Board votes to increase cost of school lunches

Kanawha County school officials plan to boost the cost of schoollunches and change policies to pull the food service program out ofa$1 million deficit.

But some administrators worry that the actions could cost someschool cooks their jobs.

In a special school board session Thursday, board membersapproveda proposal by Harry Reustle, system treasurer, and Gary Hendricks,director of child nutrition, to eliminate the food service program'sdeficit by increasing meal prices and doing away with a policy thatallows students to buy extra lunches.Meal prices will be increased for adults and students alike.The price for an adult breakfast will jump from $1.60 to $2 andthe adult lunch price from $2.10 to $2.65.Breakfast prices for elementary students will increase from 65cents to $1 while cost for secondary students will jump from 75centsto $1.25. Lunch prices will increase for elementary students from$1.10 to $1.50 and will change for secondary students from $1.25 to$1.75.Board member Bill Raglin was concerned the price increases willeventually necessitate a cut in cooking staff.Reustle agreed that less cooks was a possibility. "If you don'treduce cooks when you get rid of the second meal, the million dollardeficit will stay," he said. If that occurs, he added, thoseemployees should be aware of the possibility from the start.Board President John Luoni said he could not commit to supportingsuch cutbacks now. "I think it's too early for anybody to say we'regoing to have to cut cooks or anything."Obviously, we can't afford as a system to lose money on foodservices," Luoni said. "I think we should look at everything thatwould be involved that would make the lunch program self-sustaining.That should not just be based on cutting cooks."We need to look at whole picture to see how we got out of shapeand how can we get out of that," Luoni said.Board members agreed that Reustle and Hendricks should work inconjunction with Karen Williams, human resources coordinator ofservices, to reduce the possibility.Williams could not be reached for comment this morning.The plan of action, proposed by Reustle, called for the system toeliminate the second meal policy, allowing each student to onlypurchase one breakfast and one lunch per day.Along with the meal price increases, these alterations shouldbring the food service program out of deficit by 2001, Reustleestimates.While the deficit has only affected the food service program sofar, it could eventually dip into the system's general fund ifnothing is done, he added.Board members gave Reustle the OK to implement the changes in thefall, provided he gives them a preliminary report on his progress bythe end of October. Reustle said he would comply, but he added thathe does not expect the changes to make a notable impact quite thatearly.Reustle said meal prices will be reviewed annually to keep theprogram's budget in check.Writer Tonia Holbrook can be reached at 348-4834.