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Newington Public Schools

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Foods & Nutrition Services Home

Foods & Nutrition Services Home

Our 35+ dedicated School Food Service employees provide more than 2,200 nutritious meals to Newington Public Schools students daily at seven sites. The Foods & Nutrition Services Department is responsible for the implementation and management of the National School Lunch Program and the National School Breakfast Program. These programs are governed by federal (United States Department of Agriculture) and state (Department of Education) regulations.


Newington Public Schools recognizes the importance of promoting good student nutrition and a healthy school environment. Our goal is to provide students with attractive, nutritious, reasonably priced meals that are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans while maintaining a non-profit and self-sustaining operation.


School Menus are designed to provide children with approximately one-third of the key nutrients and calories they need according to the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs), as well as student favorites. A variety of hot and cold entrees are available on a daily basis. Fresh fruits and vegetables, low fat or fat-free milk, and whole grains are available with each meal.


In addition to the lunch choices, a number of treats, such as ice cream, cookies, and chips are available. These snack items are intended to supplement and not replace meal choices, and we encourage children to choose from the many lunches available.


Our department recognizes the increasing prevalence of potentially life-threatening food allergies among children and it is the intention of the Foods & Nutrition Services Department to provide assistance and information to parents in order to help them to make an informed decision on whether or not to allow their child to purchase items in the cafeteria.


EZSchoolPay, an automated prepayment system, allows parents to view their child’s meal account balance and purchases, set spending limits, receive low balance email alerts, as well as, make deposits into school meal accounts via the internet using a Visa or Mastercard credit or debit card.


We hope that you find our website to be informative. Should you have any questions or concerns, or are interested in working for our department, do not hesitate to call us at (860) 665-8635 or email us at [email protected].


Dana L. Markovics, MBA, RD - Director of Foods & Nutrition Services

Chrissy Roy - Account Clerk II

 

Three school lunch trays with various food items like pizza, sandwiches, and fruit.

  • The Foods & Nutrition Services mission is to help students achieve their maximum potential by preparing and serving nutritious and appealing meals in a positive style that promotes a healthy and balanced diet for active and growing children while maintaining financial self-sufficiency.

    1. Review annually the food services price structure to ensure that it encourages healthy choices and maintains the quality of the food service program.
    1. All full day students will have a daily lunch period of not less than 20 minutes.
    1. Encourage menu choices linked with nutrition education curriculum.
    • Continue to promote pre-cut raw fruit and vegetable offerings.
    • Limit high fat and sodium choices.
    • Limit oil-fired foods with the future goal of eliminating.
    • Increase vegetarian and cultural choices.
    • Continue to provide drink choices to include water, milk (flavored low-fat milk, 1% milk, skim milk, etc.), and 100% juices in appropriate serving sizes.
    • A la carte items will meet the following criteria: low-fat, low sugar, and high nutrient snacks (such as baked chips and crackers, graham crackers, frozen fruit bars, low-fat string cheese, low-fat yogurt, dried fruits) will be promoted. High fat, high sugar, and lower nutrient snack foods will be limited. Fresh fruits and/or vegetables will continue to be offered daily.
    1. Conduct student and family food preference surveys to develop and review school lunch menu items.
    1. Maximize the utilization of food service provider resources such as nutritional planning, healthy eating promotions, special events, etc.
    1. Recognize and accommodate individual student’s medical concerns.

    Foods & Nutrition Services

    200 Garfield Street, 3rd Floor

    Newington, CT 06111

    (860) 665-8635