A chicken tender can’t take up for itself — but Monongalia County Schools can.
Should any freezer across the district begin an unplanned thaw, be it by power failure or a compressor issue, Brian Kiehl’s smartphone will immediately chirp with texts and emails of warning.
Which means, he said, an interlocking safety net of technology to keep the tenders, and any other menu item on ice, out of harm’s way.
“Whatever works,” said Kiehl, the district’s director of child nutrition services.
“We just emptied our last freezer last week, so we can clear the way.”
He’s referring to next month’s “Summer Avalanche” learning enrichment camps which run July 5-27 at every school in the district.
Freezers and cafeterias are being stocked with new inventory for the breakfast and lunch offerings at the school during the run of the Avalanche, Kiehl said.
Breakfast will be served 9-9:30 a.m., and will consist of basic fare including cereal, milk and a juice box, the director said.
“Most of our kids don’t eat breakfast anyway,” he said, of the traditional Avalanche participants.
“They’re always anxious to get started with their courses.”
Lunch will be at 11-11:30 a.m. at the schools, and children don’t have to be enrolled in the Avalanche program to partake.
That’s critical, Kiehl said, since food insecurity — that is, where there literally isn’t enough available to sustain one’s self, nutritionally — is still present, even in relatively prosperous Mon County.
“Hunger doesn’t take a summer vacation,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Avalanche offerings are being served in partnership with the federal Summer Food Service Program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Other federally mandated particulars
In accordance with federal civil rights law, the program is prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the agency (state or local) where they applied for benefits.
Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.
To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office.
To request a copy of the complaint form, call 1-866-632-9992.
Such forms or letters or letters may also be mailed to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C., 20250-9410.
The USDA will also accept such communication by FAX at 202-690-7442; or email: program.intake@usda.gov.
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