As part of our Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom initiative, representatives from the School Nutrition Foundation are visiting several grant-funded districts for an ongoing video storytelling project. Working with Magic Production Group, we have had the opportunity to visit three districts so far:
- Austin Independent School District, Austin, Texas (Cycle 4)
- F.C. Hammond Middle School, Alexandria City Public Schools, Virginia (Cycle 2)
- Garfield Heights City Schools, Ohio (Cycle 4)
We will also be visiting Charleston County School District (Cycle 2) in South Carolina in the coming weeks–stay tuned for photos and stories from that visit in the new year.
During our visits we have filmed breakfast-in-the-classroom production and delivery, as well as interviews with stakeholders to uncover the secrets to their BIC success. We discuss challenges and solutions, stakeholder engagement, and what makes each breakfast-in-the-classroom program unique and special to wherever it’s being served. Thank you to our hosts in Austin, Alexandria, and Garfield Heights for their hard work in helping us plan and execute our trips, and their patience while we filmed in their workplace.
Austin ISD
In Austin we filmed the three-day process required to serve kolaches, a student-favorite menu item that resembles a pig-in-a-blanket. Popularized by Czech immigrants to Texas, the Austin ISD’s kolache is labor-intensive but also cost-effective.
F.C. Hammond Middle School
At F.C. Hammond, students are an integral part of the breakfast-in-the-classroom delivery process. “Student ambassadors” volunteer or are chosen by teachers to pick up the hot and cold breakfast bags from hallway kiosks and deliver them to their classrooms. Students take the responsibility seriously, giving them an ownership stake in the program.
Garfield Heights City Schools
There are a lot of success stories to tell in Garfield Heights City Schools, where they are serving breakfast-in-the-classroom out of a central kitchen thanks to a Partners for BIC grant and two very cool overwrap machines. School nutrition staff is using speed scratch techniques to serve breakfast in the classroom, transporting the off-site meals in the school band’s equipment trucks.
