New meal menus in the works for Fallon schools

To have chicken nuggets or pizza on a regular basis for lunch sounds amazing, especially for a kid.

But it can get old after a while and most importantly, it could affect a child’s health in the long run.

That is why the Churchill County School District is revamping lunch menus in Fallon schools.

“We’re working with all managers on the menus,” said Jo Lamun, director of the CCSD dining services. “Our goal is to make more food instead of heating it up, and provide healthier options, like fruits and vegetables.”

Lamun is fairly new to the district and she’s already tackling significant steps, as improvements and creativity are reconstructing current menus said Superintendent Sandra Sheldon during the school board meeting Jan. 10.

“Jo has come into this when it was topsy turvey,” she said. “But now, we have a system in place. We meet on a weekly basis and there’s a boost in breakfast and lunch counts in the middle and high schools.”

School board trustees were impressed with the numbers Lamun presented.

All together, the schools within the district produced 2,740 meals on average per month, from August to December. For breakfast, results showed more than 600 meals were served.

Lamun said schools increased by 10,037 lunches from last year. These numbers are beginning to include faculty members, as schools such as E.C. Best Elementary has its own salad bar window, she said.

Although healthier options are gaining positive feedback, it’s unclear if students are actually enjoying it, Lamun said.

She said about 50 percent of meals are dumped, whether its healthy or not.

“We need to give them a better taste of food besides serving the same things over and over,” she said.

One of the steps to create a better menu for students is the quality of cooking equipment and atmosphere, Lamun said.

She said the storeroom in the former West End Elementary School on South Russell Street has been cleaned out.

Majority of the items were damaged or broken, but the district was able to repurpose some trays and Styrofoam, Lamun said.

Northside Early Learning Center also will see changes in meal menus as new stoves have been installed inside of the kitchen and is certified for fire protection, she said.

As menus are undergoing change, Lamun said parents can check out school meal menus online by visiting churchillk12.nutrislice.com.