the menu,” she says. “I want the kids to choose the menu.” One other thing to consider when serving lunch to a whole student body is food allergies. Michaels stresses that kitchens have a lot of flexibility in what they can serve and how they can adapt for students with documented allergies. Their motto is “I can work with you on that.”
Schools do need to keep careful records about what they serve because every few years NSLP providers are audited. Auditors check paperwork and analyze the portions of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins served in each meal. Kitchens and cafeterias are also subject to health department inspections, and staff who make and serve the food need to be ServSafe certified. Michaels acknowledges that this is a lot of work, but she says that once there’s a system, it’s pretty easy to stay organized. And having good staff is key.
How to Staff a Food Service Program
Staffing is one barrier that may keep Christian schools from running NSLP. Where do you find those extra hands? Michaels suggests that schools simply look to their own parent community for help. “Almost all of our staff have kids in the schools,” she says. “It’s a great job for parents who need to work but have kids. . . . The hours are usually 8–1, so they can be home after school.” Parent volunteers, especially for service or transporting food to other buildings, are also key. Covid-19 has changed the volunteer dynamic a bit this year since schools aren’t accepting visitors, Michaels notes, but once the virus is under control, parents will continue to be a welcome source of labor.
Once you’ve got a lunch program set up, the question is, What should you serve? Kids can be notoriously picky eaters, but Michaels reports, “They really will try anything! They’re more adventurous than you think. But it’s a hard balance. Moms want red peppers and hummus, . . . but kids want their french toast sticks with sausage and smiley fries.” Below, Michaels lists some of the meals students love.
- Easy breakfast for lunch: cold cereal, milk, fruit, and yogurt
- More involved breakfast for lunch: pancakes, strawberry topping, and sausage
- Chinese: orange chicken, fried rice, veggies, and fortune cookies
- Salad bar
- Qdoba/Chipotle-style burritos: students choose their favorite rice, beans, meat, and salsas to put in a grilled tortilla
- Pasta bar: students choose their protein (chicken or meatballs) and their sauce (marinara or alfredo)
Covid-19 Changes
Covid-19 has changed much of the landscape of the lunch rooms Michaels manages this year, but it has also provided some incredible opportunities. Challenges first: all self-service (like salad bars or even condiment choices) in serveries has been eliminated, meals have to be individually packaged and delivered to classrooms in buildings without serveries, and no reusable dishes or utensils are allowed for now. “It’s a whole new playing field,” Michaels says, but she’s thankful for the cooperation of food service workers. “Staff have had to pivot and be flexible. It’s changed so much. For all of us, it’s not an easy thing to do.” But with these challenges has come a great benefit for students: free lunch. A branch of the NSLP is a program that serves free lunch all summer long for students so that no one goes hungry, and that program has been made available during the regular school months this year as well in response to Covid-19 concerns. That means every student can get a free breakfast and lunch every day—no questions asked.
Suggestions for Small Schools Looking to Start an NSLP
If all this sounds good, Michaels has advice for small Christian schools who are looking to launch an NSLP. She recommends that they first contact their state’s department of education. There, they can find information about the state’s particular food program and get advice on how to start one. Though the procedures and rules might seem daunting, Michaels has a solution—partnerships with local public schools, called “alternate agreements.” Small schools can contract with bigger districts in the area and get food delivered each day that is cooked at larger facilities—the big local public high school, for instance. This can solve a small school’s lack of a commercial kitchen, and it limits the logistics the serving school has to manage. “People shouldn’t be intimidated by it because most states have training programs,” Michaels says. “They’ll walk people through it, plus there’s lots of people that will help you.”
Another great option is for several Christian schools in an area to band together and create a cooperative lunch program. So while a K–5 building with one hundred students may never be inspired to start an NSLP, if four of those in a region come together, food can be prepared at a building with space and staff resources and then distributed around the area, ensuring that hundreds of students have access to healthy food if they need it.
Why School Lunch Is Important
Michaels believes that school lunch is vital for many reasons in addition to students getting a nutritious meal that they might not always get at home. “I think [lunch] is really an important part of our school day,” she says. “It’s where you can totally disengage from classes, from your computer. There’s somebody there who has a great smile, and you’re getting a great meal. We really don’t care what happened to them in the class before that. We’re just there to serve them. That’s the part that I love the most. Hopefully we will make a difference in each student’s life.”
Works Cited
“National School Lunch Program.” USDA, October 1, 2020, https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp/nslp-fact-sheet.
Abby Zwart teaches English and coaches forensics at Grand Rapids Christian High School and is the co-editor of the CEJ.
