Child Nutrition
By KIM MALONE Director of JISD Child Nutrition

Welcome Back! We have been busy the past couple of months in the Child Nutrition Department.

We enjoyed a successful summer program serving our students and churches in the community. Over 9000 meals were served in our cafeterias and over 4500 snacks were served in area Bible Schools. Thank you to all who participated.

We are excited to be getting ready for the 07- 08 school year and have lots of new things planned.

The CATCH Program, (Kindergarten through Grade 8), will be fully implemented this school year.

CATCH is a coordinated school health program which builds an alliance of parents, teachers, child nutrition personnel, school staff, and community partners to teach children and their families how to be healthy for a lifetime.

The four CATCH components "Go For Health" Classroom Curriculum, "CATCH P.E." Physical Education, "Eat Smart" School Nutrition Guide, and family "Home Team" activities reinforce positive healthy behaviors throughout a child's day and make it clear that good health and learning go hand in hand.

Along with student wellness, we will be working on a staff wellness program. We will keep you posted on our progress.

It is our goal at Jasper ISD to meet or exceed the nutrition guidelines set forth in the Texas School Nutrition Policy.

All schools serve a healthy breakfast and lunch daily. No carbonated beverages are served, in fact the only drinks available to purchase in any campus cafeteria are water, 100% fruit juice, and milk.

We strive hard to find the healthiest snacks available to be sold ala carte.

No candy is sold district wide, and we have eliminated frying as a method of food preparation. We choose wheat, whole grain, and lower fat varieties of pre-prepared foods whenever possible.

We also still prepare a great number of our meals from scratch. Please feel free to join us for lunch!

On July 30, due to increasing food and labor costs, the Board of Trustees approved an increase in meal prices. This is the first increase in the District since 2001.

Student and staff lunch prices for all campuses have been increased by $.25 and there is also a $.25 increase in student breakfast prices at Jasper Junior High and Jasper High School. Few, Parnell, and Rowe will continue to serve breakfast at no cost to students or staff.

The prices are as follows:

• Pre-K thru 4th Grade: free breakfast, lunch $1.25

• 5th thru 6th Grade: free breakfast, lunch $2

• 7th thru 8th Grade: breakfast $1.25, lunch $2

• 9th thru 12 Grade: breakfast $1.25, lunch $2.25

• Faculty and Staff: breakfast $1.75, lunch $2.75

All campuses are equipped to allow parents to prepay for student meals on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis; however, we also offer payment online at www.jasperisd.net.

Please keep in mind that JISD participates in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Program which provides free and reduced-price meals for children. Each school or the central kitchen has a copy of the policy, which may be reviewed by any interested party.

We are looking forward to having everyone back. If you have any questions regarding meal applications, the JISD Wellness Policy, the Texas School Nutrition Policy, or if you just need nutrition information or guidance, please feel free to contact us anytime.

Kim Malone, MS, RD, LD, Director of Child Nutrition, 790 West Houston Street, Jasper, TX, 75951 (409) 384-2551