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Ready to Serve!
Food Services at HCCD
As an integral part of our students’ daily educational experience, Food Service is the first contact for our students. We recognize the importance and impact we have on setting the pace in our students’ day. It is our goal to make every student we serve feel they are seen, heard, welcomed, and appreciated by providing nutritious and savory breakfasts, lunches, suppers, and snacks.
Our resolute Food Service staff possesses decades of experience preparing and serving food to our students. Their dedication to our students is the embodiment of Food Service. During the Pandemic, Food Service was there, making sure families were given three meals and a snack every day, including weekends. Lunch always contained a hot entrée, offered with a smile and a wave!
As the saying goes, “Not all superheroes wear capes.” In the case of HCCD Food Service staff, these superheroes wear aprons!
A Win-Win
Who Benefits from School Food Services?
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THE CHILD: To develop a lifetime of physical well-being, we provide them with food for learning and education in proper diet.
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THE PARENT: This is an economical way to provide at least one-third of your child’s daily nutritional requirements.
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THE SCHOOL: School Food Services provides and contributes as a major educational resource to the health and welfare of students.
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THE LOCAL ECONOMY: It provides jobs to area residents as well as being a vast market for purchased foods, equipment, and supplies.
Wellness Resources
Healthy Treats for Classroom Celebrations
Snacks served during the school day or in after-school programs should make a positive contribution to children’s diets and health, with an emphasis on serving fruits and vegetables, whole grains, as the primary snacks and milk, water or 100% juice as the primary beverages.
School staff will encourage parents/guardians or other volunteers to support the District’s nutrition education program by choosing nutritional quality when selecting any snacks which they may donate for occasional class parties. Schools will limit celebrations that involve food during the school day to no more than one party per class per month. Class parties or celebrations shall be held after the lunch period and only foods that meet or exceed state and federal nutritional standards can be served.
Ideas for non-food celebrations
Not every party has to involve food! Consider talking to your child’s teacher about other ways to celebrate student birthdays such as…
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Bring in his/her favorite game or book or a special art project to share with the class
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Put together a “goody bag” of non-edible treats such as glow sticks, balloons, stickers, tattoos, etc.
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Make him or her line leader or star student or get¬ting some sort of special privilege for the day. Be creative!
Healthier food choices
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Fresh fruit ~ cut up or whole / Fruit kabobs
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Yogurt tubes/cups served with fresh fruit
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Fruit roll-ups
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Healthy granola bars
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Graham crackers
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Apple slices with topping
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Animal crackers
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Apple sauce
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Popcorn
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Baked chips
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Goldfish crackers
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Whole grain muffins or cookies
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Cereals that contains whole grains and are low in sugar
Note all baked snacks must be packaged and purchased from a store or bakery.
Non-approved foods for celebrations
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Donuts
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Pastries
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Non-baked chips
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Cupcakes & frosting
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Candy
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Ice cream
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Soda
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Punch
FitFuture Healthy Snack Ideas
Nutrition experts find themselves split on the issue of commercially prepared “100 Calorie Snacks”. While some argue that having pre-portioned snacks is convenient, and helps adults and children enjoy a treat while controlling portion size; the other side of the issue points to the low nutrient value of these snacks and the wastefulness of the packaging. Another complaint is that despite the conveniently pre-portioned packages, many people report eating multiple servings anyway.
While it is certainly fine to enjoy treats in moderation, we must remember what it means to eat an overall healthy diet. Good nutrition is not just about the number or calories, but the quality of those calories. In other words, to eat well you must consider food choice (quality) as well as portion control (quantity) the great majority of the time.
Here are 20 ideas for healthy do-it-yourself 100 calorie snacks that require no compromise:
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1 large celery stalk with 2 Tbsp. nut butter
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1 cup raw veggies with ¼ cup fat free ranch dressing
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28 grapes
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½ cup unsweetened applesauce with a slice of toast cut into sticks for dipping
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10 cashews
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1 mozzarella string cheese with 2 wheat crackers
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6-8 oz. cup of low-fat yogurt
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2 Tbsp. hummus and 12 grape tomatoes
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½ cup plain oatmeal with ¼ cup fresh berries
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1 medium banana
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½ cup 1% cottage cheese with 5 strawberries
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1 cup mango chunks
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8 corn tortilla chips with ¼ cup salsa
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½ apple with 2 tsp. nut butter
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12 almonds
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1 cup blueberries
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6 wheat crackers with 2 tsp. almond butter
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1 medium apple with 1.2 oz. cheddar cheese
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3 Tbsp. raisins
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7 baby carrots with 2 tsp. nut butter
Non-Discrimination Statement
In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
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Mail:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 -
Fax:
(833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442 -
Email:
Program.Intake@usda.gov
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
