School Lunch Warriors

It’s your average Monday at PS 87 when the lunch bell rings, but what’s not so average, is the lunch. This school year, lunches got a lot less gross at this Upper West Side elementary school. By collaborating with Wellness in the Schools, a five year old not for profit in New York City, PS 87 has joined the trail blazing schools working to make school food a whole lot better.

Historically, school lunches have been, well, rather revolting. Memories conjure up the smell of soggy canned green beans and mysterious meats, and don’t forget the fried favorites. But with the recent studies showing that in the United States obesity has become the norm, and diabetes is becoming an average condition, people on the ground and in high places are taking great strides to change what kids are being fed.

According to the Center for Disease Control’s 2007-2008 National Health and Nutrition Survey, 17% of kids ages 2-19 are obese. Obesity is defined by the CDC through a body mass index measurement, which is the relationship between height and weight according to age. Obesity is considered being in the 95^th percentile in relation to others of the same age and sex. 

New York City, with 1500 public schools to feed, is at the forefront of the movement. Chef Jorge Collazo, the executive chef of the entire city’s public school system, is quick to note that New York public schools “exceed USDA standards.” Collazo recently brought big attention to the reforms by partnering with Food Network’s celebrity chef Rachel Ray to change the school menus and make lunch healthier. New programs are bringing in fancy chefs, and they seem to be getting it right.

At PS 87, lunches have taken a step back from the processed muck they once were and step toward real, fresh food. Wellness in the Schools first became involved with PS 87 this school year and has been implementing their Cook for Kids program, which is in fact a result of a partnership with the New York City Department of Education Office of School Food.

[Note- Obviously don't have a quote from PS 87. Pretty dumb since they're the focus of my story. I had an interview set up, and but home girl keeps flaking out. Working on this...]

Wellness in the Schools isn’t the only organization taking action. The New York Coalition for Healthy School Food was started to push a legislation resolution to implement a new standard for school lunches- to provide one plant based entrée in every school lunch. Amie Hamlin, the Executive Director of the program, was asked to write and organize the resolution.  Well good writing and organizing she must have done, as it was passed unanimously. Hamlin said the plant based lunch makeovers are soon to be on plates in 24 schools.

Beyond merely changing the way kids eat, much of the New York initiatives are also working to make positive change with the families of school kids. Hamlin’s organization has been particularly active with a pilot program at the Future Leader’s Institute, a 300 student charter school in Harlem. With the aid of Candle 79, a trendy and delicious vegetarian restaurant on the Upper East Side, the Coalition for Healthy School Food has changed the menu at school and at home by remaking the protocol on how food is talked about. By holding free monthly family dinner nights, the Coalition has been able to educate the entire family.

Part of the issue with food and health issues is knowledge. With just a few learned facts, change is possible. Hamlin has seen the importance of information at the family dinner nights. She said, “One night the mother of a student got up on the table and twirled around because she had lost 15 pounds. She said to everyone, “You can do it too.” And it was because she learned about all the sugar in soda.”

While much action is being taken to change school lunches, a lot of media attention has been given to the issue as well. British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver recently shot a TV show in West Virginia to capture his crusade to change the way Americans eat. According to ABC, the network that provided the show, it brought the greatest amount of adult viewings during its weekly day and time in three years. The show also brought on controversy, with some food activists arguing to have been undermined in their roles. Chef Jorge Cazallo said, “Schools are very complicated places,” and that, “It takes a lot of awareness to change. Some people make criticisms without understanding the context.”

The media attention has, however, brought a big bright light to the school food movement. As Amie Hamlin said, “It brought a huge amount of attention from people who wouldn’t normally be interested.”

With New York leading the way, and the whole nation watching, there’s no turning back now.