I have a confession. Whenever I read that some big-name restaurant chef is going to get involved in the world of school food, I know I should be supportive of his efforts – but I secretly want to roll my eyes.
It’s not that I doubt the chef’s sincere desire to help, and it’s not that school food doesn’t need fixing. But I’ve often wondered if the skills acquired in a high-end restaurant kitchen have much to do with the problems faced by school food departments: extremely tight budgets (just a dollar per meal for food), reams of federal regulations, often seriously deficient infrastructure, and a notoriously fickle and hard-to-please clientele.
Indeed, sometimes restaurant chefs’ main contributions to schools are cooking demos that have no real relationship to what’s going in the cafeteria, which I’m sure are fun and inspiring for kids, but hardly “fix” the system. And, too, I can’t help but feel that the whole concept of “chefs in schools” is a little disrespectful to school food workers. After all, these dedicated men and women work hard every day, with no fanfare, low pay and little gratitude, and they’ll continue to do so long after the big-name chef gets his 15 minutes of fame and moves on to other ventures.
So even though I had vaguely heard good things about Wellness in the Schools (WITS), a chef-driven program working to improve the food served in New York City public schools, I didn’t know much about it; I figured it was just one more case of fancy chefs “doing good” but not really changing the status quo. But then last week I had a chance to talk to WITS co-founder and Executive Director, Nancy Easton, as well as the program’s Executive Chef, Bill Telepan, to better understand the program and its impact.
And let me tell you, people – I’ve been schooled.
The key difference between WITS and some other chef-led efforts is that it’s a remarkably cooperative venture between the organization and the New York City Department of Education (DOE), which oversees the city’s school food operations. WITS was careful not to approach DOE with a “we know better” attitude, while DOE, in the words of Executive Director Easton, was “secure and completely open” in its embrace of WITS, whose vision for improved school food very much matched DOE’s longterm goals.
So WITS and DOE worked together to develop what’s called the Alternative Menu, which features more scratch-cooked items, fewer processed foods and more vegetarian entrees than the standard menu. Chocolate milk is dropped, a salad bar is added and the dressing for the salad bar is homemade. The menu is drawn from the exact same food procurement list used by the entire district, meets all federal requirements and the food itself is no more costly than the regular fare.
Of course, at this point, savvy readers will ask: OK, but doesn’t scratch-cooked food require more skilled labor, which itself costs more money?
Yes, and that’s where WITS’s team of chefs come in. The organization hires recent culinary school graduates who essentially embed themselves in participating schools for three years to teach them how to prepare the Alternative Menu. During the first year of the program, WITS chefs work side-by-side with cafeteria workers on a full-time basis, five days a week, five hours a day. In the second year of implementation, WITS chefs scale back their time on-site, and by the third year their involvement is more supervisory.
Amazingly, according to the WITS team, by the time the organization’s chef leaves, schools are fully able to prepare the Alternative Menu themselves – with no additional labor required. When I expressed surprise at this outcome, Easton asked me rhetorically, “Why even do this work, if you’re not going to make systemic change?” Indeed, WITS is so committed to keeping its improvements in place that if a WITS-trained staff member leaves a particular school after the three-year program, WITS will come back to train his or her replacement, free of charge.
But what about infrastructure? After all, not all schools have full kitchens in which to prepare scratch-cooked food. “We really try to design recipes for the least common denominator,” says Chef Telepan. “If a school only has a convection oven, then we teach them how to make pasta in the oven.” He described one New York City school that had ten burners – far more than many schools – but not a single pot. “So we just had to make chili in the convection oven,” he laughed. “We try hard not to let facilities issues become a barrier.”
But improving a school’s cafeteria menu is just one part of the WITS program. During the three-year period, the school also gets help with its physical fitness offerings and school wellness programs, and is provided with frequent food tastings, nutrition education and cooking lessons for students. Even the snacks offered at parent-teacher conferences undergo a healthy makeover while WITS is working with a school. And yes, there are celebrity chefs, too. Each school is assigned a chef from a leading New York City restaurant who visits several times a year for “WITS Cafe Days” to create buzz around the program. But in this case, when the celebrity chef does a cooking demo, it’s directly tied to the food being served in the cafeteria to bolster interest in and acceptance of those healthier meals.
WITS is currently working with 75 schools around New York City, and it specifically seeks out those serving economically underprivileged populations. If fewer than 60 percent of a school’s kids qualify for free or reduced price lunch, the school is asked to pay for the program in full ($40,000 in year one, $25,000 in year two and $17,000 in year three.) But even schools in more impoverished areas are asked to contribute whatever they can toward the program – “so they have some skin in the game,” says Easton – and the rest is covered by WITS’ generous donors.
Meanwhile, the demand for WITS training and the Alternative Menu continues to grow. Because there’s currently a waiting list of 30 interested schools, the organization is trying out some new approaches, such as an intensive training “boot camp” which will debut this summer, and some two-day training summits scheduled for next year. These programs offer “a much lighter touch” than the standard three-year training, says Easton, but they have the advantage of reaching many more schools over a shorter period of time. WITS is also set to expand beyond New York City, reaching out to schools in Florida, New Jersey and Washington, DC.
Talking to Easton, Telepan and the rest of the WITS team has helped me overcome – for good – my bias against “chefs in schools” – at least when a chef-led program is executed in this very thoughtful and effective way.
And here’s the fun part for me: I’m headed to D.C. next week for the Food Tank summit, so the folks at WITS graciously invited me attend their annual chefs’ tasting gala in New York City on Monday, April 18th. It promises to be a really fun event – lots of delicious food to sample – so if you’re in the area and would like to support this worthy organization, please consider buying a ticket. I’d love to meet some TLT’ers there in person! 🙂
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Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2016 Bettina Elias Siegel
Maggie says
I’d agree, more intriguing that most. Still, (I know, trying to be positive, but always wary) can it be replicated for more areas?
A couple of things that caught my eye –
I saw that the districts/schools pay ate least something for the service, but it also appears that the entire project is also supported by donations. If so, that may mean it is a program that might not be able to be replicated without that donation support. (something that’s been seen before in other projects). A culinary college nearby to provide the labor pool is also probably helpful, but maybe not as big an issue as I think.
Curious too, about the “no additional labor required” after the trainers have left. Do they mean no additional time compared to the previous menus? Do they mean no additional labor cost? If the workers are now trained and skilled, I’d think that would be worth a higher rate of pay for them.
Positive points – the fact that apparently the entire school building is required to be “on board” with this. That is a big part of the battle. It’s huge! You could have the most amazing food service staff in a building and if the teachers don’t care and if the principal doesn’t care and so on, it’s going to be tough.
Also, good to note that they address and work through some of the infrastructure issues. That can be a big challenge. Any idea if they also, through all the school wide programs, address the amount of time for the kids to eat, cafeteria atmosphere and so on?
It does seem too good to be true, I admit.
Bettina Elias Siegel says
Maggie:
These are all excellent questions and I’m hoping a WITS representative will come by and answer those I can’t.
But the one thing I didn’t emphasize enough in the post is that in general I’ve never been a big proponent of donor-driven improvements to school food programs. I applaud the communities which can make it happen, of course, but in the end such philanthropy leaves us with a patchwork system of “haves” and “have nots” that I find distressing.
The reason why WITS stood out for me is that it appears to be sustainable – after the initial outlay (by the school or by WITS, via its donors) and training, schools seem to be able to carry on with the program without further assistance. All the other donation-driven programs I’ve seen require outside funding to continue in perpetuity, which I find problematic. (However, you do raise a very good point about whether workers move up on the pay scale – again, I’m hoping WITS can answer this.)
At any rate, thank you as always for adding so much to these conversations!
Maggie says
Thanks for the discussion.
While assuming sustainable after the initial outlay – that initial outlay is still needed. And potentially needs someone (community star, such as the well known chef or other community member with interest in food/nutrition) to push donors to provide. Truly, hopefully, this might be something that can be expanded to other locations, with this kind of effort, willing to work within the boundaries of the meal programs and regulations to make it better. That’s a very positive aspect of this program.
Another thought, about participation. If that improves, that would be another source of continued higher income/funding. Any info about that?
And yes, one more time – I’m not looking to be difficult. Simply interested in understanding.
(I’m always overly wary to speak. Not here, but elsewhere, speaking as a person who works in the kitchen on a daily basis, I’ve been burned many times for asking questions or bringing up possible concerns. )
Rachel Alkon says
Maggie,
Thank you for you dedication to improving school lunch and your interest our work. You raise several good questions, which we address below. As you know well, creating culture change in schools can be complex. We would love the opportunity to hear more about your experience in the cafeteria and answer any other questions. Please email me at Rachel@wellnessintheschools to coordinate a time to connect.
Our role is to serve as an advocate and bring in programming for healthy eating and physical activity in public schools. Our top priority is to increase the number of schools participating in our program.
Look forward to discussing further.
Best,
Rachel Alkon
Communications Director, Wellness in the Schools
• Program Sustainability: As Bettina mentions, our Cook for Kids (school lunch) and Coach for Kids (school recess) programs are sustainable. Our trained culinary graduates partner with cafeteria staff to feed kids real food, and fitness coaches encourage schools to let kids play. In doing so, we shift the culture of a school.
WITS is unique because it is fully immersive, hands-on, and sustainable long-term. We start with a deep immersion in cafeterias – working side-by-side with staff every day in the first year to provide them with the training and skills needed to implement a new healthy, scratch-cooked, and delicious menu (developed in partnership with the NYC Department of Education). To support this new menu, we teach the children, the school staff and parents about nutrition, how to cook easy, delicious and nutritious meals on a budget, and how to stay active.
Then we gradually scale back our presence. Over the course of three years, WITS and its partners work with the schools to develop a long-term program and train the staff to maintain the program. For example, in the first year, cooks and coaches work 5 days a week, and then scale back to two or three days a week in subsequent years. After the initial three-year period, the schools are able to continue reaping the benefits of WITS programs on their own, and we are able to work with more schools.
• How Schools Join: The WITS application process works as follows: interested schools submit an online application and our team responds to each application. We present the program to school leaders and gauge their level of interest. All schools are encouraged to do their homework on WITS – visit participating WITS schools and meet with school leaders and parents to learn from others about our work. During visits we ask them to observe all aspects of our program – from the cafeteria and recess yards, to our culinary/nutrition classes (WITS Labs), to Family Fitness Nights, to parent cooking classes. WITS evaluates each school to get an idea of long term commitment and interest. Sometimes we speak with schools for up to three years before we decide to partner. All schools are asked to make a financial contribution (however small), to form a Wellness Committee (with a point person), and to designate a room to teach WITS Labs and a space for indoor recess.
Maggie says
I feel I need to clearly explain that I’m not associated with a school anywhere near the areas served by your programs.
I will again say that the program that your organization has created is inclusive of multiple aspects – the school meals, physical activity, family involvement – important to success. It’s well thought out program, without a doubt.
I suppose I’m playing devil’s advocate, but certainly not with the intention of degrading what is being done. But, looking at it as something that can be replicated or spread further, I’m wary that the seed money to start similar programs is out of reach. Seeing the numerous sponsors, the cost of attending fundraising functions leads me to that thought.
Again, I have no intention of degrading this program – it sounds amazing. And I agree with Bettina’s original intent that it is so much more than the typical “Chef’s in schools” program. My “yes, but…” response is mainly based on the idea that this is indeed a great thing that is working in certain places, yet not able to be put into place without quite a bit of support from outside – which might be hard to find in some locations?
Thank you for taking the time to respond. I do appreciate it.
Rachel Alkon says
You clearly understand this world quite well and make great points. We are going to continue to do what it takes to get our program to underserved communities. We would indeed welcome a conversation with you by phone, if you want to get in touch. Thank you!
Beatriz says
The article says “chocolate milk is dropped “ but the alternative menu on the link has chocolate milk..
From my experience volunteering at my kids cafeteria which serves the Alt menu, all kids drink by choice is the chocolate milk.
My main concern, which prompted me to send homemade lunch for my kid is that the milk, cheese and thin skin fruit (apples, peaches) are not organic (pesticide free). The alt menu is very heavy on non organic dairy. Dairy is associated with low iron absorption, a big problem In underprivileged areas where lead intoxication is common
Bettina Elias Siegel says
Hi Beatriz: First, thanks for that catch on chocolate milk – I hadn’t noticed that and it does conflict with what I was told. And I do understand your concern about non-organic produce and dairy but, to be frank, I think we’re a long way away from the day when federal subsidized school meals will be all or even mostly organic. The cost of those foods is simply too high on the current, insufficient federal per-meal reimbursement. Thanks again for commenting here!