By

Francetta Stivender-Muhammad,   New Manchester High School

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Access to Healthy Foods

New Manchester HS is a school located in Douglas County, GA with a relatively low breakfast ADP (24%). We wanted a way to enhance our menus and provide items that students would enjoy such as smoothies. Therefore, we applied for the FUTP 60 grant. We received funds to purchase a blender in the summer of 2016. Blenders were received in January 2017. During our planning phase, we completed flavor taste tests with the students and allowed them to sample the smoothies the week before our soft roll out the first week in January. During our soft roll out, we made approximately 65 servings of smoothies to serve for breakfast. We placed smoothies on the menu two times a week (Tuesday and Thursday) and students would ask us each morning if we were serving them. As a result our breakfast ADP steadily increased and so did the number of smoothies served and prepared. By the end of February, the number of smoothies that were served for breakfast has increased to 239 and our breakfast ADP has increased to 25%. We continue to develop new flavors and serve the most popular flavor, strawberry. The kids are very excited to have smoothies on the menu now.

How did students and adults work together as a team?

The Douglas Co school system has developed a best practice training team with Managers that have received funding for blenders. They have created different flavor profiles and determined ways to store smoothies overnight for easy preparation. With new flavors created, we allow students to taste test and provide their feedback. All feedback that we receive is taken into consideration to make for an increase in our breakfast consumption/ADP.