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One On One With: Reimagining School Cafeterias with FoodCorps

In this edition of the Food Management podcast, we talk with Erica Curry about the nonprofits’ newly released report on ways to reimagine a school lunch program.

Becky Schilling, Group Content Director/Editor-in-chief

January 17, 2020

1 Min Read
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If you could remake a school cafeteria, what would it look like? That’s the basis of a newly released report by FoodCorps, a nonprofit that works with communities to connect students to healthy food in school. The team’s Reimaging School Cafeteria’s report provides 13 areas of opportunity for child nutrition professionals, schools and the community.

The report was conducted by doing face-to-face interviews with more than 300 students and 100 adult stakeholders in the schools, including teachers, principals and child nutrition professionals. The interviews were conducted in nine schools, representing diverse backgrounds and service styles for lunches.

Listen in as I dig in with Erica Curry, director of education for FoodCorps, on how students, in particular, would reimagine their school cafeteria, if given the chance.

These are the 13 areas of opportunity (more information can be found on each one by downloading the full report):

  1. Lunch as social time

  2. The menu

  3. The cafeteria environment

  4. Food quality and desirability

  5. Student agency and voice

  6. Role modeling

  7. Presentation of food

  8. Regulations and compliant

  9. Home culture and context

  10. Food waste

  11. School food community

  12. Staff training and development

  13. Length of Lunch

Related:Sodexo’s Taste4 pilot at Santa Cruz Valley schools in Arizona competes with meal delivery apps in schools

About the Author

Becky Schilling

Group Content Director/Editor-in-chief

Becky Schilling is Food Management’s editor-in-chief, and the group content director for Informa’s Restaurants and Food Group, managing editorial for digital, print and events for Nation’s Restaurant News, Restaurant Hospitality, Food Management and Supermarket News media brands. Becky holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Texas A&M University and a master's degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Before joining Food Management in 2014, Becky was with FoodService Director magazine for seven years, the last two as editor-in-chief. Becky is a history nerd and a sports fanatic, especially college football—Gig'em Ags—and tennis. A born and raised Texan, Becky currently resides in New York City.

Becky Schilling’s areas of expertise include the onsite foodservice industry (K-12 schools, colleges and universities, healthcare and B&I), foodservice menus, operational best practices and innovation.

Becky Schilling is a frequent speaker at industry events including The Association for Healthcare Foodservice (AHF), The National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS) and The Society for Hospitality and Foodservice Management (SHFM).

Becky Schilling’s experience:

Group Content Director, Informa Restaurant & Food Group (Feb. 2020-present)

Editor-in-chief Food Management (Nov. 2014-present)

Director of Content Strategy & Optimization, Informa Restaurant & Food Group (March 2019-Feb. 2020)

Editor-in-chief, Supermarket News (April 2019-March 2019)

Executive Editor, Supermarket News (July 2016-April 2017)

Editor-in-chief, FoodService Director magazine (March 2013-Oct. 2014)

Managing Editor (FoodService Director magazine (March 2012-March 2013)

Associate Editor (FoodService Director magazine (Nov. 2007-March 2012)

Contact Becky Schilling at:

[email protected]

@bschilling_FM

https://www.linkedin.com/in/becky-schilling-39194ba/

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