• State didn’t meddle with Homecoming fundraiser but work toward healthier choices for Snow Week will be expected, state says
by Jim Boyle
Editor
Elk River High School could not get an exemption for its homecoming food sale fundraiser, but an official for the Minnesota Department of Education acknowledged this week the wheels for this year’s event had already been turning and change takes time.
Deb Lukkonen, a supervisor of school nutrition programs for the safety, health and nutrition division of the Minnesota Department of Education, told Elk River High School Principal Terry Bizal in an email Sept. 16 that exemption approvals are only given in unique situations.
For instance, a student group that already signed contracts for school year 2014-15 and is in jeopardy of losing deposit money. Or the culinary arts program that might not be able to change the curriculum for the fall quarter, Lukkonen said.
“The food sales for homecoming and Snow week celebrations do not qualify for a special exemption,” Lukkonen said in the email. “However, seeing that homecoming is this week, I’m expecting that you and your students have already gone ahead and made arrangement for food sales. I hope the event is successful!”
She stated in her email the fundraising project is a good one for both the students and the community. Elk River High School students have historically raised about $3,500 each homecoming that has been divided into seven $500 scholarships for graduates. The same has been true of the Snow Week food sale fundraiser.
Effective July 1, 2014, the only snacks school districts may sell to students during the school day – including food and beverages sold in school stores, vending machines and through fundraisers – will be “smart snacks” that meet the USDA’s nutrition standards for calories, fats, sugar, sodium and caffeine content.
The new rules on snacks are all part of federal legislation that authorizes funding and sets policy for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s core child nutrition programs.
States have wide discretion when it comes to granting exemptions, but the Minnesota Department of Education has decided to toe a hard line.
Bizal told the Star News he was pleased someone from the state got back to him and he foresees a manageable transition to healthier food sale fundraisers.
“I do think we can be successful,” Bizal said. “We’ll have to shift our focus and educate ourselves as to what’s available. It will be a learning process.
“I truly understand the state’s position of wanting to support the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act.”
So does Julee Miller of Sodexo, who manages the breakfast and lunch program for the district. She has been working to keep the Elk River Area School District’s lunch offerings one step ahead of the federal government to ease the transition, but it hasn’t been easy. For those that are now feeling the effects of the changes, she says, “Welcome to my world.”
“The state wants to remain a strong leader,” Miller said. “That’s the culture in Minnesota. Healthier is a good thing.”
Lukkonen has asked Elk River High School students to work on securing new food products that meet program regulations for Snow Week.
“Four months is enough time for them to learn about the regulations and work with local businesses to identify products that are just as satisfying to students,” Lukkonen said. “I think that lots of schools will have scenarios similar to yours, and you can be a great role model for taking a long-standing tradition and, with some minor modifications, meet the new regulations.”
Lukkonen even offered some suggestions on food items that might be popular while still meeting the healthy snack requirements.
Bizal said he appreciated the suggestions.
Lukkonen also offered to review any ideas or recipes kids had from a local business that they’d like to use, and she can have one of the department’s dietitians work with it to make it meet regulations.
“I would much rather work with you and the students now than to use this year to ‘search,’” she said “There’s no better time to start changes than the present!
“I’m looking for progress. I won’t let perfection be the enemy of good! I am just thrilled that the school staff and students are really looking at the regulations and talking about it.”