THE HCS CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAM

Greetings everyone!

As we complete the first half of the school year, it's time to take a well-deserved break. The CNP program is gearing up to prepare for the new year, and we're excited about the opportunities it brings. We hope all of you have had a great start to the school year and we're looking forward to finishing strong as we head into 2025. With Christmas just around the corner, we encourage all of you to take this time to rest, relax, and enjoy the holidays with your family, friends, and loved ones. Wishing you a safe, joyful, and exciting Holiday break, and we hope you get everything you wished for this Christmas. Enjoy!

-H. Ward

“The Joy of brightening other lives, bearing each others’ burdens, easing each other’s loads and supplanting empty hearts and lives with generous gifts becomes for us the magic of the holidays.” –W. C. Jones

Positions available:

• CNP Substitute Worker

To apply for a position with Huntsville City Schools, you must complete an online application with the Alabama State Department of Education. Just Click the Link below to start the process

Job openings (hiretrue-prod.com)

The school site kitchens for the Academy for Academics & Arts Elem./Middle schools, Grissom High School, and Rolling HIlls Elementary received a 100 health inspection rating from the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH).

The following school site kitchens received a 99 Health Inspection Rating:

1. Weatherly Elem - 11/15/24
2. Whitesburg Elem./Middle - 11/18/24
3. Martin Luther King Jr. Elem. - 11/18/24
4. Chaffee Elem. - 12/2/24
5. The Academy for Science & Foreign Language Elem./Middle - 12/3/24
6. Jemison High & McNair Jr. Hiigh - 12/11/24
7. Sonnie Hereford Elementary - 12/16/24

We would like to thank Ms. Lenese Vaughner for selecting the Huntsville City School Child Nutrition Program to assist her in the completion of her Dietetic Internship Program with Diversify Dietetics. She spent three weeks learning specifc aspects of the Child Nutrition program at Blossomwood Elementary school.

Ms. Vaughner is a graduate of Alabama A & M University and is seeking her graduate degree in dietetics. We wish her well and appreciate the opportunity to help her achieve her professional goals.

Yogurt and fruit aid gut health, satisfy sweet tooth

Registered dietitian Amanda Sauceda emphasizes the benefits of yogurt and fruit as a gut-healthy dessert option, highlighting the combo's role in satisfying sweet cravings while supporting digestive health. Sauceda advises choosing yogurts with live and active cultures and minimal added sugars to maximize gut benefits. Berries, particularly blueberries, are recommended for their fiber and antioxidant content, which aid in gut barrier function and inflammation reduction. Sauceda says yogurt and fruit can be enjoyed daily as a dessert, breakfast or snack.

Full Story: Newsweek (tiered subscription model) (12/8)

SNA Research Agenda updated to address key school nutrition challenges

Last week, SNA unveiled an updated 2024 Research Agenda, designed to tackle the most pressing issues facing school nutrition programs today. Developed by the SNA Nutrition and Research Committee, the revised agenda highlights five priority areas for research: Meal Participation; Emergency Preparedness & Feeding Strategies; Rural Districts; Staffing & Finances; and Value & Outcomes of School Nutrition Programs. Additionally, the document specifies sub-topics and recommended research strategies to strengthen the base of knowledge in each priority topic area. Learn more.

Data show surge in childhood diabetes worldwide

A research letter published in JAMA Pediatrics found a global surge in pediatric diabetes rates, with 222,310 new cases reported in 2021. The data, from 1990 to 2021, found regional and demographic variations. Researchers called for global action to address socioeconomic disparities and improve health care access, projecting that children ages 5 to 9 will remain the most affected demographic by 2045.

Full Story: News Medical (12/4)

Funding will support states, territories, and Tribes in purchasing and distributing wholesome, locally produced food for food banks, schools, and child care facilities

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10, 2024 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced a $1.13 billion investment to support local and regional food systems, building upon the Department’s previous investments in the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement (LFPA) and Local Food for Schools (LFS) programs.

This round of funding, announced on Oct. 1, will allow states, territories, and federally recognized Tribes to purchase wholesome, locally produced foods for distribution within their communities to emergency food providers, schools, and child care centers. Those interested in applying for this round of LFS, which now includes funding for child care centers, can visit the LFS website. Those wishing to participate in this round of LFPA can visit the LFPA website. Producers wishing to receive information about becoming a vendor for LFPA or for LFS should contact their respective state, territory, or Tribal purchasing authorities.

“These programs expand on the prior achievements of USDA’s LFPA and LFS programs and carry them into 2025, assuring local farmers, families, and communities that they will continue to get the help they need,” said USDA Under Secretary Jenny Lester Moffitt. “The programs reaffirm our commitment to bolstering local economies, ensuring food security, and fostering resilient agricultural communities nationwide.”

“USDA believes that a healthier future for our country starts with our children,” said Cindy Long, USDA’s Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services. “We are excited to build on these successful collaborations that connect schools and emergency food organizations with nutritious food from local farmers and producers by expanding the model to child care facilities for the first time. Families can feel good knowing their kids are eating food that was grown right in their own community.”

USDA will allocate up to $471.5 million for states and territories to purchase local, unprocessed, or minimally processed domestic foods for use by schools participating in the National School Lunch and/or School Breakfast Programs, and up to $188.6 million for use in child care facilities participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Additionally, USDA will allocate up to $471.5 million for states, territories, and Tribal governments to use in local feeding programs, including food banks, schools and other organizations that reach underserved communities. Of that, $100 million will go to Tribal governments.

Conceived in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the LFPA, LFPA Plus, and LFS programs have invested over $1 billion into local food purchases to date. Through the LFPA programs, USDA has provided $900 million in funding to 50 states, the District of Columbia, four territories, and 84 Tribal governments, sourcing foods from over 8,000 local producers, with more than 5,000 identified as underserved. This wholesome food has gone to 7,900 food banks, food pantries, and communities across America. Additionally, LFS has awarded up to $200 million for states and territories to purchase domestic, local foods for use in their National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. These collaborations between the states, school systems, and local producers have established many new supply-chain partnerships, and enabled states to re-envision the school meal and what it can do for both students and local, small, and underserved farmers. Together, the LFPA and LFS programs have strengthened food systems, expanded local and regional markets, and are helping to build a fair, competitive, and resilient food supply chain.

Today’s notice of funding will continue this vital work and provide an additional $1.13 billion to support local agriculture, schools, and feeding programs.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

How can you encourage kids to enjoy themselves to the fullest this season, but also stay healthy? It doesn’t have to be a challenge! Connecticut Children’s nutrition experts have ideas.

1. Color it up

Get festive and fun with this! Make fruits and veggies the superstars of your child’s plate. Cut them up into unique shapes and mix and match the colors to reflect whatever holiday you celebrate.

2. Keep portion sizes age-appropriate

This can be tricky because every child is different. The recommended food portion sizes for kids depend on their age, weight and gender. You may choose to “eyeball” the food or actually measure it—depending on how much time and patience you have! Click below for a more detailed guide, broken down by age.

3. Have fun together—with choices!

What better time than the holidays to involve your kids in all kitchen activities? Kids love choices because choosing makes them feel empowered. So let them choose a healthy recipe, go over each ingredient and what the health benefits are. For example, “Blueberries have fiber and antioxidants. Those are good for digesting food and fighting diseases like cancer.”

4. Stick to a schedule the best you can—and stay active.

This is especially important if your child is on an extended break from school. Try to match breakfast, snack and lunch times with those at school, and balance the day out with plenty of physical activity. Important: don’t skip meals to try to “save room” for a larger meal later; this can lead to overindulgence.

Maybe you take a walk as a family after the holiday meal or just get active inside instead of crowding around the food table.

Kids love routine, so try to keep it up!

5. Keep healthy snacks on hand

Encourage healthy snacking before offering the fun, indulgent treats. This will help your child fill up on healthy fats, fibers and proteins. Keep your pantry and fridge stocked and, as stated above, stick to some kind of consistent schedule. You can even have a healthy snack together before heading to the larger gathering; this helps to avoid overeating later.

6. Offer new and familiar foods

It’s a great time of year to try new dishes and take comfort in family favorites. Parents often find themselves slaving over a holiday meal for hours only to have their child eat a dinner roll! Always have an “safe food” you know your child will eat when serving more challenging dishes. Keep mealtime chats positive and never force them to try a food. Don’t panic if they only pick at their plate—they’ll return to normal eating when they’re hungry.

7. Hydrate smart

Drinking water helps to curb appetite, so encourage healthy hydration with water rather than large servings of juice. It’s completely ok to change up the flavor a bit: stick to four ounces of juice in one day, or add one ounce of juice to each cup of water.

8. Moderation, not deprivation!

Of course they can have treats—that’s all part of the fun. If you’re not sure how much is too much, commit ahead of time to limiting indulgent treats to the festivity days only rather than the whole season.

9. Be a healthy role model

You hear over and over again about modeling the behavior you want to see. It’s true—setting a good example can help your kids develop healthy habits that last a lifetime. So sit and eat together, let them see you eat healthy foods and spend as much time with your child as possible over the holidays.

Food and holidays go together like friendship—it’s only natural. Focus on these tips and enjoy the season in good health.

9 Nutritionist-Approved Healthy Holiday Tips | Connecticut Children's

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of needy families so they can purchase healthy food and move towards self-sufficiency. To get SNAP benefits, you must apply in the state in which you currently live and you must meet certain requirements, including resource and income limits, which are described on this page. SNAP income and resource limits are updated annually.

Mrs. Pam Horton is a dedicated and passionate member of the Child Nutrition Program at Huntsville City Schools, where she has made a positive impact for over seven years. Hailing from Madison, Alabama, Pam is happily married and is a proud mother of three—Quintus, Brandon, and Frank. She also cherishes her role as a grandmother to three beautiful granddaughters: Saniyah, Morgan, and Layla.

Pam's personality shines through her friendly demeanor and her sincere desire to help others. A lifelong resident of Huntsville, she brings 17 years of supervisory experience to her current position. What she values most about her job is the joy and connection she feels while engaging with the students at Williams, making each interaction memorable.

Beyond her professional life, Pam possesses a hidden talent for drawing, and she enjoys indulging in delicious meals at her favorite restaurants. Whether visiting the casino or relaxing by the beach, she finds time for her passions while often listening to uplifting Gospel and soothing R&B music. Pam has a fondness for gourmet foods like salmon, shrimp, and ribeye steak.

Interestingly, Pam reflects that had she not found her calling in the Child Nutrition Program, she might have pursued a career at Publix instead. Her interests also include watching exciting television shows and passionately supporting the Dallas Cowboys during professional football games.

Looking ahead, Pam is eager to embark on a cruise and hopes to retire in five years. Guided by her personal motto, “Treat people the way you want to be treated,” Pam exemplifies the values of compassion and respect in every aspect of her life. Her commitment to serving students and her community is truly inspiring.

Becky Smith is a new employee at Huntsville City Schools, and she works at Jemison High School. Becky is always willing to go and assist any school that needs help. Becky never asks if the task is difficult or how short-staffed the schools are, and it doesn't matter what school; she's willing to go without any objections. This is what makes Becky dependable. She's kind, and she has a great sense of humor. During her short time with Huntsville City, Becky has proved to be a great addition to our Child Nutrition Program Team. "Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success"- Henry Ford. Becky has embodied this quote, and she has definitely helped our program be successful.

-Diann Bentley, Area CNP Supervisor

"Ms. Jennifer (Ms. Jen as we call her) is very HARD WORKING and serves with a smile. She has a great working relationship with the students and staff here at Williams. She strives everyday to make sure we all receive what we need. She works well with administration to complete tasks and collaborate to make any changes needed during the day. She leads by example which is why her staff and everyone here at Williams loves her".

- Tenisha Cummings, Principal at James Williams Elementary

Kelly Hannah 12/1

Deanna McRae 12/5

Amy Smith 12/06

Kitty Holt 12/18

Vertricia Burgess 12/19

Janet Sharp 12/19

Genesis Watson 12/21

Glenda Stone 12/24

Noelle Branch 12/26

Janet Bloomingburg 12/27

Lecresha Donegan 12/31

Belinda Phillips 12/31

Paula Elkins 30 years

Glenda Stone 27 years

Angie Phillips 19 years

Gloria Fuller 11 years

Chanell Holt 11 years

Email: Childnutrition@hsv-k12.org

Address: 714 Bob Wallace Ave. S.W., Huntsville, AL 35801
Phone: 256 428-6955

Website: https://www.huntsvillecityschools.org/departments/child-nutrition-program

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