Continuing the Springfield Schools trend of embracing 21st century technology initiatives, the Springfield Schools food service recently implemented a new electronic Point of Sale, or POS, system. With the new system, cash registers have been replaced with new touch-screen monitors, cash drawers and PIN keypads.
The new system, know as the NUTRIKIDS Point of Sale System, allows parents or students to directly apply money to a personal account attached to each student's student ID. Students can purchase meals or snack cash-free by "charging" it to their account, deducting money from their prepaid balance.
Cash hasn't left the lunchroom quite yet; students who use cash can have their change placed on their accounts to save time (and money) at the end of their purchases and for the next purchase.
"The idea was first brought to the school district in 2005," said Marie Joyner, Food Service Director for Springfield Schools. "It took a back seat for a while to the laptop program but once the district saw the completion of that project they fully embraced the new POS system."
The Point of Sale system is now functioning in all five school buildings, including the three elementary schools. In the elementary schools, paper lunch tickets were replaced by cards with each student's ID number.
Joyner believes it will be a great learning tool for the elementary level. "Students can begin to learn how to manage their finances as well as learn decision making and limit setting, " she said, adding that she has already seen a change in spending habits and how students are thinking about their purchases in relationship to their balances.
Other benefits exist outside of the "cash-less" part of the POS system. Parents can monitor how their children are spending their money, students who may have forgotten lunch money can charge a debit to their account, cafe staff will get to know students better and become more familiar with their eating habits, and the school district will able to generate more accurate and timely information for state audits.
In addition to the electronic Point of Sale system, other changes to the food service program are in the works. "This year you will see new members of our staff who have received special training in customer service. With the help of the POS system, we are now able to identify our customers by their name and grade level, which makes for a much more personal approach to everyone we encounter," Joyner explained.
"Aramark Education and the Springfield Board of Education share a strong working relationship and I am happy to be a part of a partnership that recognizes the importance of technology and advancement," said Ms. Joyner. "I look forward to bringing more innovative ideas to the food service program as the year progresses and I welcome feedback and suggestions from students, faculty and administration."
