Knox students will be paying more for lunch when they return to class in August. The Knox School Board last week approved a 10-cent increase, bringing the cost of lunch up to $2.15 at the elementary school and $2.40 at the middle and high schools. Breakfast will remain at $1.35, but adult lunch will go up to $3.20.
Director of Food Services Sandra Landry says the increase is necessary to keep the school corporation in compliance with the financial standards set by the federal government. She added that she’d rather have small, gradual increases than large jumps.
However, students will be getting some new lunch options, according to Superintendent Dr. William Reichhart. “We are going to start a salad bar at the high school next year, so I think that will be a huge improvement,” he said. “It’ll give our kids another choice. And hopefully, we can roll that down to the middle school, if that’s successful. So it won’t be where they just get a bowl. They’ll actually get a salad bar approach to it, so they can go through the line, pick their salad, pick their toppings, and give them another opportunity to have a healthy lunch.”
Increasing healthy food options is a big goal of the school corporation’s wellness policy. Elementary School Assistant Principal Rebecca Despot reviewed some proposed updates to the policy during last week’s board meeting.
Among other things, she said the wellness committee recommends including nutrition education in the corporation’s health curriculum, posting nutrition posters in the cafeterias to promote healthy eating habits, and making sure the food service staff understands student food allergies and how to read food labels. The Knox School Board is expected to vote on the wellness policy next month.
