The food program had a deficit of $3,638.86 in January.
JAY – School Committee members voted Thursday to reinstate food service jobs and revamp hours as the director and superintendent see fit. Parents and teachers complained that cutbacks in the food service program left children with limited choices.
Fifty-two voters approved transferring nearly $26,000 last month from the town’s undesignated fund to the school food service account to support the program until June 16.
A citizen-initiated petition brought the issue to the town for a vote after School Committee members voted in December to close the bakery and reduce hours of personnel in an effort to prevent a deficit in the program. Residents voted prior to that to use nearly $56,000 from a school fund to reduce the deficit.
It took more than 40 minutes of debate Thursday before a decision was reached.
Food Service Director Brenda Adams said she has been trying to bring back more choices of meals to students since the cutbacks. She commended her staff for the efforts they make each week.
Adams also said there has been excellent participation in the lunch program in January.
Parent April Hartford cautioned school officials that February would be the month to look for comparison of participation. She also cautioned that the school shouldn’t jeopardize quality for tax dollars. For some kids, quality is a hot meal, she said.
Her four children are not eating school lunch as often as they used to because of changes, Hartford said.
Superintendent Robert Wall said the food service program still spent $3,638.86 more than revenues brought in for January. But that amount is an improvement, he said, because in the past the deficit was about $8,000 a month.
Wall also said that 18 schools raise more money than Jay, which raises nearly $83,000, for food service, 147 schools raise less than Jay, and 119 schools raise zero.
First grade teacher Rhonda Bean said she has seen a change in her students choosing to eat lunch. They used to love having pizza as an option if they didn’t like the meal served, she said.
Adams said she has brought pizza back three times a week as a second option. She has been unable to produce three choices of entrees under the existing situation, she said. But peanut butter and jelly is offered each day.
Wall said about 74 percent of the 271 students are participating in the food program at the elementary level.
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