Friday Focus

February 4, 2022

SCHOOL NUTRITION NEWSLETTER

Message from the Director

Message from the Director

You are courageous and it's one of the reasons you do great work. You have the heart and resilience to take that first step into the new and unfamiliar and because of that, you have achieved great things! I watched you push the boundaries of everything that had been familiar to us in our operation and find ways to do things differently. True courage is overcoming fear. Fear is important because it keeps us from charging into something new unchecked. We all are afraid of something and it's important to ask ourselves why we are afraid. Are you afraid of change, technology or moving up to another position? Courage is what you use to overcome fear and take that first step. You have to be vulnerable and risk failure. Without courage, there is no progress. Without failure, there is no success. I am proud of everything you've risked to make sure we didn't fail to feed our students, thank you!


With gratitude,

Kathy

Message from the Director

payroll update from laura

School closures due to weather that are not eLearning days like the two days this week, are not eligible for pay because these days will be made up. Absence sheets for these days are not necessary as the pay will subsequently be given on the make-up day scheduled for the cancellation. If the make-up day is rescheduled as an eLearning Day, remember that eLearning Days are work days and employees are required to report to work.

You play a role in creating healthier environments for kids!

Through the Eyes of a Child: The Impact of Let's Move!

Served Digital Magazine

Check out the latest edition of Served, a digital magazine. You can flip through the pages and click on videos or links to other websites. It's definitely awesome! Click on the link below and be sure to visit the Cup of Joe video for some inspiration.

Middle schools beat the winter blues

Congratulations to Cafe Managers Nancy Moore (TJM) and Deb Johnson (BF) and their teams on their wildly successful promotion, “Beat the Winter Blues with BBQ.” They decorated their serving lines with summer decor, BBQ placements quilted by Nancy, blues music played by Deb, cooked the smokehouse pork to perfection and dressed for a day at the beach. And despite Skyward going down and lines moving slowly, they broke new participation records! Comments from parents on social media include:

—“My son told the whole family how good it was!”

—“My kiddo LOVED it! He hopes it’s there all the time!”

—“Good looking meal!”

Great job, middle school teams!

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OPEN ENROLLMENT FOR INSURANCE AND BENEFITS

Last week, Omi Suiter, VCS Benefits Coordinator, emailed everyone about the "Open Enrollment" period for employees. All permanent employees who work 20 hours or more per week (not substitutes) must make an appointment to review insurance and benefit options. This is the only time of year you can make changes unless there is a qualifying event (death, divorce, birth). Open enrollment opened January 31 and runs through February 28. All permanent employees who work 20 hours or more per week must make an appointment (whether you take benefits or not) by signing up here: https://enroll.americanfidelity.com/A2B3933E

If you need help signing up or if you need to change your appointment, contact:


Administrative Review: Sodium Targets

School lunch menus must meet many requirements, one of which is a limit on sodium. In 2010, federal law enacted sodium reduction mandates with the goal of being at the final target by this summer. However, several waivers have been granted and sodium levels are still at Target 1. The School Nutrition Association is advocating for the suspension of the other targets and keeping limits permanently on Target 1. If you look at the chart below, notice how few mg of sodium are allowed for the final target. Can you imagine trying to make a K-5 menu with a maximum of 640 mg of sodium? To give you an idea of what that means, take a look at these common items:


Chocolate milk: 180 mg

Ranch cup: 220 mg

Hamburger bun (whole grain): 250 mg


These three items alone exceed the sodium limits of the final target. Crazy. While I'm sure we can all agree that sodium must be limited, the final target would make it difficult, if not impossible, to build menus students will eat.

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Check out myschoolmenus!

You can also download the free myschoolmenus app!

OPEN POSITIONS

Any permanent employee (including substitutes) interested in any of these positions can apply by emailing a brief letter of interest to Kathy Kane, Director at kkane@valpo.k12.in.us.

Non-employees can apply by completing an online application as an External Applicant here: https://www.applitrack.com/valpo/onlineapp/


FS Tech, Cooks Corners, 3.5 hours

FS Tech, Parkview, 4.5 hours

FS Tech, BF, 5 hours

FS Tech, TJM, 4 hours

FS Tech, Flint Lake, 4 hours

FS Tech, Heavilin, 4 hours

FS Tech, Heavilin, 4 hours

FS Tech, VHS, 6 hours

FS Tech, VHS, 4 hours

2021-22 Calendar

February 18, 2022 No School (No Work Day unless used as Weather Make Up Day)

February 21, 2022 No School, Presidents' Day (No Work Day)

March 7-11, 2022 National School Breakfast Week

March 21-25, 2022 No School, Spring Break (No Work Days)

April 8, 2022 Half Day for K-12 (Regular Work Day)

April 11, 2022 No School (No Work Day unless used as Weather Make Up Day)

Did you miss an issue of Friday Focus?

Did you miss an issue of Friday Focus?

Past issues of Friday Focus are posted on our department website on the Staff Training page here:

https://www.valpo.k12.in.us/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1221036&type=d&pREC_ID=1455849

Did you miss an issue of Friday Focus?
About Us

About Us

About Us
Our mission is to support academic and lifelong success by nourishing students and building healthy eating habits.



This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

2727 N. Campbell St., Valparaiso, IN 46385 kkane@valpo.k12.in.us (219) 531-3050 valpo.k12.in.us/apps/pages/nutrition