South San Francisco schools weigh solutions to meal service issues

The district has seen a 27% increase in meal service participation. The increase has been most felt at middle and high schools, which saw a 44% increase and 75% increase respectively in the number of lunches served when comparing the current consumption to the 2018-19 school year.

That influx of participation, paired with a staffing shortage, led the district to temporarily discontinue breakfast services across its six middle and high schools. Debost, who noted she has long advocated for breakfast services, called the decision heartbreaking but necessary.

The small team of 40, not including three drivers, has been running with nine vacancies and three people on extended medical leave. It’s in desperate need of four part-time site managers who can oversee the operation and complete paperwork and four part-time assistants.

Filling the roles has also been made difficult due to a testing requirement that largely disqualifies non-English speaking candidates who struggle to past the test. To get around the test, the California School Employee Association would have to vote to remove the merit district classification which requires employers to select the best candidate after a rigorous performance process.

Adding to the strain is a vacant director position which is being temporarily filled by Nutrition Services Supervisor Teri Inocencio.

“This year is a hard year for all Nutritional Services Departments in all districts. Staffing is an issue everywhere,” Debost said, adding that will remain available to support the district as long as needed.

The part-time positions have been the hardest to staff, she said, encouraging the district to consider increasing salaries for Nutrition Services workers. A 13% pay increase was previously levied to draw employees but those additional funds were contingent on adequate funding in the cafeteria fund.

A major dip in food service participation during the pandemic forced the district to do away with the additional dollars. Debost suggested greater participation now could justify bringing the increases back, particularly given the state funding that’s now backing the program.

The district has benefited from a partnership with the Adult Transition Program which connects ages 18- to 22-year-olds with developmental disabilities with businesses and organizations to develop occupational skills. With Nutritional Services, Debost said the students prepare and serve food and do cleanup after.

Trustee John Baker, who shared strong disappointment in the district’s suspension of breakfast services, suggested other students could potentially work for the program either before or after school for pay or work experience. Dr. Jay Spaulding, assistant superintendent of Human Resources, said the district is already considering the idea.

Beyond additional employees and improved pay, Debost argued for infrastructure improvements that could lead to better efficiency. A $75,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture has enabled the department to purchase ovens and tilt skillets.

But the district is still in need of more appliances and is seeking up to $100,000 in grant support from Second Harvest Food Bank. Additional equipment, like two ovens in each kitchen, would allow lunch staff who often work alone at smaller schools to better respond to the growing number of meals being requested, Debost said.

Cafeterias are also not fitted to serve more than one line of students at a time, forcing staff to serve about 33 students a minute from a single file. The lines have moved slowly this year, as students have reported, but could end up moving even slower once staff begin collecting student PIN information next year for future auditing.

Ted O, assistant superintendent of Business Services, said his staff has started searching for an architect who could review cafeteria facilities for potential improvements but finding and contracting someone will “take a long time.”

To deal with lines in the short term, Debost said the district could also move a two-lunch system which would split high school students into two 30-minute meal slots. Spaulding said the idea has received strong support form students, parents and staff but requires additional work around accommodating for instructional time.

As a long-term solution, Debost said the district could adopt a food court model being adopted in other districts which would allow students to serve themselves at stations offering a variety of items and check out.

No formal decision was made during Thursday’s study session, leaving it unclear which of these measures the district will adopt. Still, trustees praised Debost for returning with ideas for improving the program despite no longer working with the district.

Both trustees Patricia Murray and Chialin Shieh also lauded Debost for thinking of innovative solutions.

“I appreciate that you always look for new and better ways to do things,” Murray said. “No idea is too big for you to go look it up.”

Vaccine mandates, teacher pay

During the study session, district officials also discussed a potential COVID-19 vaccine mandate for students that would require the shots ahead of the state’s timeline. Without a localized mandate, students would fall under the state’s requirements which called for those ages 16 and older to seek vaccination after Jan. 1 given that the Pfizer vaccine has full federal authorization.

If full federal authorization for students 12 and older is not approved before the end of the year, a vaccine requirement for younger students would begin July 1. If it does come before the year’s end, the Jan. 1 date would be applied.

Students ages 11 and younger are still not permitted to receive a vaccine but officials anticipate emergency authorization to be granted in November with full approval expected next spring.

The district would need to build up the infrastructure to implement the mandates whether or not it comes ahead of the state’s. Spaulding said the district would need at least a month to develop a vaccine tracking system and remote options for students with religious or medical exemptions.

District teachers used the discussions as an opportunity to rally for greater wages, arguing that in addition to safe schools and proper meals, students need high-quality teachers to head classrooms.

The district offers teachers a pay scale ranging from $58,043 to $108,128, depending on experience and education level. But the educators pointed to the past nearly two years of working under the pandemic and a growing cost of living as proof they’ve earned and deserve raises.