Chartwell serves up a new lunch program
By Caitlyn Kelleher JOURNAL REPORTER

Students will be facing in a new sight as they walk through the lines of the cafeteria this year because a new food services program has started.

A new look in the kitchen and new food choices will appear this year as Chartwell Educational Dining Services takes over as the managers of the food services program in the Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School District.

"We tend to batch cook more," said Chris Callahan, the company's district manager for New England. "It's freshness. It's that quality piece. We want to have them keep coming back. We know the students have a choice."

Students should expect to see food with fresher ingredients and a move away from prepared food and they'll see a different setup for their food, he said.

"All customers eat with their eyes," Callahan said. "Our main focus is on students but the teachers and faculty base is important as well."

The students will be exposed to a menu that is based on the standards set by the United States Department of Agriculture for student meals.

"We work on providing our balance choice program," he said.

The goal is to make sure student choice healthy options as a way to deal with the issues combating hunger at lunch time because also dealing with the country's childhood obesity issues.

Callahan said students today are more used to eating out and are used to a different food presentation then students of the past.

"If we don't market those choices people don't see them," said Callahan.

In Oakmont's cafeteria for example students will be able to choice from a variety of stations for their meals.

One of those stations will be a pizza station that will be set up with pizza or calzones each day. Callahan said the ingredients in this will give the students three of the five nutritional requirements and then they will have the choice of fresh fruits or salad to accompany the pizza.

There will also be a hot meal every day, or a choice at the sandwich area and an area with pre-packaged salads and sandwiches for those on the go.

The elementary school students will have a hot meal of the day, a weekly sandwich option and a weekly prepackaged meal option. And the options at the middle school will be a combination of the high school and elementary level menus.

"You have to try to attract the different likes of the students," Callahan said.

Over the course of the next year the dinning services will take on the changes to reflex the Chartwell management. Callahan and the onsite director will be presenting monthly reports to the schools administration and will meet with the school committee.

"I wish I could say managing a program is cookie cutter but every school is different," Callahan said.

Some things are cookie cutter for the company that works throughout the world. The company will make its menus available for parents and student at each of the district's five schools online on a month by month basis.

Callahan said they have setup their information online at http://www.awrsd.org/design/ siteflash/index-13.html.

At the elementary school level the students will also bring home a set of healthy eating types once a month and a fun activity that focuses on food knowledge, Callahan said.

These and other activities will also be set up on the Web site.

"We get involved with the student advisory committee," Callahan said.

He said the goal is to make an menu that appeals to the student body and a menu that they are interested in buying. Although he admits that "some things are possible and some things are not."

"We have to find the meal that is exciting in this district," Callahan said.

Over the course of the last two years the school's food service has run in deficit. The school committee tried to implement operational changes last year but the business did not make a large financial difference. So the committee approved bringing in a outside management company.

Callahan said any of the profits the company makes will stay with the school district. By law the school's dinning service must be self-sustaining.

"We look at efficiencies," Callahan said.

One of the efficiencies is that the elementary schools will serve the same meals each day as opposed to separate meals, and he admits that there will be overall savings because the buying power of the larger company.
Meal prices
Students: $2.25
Adults: $3.75
Milk: $0.45

First day's menu

Oakmont Regional High School
• Steak and cheese sub with choice of
onions, peppers and mushrooms
• Bacon cheese burger
• Pepperoni calzone
Overlook Middle School
• Steak and cheese sub with choice of
onions, peppers and mushrooms
• Daily althernates: hamburger,
cheeseburger and chicken patty on a
bon with tossed salad or lettuce and
tomato
Elementary schools
• Cheese pizza and baby carrot
sticks with ranch dip
• Tuna salad on a hot dog bun with
lettuce and tomato
• Pete's fun lunch (mini bagels with
shredded cheese & tomato sauce)