USDA Honors Manchester Schools as First in State to Receive Federal Award

State and federal officials visited Manchester on Tuesday to honor the township's three elementary schools as the to receive the silver award from the USDA HealthierUS Schools Challenge.

Jim Harmon, director of special nutrition programs for the USDA, commended the schools' principals and food service director for a task that he knows "is not easy to do" — serving certain amounts healthy foods, reaching 60 percent participation in the school lunch program and having students participate in an average of 45 minutes of physical activity each week.

"When we first started this challenge back in 2004, the idea was to recognize the very small percentage of schools in the country that have stepped up to serve the best possible meals, the most nutritious meals possible to the children," Harmon said during the afternoon ceremony at Manchester Township Elementary School. "Of about 100,000 schools around the country, there are only about 1,100 that have received this award."

Plaques were presented to the principals of each elementary school: Diane Pedroza of Ridgeway Elementary, Marjorie Stevens of Whiting Elementary and Dr. Frances Scudese of Manchester Township Elementary. Each school was also awarded a $1,000 prize, which is expected to be put toward improving school gardens.

Superintendent of Schools David Trethaway said that administrators are "very proud" that students are exposed to healthy lunches.

"It's one thing to offer those foods, but it's another thing to have our students eat those foods," he said. 

Trethaway credits Jeff Hanaway, general manager for Sodexo, the district's food service supplier, for leading the effort.

"We're very proud of our relationship with Sodexo. We're very happy that we have them," he said.

Hanaway said that he was "overwhelmed" by the recognition, something that began four years ago when he introduced fresh fruits into the elementary school menu.

"That was phase one," he said. "Phase two, we changed our menu design to incorporate physical activity, healthy nutrition, recipes. Last year was a huge focus on rolling out whole grains and getting the kids introduced to that."

The challenge has helped change the way students eat, according to Hanaway.

"When we started four years ago, we didn't sell very many salads," he said. "Now, a large percentage of what we sell are salads at elementary school and middle school and high school. We're seeing that kids are identifying with the things."

For Hanaway, this changed in eating habits means that parents who rely on the school cafeteria can rest assured that nutritious options are available.

"Parents now trust the school cafeteria — that their students are going to eat healthy," he said.

While it is possible to incorporate healthy foods into the school menu, Trethaway said the challenge is getting students to consistently eat these meals that are good for them.

"A lot of people will serve healthy food, but to get the kids to eat the healthy food, you have to present it in such a way that it tastes good," he said. "[Hanaway]'s turned that culture over, so now we have more participation than we've ever had in the school lunch because parents feel like they're getting a healthy lunch."

"[Students] look for things, like the salad bars and the wraps," Trethaway said. "We're very happy with the way it's come together in all of our schools."

Pedroza said that nutritious offerings will stick with students as they grow.

"I'm very proud to get a recognition for having kids make healthy choices and being part of a lifestyle change," she said. "Once they develop and acquire the taste for these types of items, they will sustain it over the course of time."

As for the district's other schools, Manchester Middle is "on the cusp" of receiving an award, Hanaway said, but an application has not been submitted.

At the high school level, it becomes more difficult to meet USDA guidelines as students are more independent and participation in the lunch program decreases when students leave campus, according to Hanaway, though healthy options for students in grades 9-12 are still available.

"We still offer at the high school the same foods we offer at the elementary. Ninety percent of the food we serve here we also serve at the high school," he said.

Hanaway said that other districts  have reached out to him to find out how to get started, a request he is eager to oblige.

"We're all in this together. It's for the kids," he said.

Hanaway said that he entered into the challenge with high expectations that he still has not met.

"When we set out to do this, I wanted to get gold," he said. "Gold was at the top of my list."

The district's three elementary schools met or exceeded the nutritional and physical standards for the gold award, but were ineligible for that honor as participation in school lunch programs did not quite reach USDA guidelines, Hanaway said.

"The only reason we didn't get gold is because we need participation in the school lunch program to reach 70 percent for one month. We came out at 68, 69 percent," he said. "We couldn't reach that 70 percent hurdle."

"I'm going to push that envelope. I'm going to push my staff. We're going to get there," Hanaway said.

Mayor Michael Fressola, who was on-hand at the presentation, said that he believes the district's staff can reach that goal.

"It will be gold next year, I promise you," he said. "I know these folks and they are very, very dedicated."