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Wed 27 May, 2009 11:24 am
School officials have said that the food-ordering system is intended to give parents " rather than school employees " decision-making power over what children eat. The Lunch lady "Cunningham" says she informs parents when she allows their children to substitute meals.
She was suspended when the Elementary School received veggie burgers instead of the grilled cheese sandwiches that were on the menu. When several students refused to eat the veggie burgers, she let them choose other lunch items, including a bagel lunch or a breakfast lunch.
In such cases, Cunningham said, she doesn’t see how she can let the child go without eating. “That’s my problem,” Cunningham said. “How do you refuse a child a lunch when they tell you they’re hungry?”
The bagel lunch includes a bagel, cream cheese, fruit, vegetables, and cheese sticks. The breakfast lunch has cereal, yogurt, fruit, vegetables, and cheese sticks.
I kind of like this woman and appreciate the fact that she wouldn't let my kid go hungry. What's the deal - common sense over strict non-bending rules?
He was supposed to get grilled cheese and you gave him fruit!!!? I hope you rot in hell, lunch lady Cunningham!
Seriously, any parent that gets bent out of shape over someone allowing their child to chose their own lunch needs to get a life of their own.
I assume this rule is to make sure some kid doesn't chose a Snickers bar over a ham sandwich, but this really takes it to a silly extreme.
damn you lunch lady....damn you to hell.
Your story is from Boston-dot-com, and you have heavily edited it. For example, you did not include this line from the story:
She acknowledges that she had been reprimanded in the past for similar acts.
It is pretty common employee disciplinary procedure for an employee to be suspended after committing an offense for which he or she has been reprimanded in the past. If this is something about which she felt so strongly, why has she waited until now to make public her complaint and to approach the school board? It is entirely possible that something is going on here about which we are uninformed--such as the school district's plan to switch to contracted food services.
The Boston-dot-com story from which this was taken can be read by clicking here.
An earlier article about the incident which lead to this suspension can be read by clicking here.
In this latter article (the earlier one), you will find this paragraph:
Quote:Faced with an expected deficit of nearly $1 million in food services next year, the Newton School Committee is considering whether to privatize the breakfast and lunch program " a possibility that has the roiled relations with the schools’ roughly 90 food service employees and their union.
So it appears to me that there is possibly a lot going on that we don't know about.
@Setanta,
I can provide the link - I edited because if you include the whole thing people don't read it. I thought I had included the fact that she acknowledged that she had done this in the past - at least I meant to include this. If you want the entire article here is the link:
http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/newton/2009/05/suspended_lunch_lady_asks_offi.html
@Linkat,
Also, there always is some one that is picky whether it is spelling or grammar or whatever.
I was pointing out the fact that is common sense - considering the item that was ordered and expected by parents was grilled cheese and what was given by the school was a veggie burger - that instead of having the kids go hungry, she gaven them a bagel, cream cheese and fruit; which in most logical minds; actually is closer to a grilled cheese than a veggie burger.
@Setanta,
I do not see the connection between the cost and the trading or replacement of a different lunch. That is a different item (although they did include it in the article)/issue.
Unless you link it in the thought that if the kids don't like the meals, the parents ain't buying them thus the school loses money in these lunch programs.
@Setanta,
Quote:So it appears to me that there is possibly a lot going on that we don't know about.
Damn straight.
The Boston Globe article was written by a Globe "correspondent". That's jouranlese for the old slangy term "stringer." Stringers -- excuse me, correspondents -- cover the suburbs for the metro daily. They live on the turf that they write about. If there's a larger story here about a conflict between parents and school committee over the contracting of a commercial caterer, the Globe will send a "staffer" in to do an entirely different take on the story.
@Merry Andrew,
Well that could be. I do know personally how nice some of these lunch people in the Boston schools are though. I used to volunteer at lunch to read to a child in the lower grades. He often times would not have money for his lunch (or forgot to bring it) - the lunch lady was always able to find a lunch for him - if it wasn't the actual lunch, something like a bagel and cream cheese or a cold sandwich.
But doesn't it make sense if the school had gotten the order wrong (grilled cheese vs. veggie burger) that the lunch lady handle the situation appropriately? Often them something else? If I was a parent there, I would be thankful toward her for her common sense.
@Merry Andrew,
In point of fact, it occurred to me--and i didn't mention it because i don't know--that this staff member had made a stink in this case because of the potential clash of employees with the school board over contracted food services--and not any clash between parents and the school board.
I also wonder how school board officials knew that in six or seven cases, this substitution was made. That also made me consider this to be "fishy." It is possible, you know, that this woman is attempting to manipulate the media for her own purposes.
@Setanta,
Yes it is possible. It is also possible that she is helping children have a good healthy lunch and not be hungry.
According to the article, the school doesn't have a full-service kitchen, so the meals aren't prepared there but elsewhere and then delivered to the school. So presumably the bagel lunch and the breakfast lunch are approved lunches too, or they wouldn't be there. So why can't the kids eat them, if they'd rather? Let's just turn them into little robots, without control over anything in their lives. I think someone, maybe the principal, is having serious control freak issues here.
@MontereyJack,
I was wondering that as well. It isn't like she is giving them something bad for them.
Also, how many of us adults eat a lunch that we don't like or like having our own choices?
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