October 13th, 2018
Fruit and veggies fuel city school students
By MITCH CRAIB
Special to the Messenger
There are happy students each morning as fresh fruit and vegetable snacks are shared out among students in each classroom. Strawberries, pomegranates, kiwis, cantaloupe, plums, cucumbers, apples, sugar snap peas, pears, and broccoli are just a some of the food items children have a chance to eat for snacks at school. While a few snack foods are not highly popular, most are consumed rapidly and with great pleasure. We have also noticed that children enjoy the responsibility of collecting the snacks from the cafeteria, bringing them back to their classrooms and passing them out to fellow students.
Why does St. Albans City School have fruit and vegetable snacks? More than half dozen years ago the school saw a genuine need for making healthy food options and experiences a priority. We also noticed that exposure to a wide variety of healthy fruit and vegetable produce seemed to be limited for some students. Those kids may never have eaten kiwis, cantaloupe, fresh peas or mangoes before. Fortunately, federal funding made it possible to supply healthier food options that widened students taste palettes while making wholesome food available to every child regardless of family income. This federal grant is something we apply for each year.
How can the effectiveness of the program be evaluated? As mentioned above, one sign of success is the fact that our children enjoy the fruits and vegetables they receive. There are typically few leftovers, and whatever remains goes into “share fridges” where hungry students can take what they want each day. Most gratifying to our school leadership is the fact that less healthy snacks are rarely if ever requested by our student population.
Another sign that the program is a success is anecdotal evidence from the BFA cafeteria staff. They revealed at a recent wellness meeting that students coming from St. Albans City School often have plenty of vegetables and fruits on their lunch trays. This behavior suggests that early exposure to vegetables and fruits in the classroom, in the cafeteria and in our farm to school program is helping students make independent healthy food choices as they approach adulthood.
Many thanks to all the family members who complete the free and reduced meal qualification forms that help our school qualify for funding to pay for this great program.
Mitch Craib is the Stewardship Coordinator at St. Albans City School.
By MITCH CRAIB
Special to the Messenger
There are happy students each morning as fresh fruit and vegetable snacks are shared out among students in each classroom. Strawberries, pomegranates, kiwis, cantaloupe, plums, cucumbers, apples, sugar snap peas, pears, and broccoli are just a some of the food items children have a chance to eat for snacks at school. While a few snack foods are not highly popular, most are consumed rapidly and with great pleasure. We have also noticed that children enjoy the responsibility of collecting the snacks from the cafeteria, bringing them back to their classrooms and passing them out to fellow students.
Why does St. Albans City School have fruit and vegetable snacks? More than half dozen years ago the school saw a genuine need for making healthy food options and experiences a priority. We also noticed that exposure to a wide variety of healthy fruit and vegetable produce seemed to be limited for some students. Those kids may never have eaten kiwis, cantaloupe, fresh peas or mangoes before. Fortunately, federal funding made it possible to supply healthier food options that widened students taste palettes while making wholesome food available to every child regardless of family income. This federal grant is something we apply for each year.
How can the effectiveness of the program be evaluated? As mentioned above, one sign of success is the fact that our children enjoy the fruits and vegetables they receive. There are typically few leftovers, and whatever remains goes into “share fridges” where hungry students can take what they want each day. Most gratifying to our school leadership is the fact that less healthy snacks are rarely if ever requested by our student population.
Another sign that the program is a success is anecdotal evidence from the BFA cafeteria staff. They revealed at a recent wellness meeting that students coming from St. Albans City School often have plenty of vegetables and fruits on their lunch trays. This behavior suggests that early exposure to vegetables and fruits in the classroom, in the cafeteria and in our farm to school program is helping students make independent healthy food choices as they approach adulthood.
Many thanks to all the family members who complete the free and reduced meal qualification forms that help our school qualify for funding to pay for this great program.
Mitch Craib is the Stewardship Coordinator at St. Albans City School.