Some people might be wondering what’s going on in the Newberg Schools nutrition program. Wednesday afternoon, a number of parents received emails from the program suggesting that the students had a balance on their accounts, which was news to at least one parent whose kids haven’t been at Newberg schools this year. Others took to the district’s Facebook page to question why they received emails that seemed to be in error.
Only days earlier, rumors circulated in Newberg that the school district would not be providing meals for children during the summer. For many parents, the summertime breakfast and lunch program means the difference between their children having food needs met and stretching an already margin-thin grocery budget even further. The program also has been one way for children and their parents to socialize during the summer months, a point of community contact that many people rely on.
So the news about a potential cancellation of the program was met with particular outrage, especially by parents who have seen their children lose out on so much already. The summer lunch program is federally-funded, although it’s administered by the school district, who pays for staff to make and distribute meals. Some wondered whether the district lacked the funds for the program because of the substantial increase in a legal budget needed to deal with costly lawsuits, and because the district has lost so much revenue from families leaving the schools.
By late in the day, the Newberg-Dundee Schools social media pages announced that lunches would be provided in the summer after all, no doubt convinced by a flurry of emails from upset parents. At the school board meeting on April 25, Superintendent Steve Phillips insisted that the summer lunch program was never in jeopardy, and that the rumors had been lies, though a few parents produced emails from the program suggesting that the program would not continue because Covid funds were no longer available. So lunches during the summer are on, though breakfasts are, for now, off the table.
We might assume that this is just a bad week for the nutrition program, and that the disarray is recent. But, according to a former kitchen manager, the chaos actually started last summer, when the former Nutritional Services manager left the district because of the board’s toxicity. A new hire, someone the kitchen manager said was “AMAZING” (emphasis hers), lasted only two months before leaving for another district, too; according to our source, the supervisor was being “harrassed by the superintendent and HR director.”
A third manager, Brian Quinn, was brought on board, and problems allegedly began almost immediately. “He doesn’t understand federal guidelines, and consistently broke ODE rules regarding serving,” they said. “He didn’t follow policies regarding student allergies . . . He wouldn’t post menus for students and parents to see. He wouldn’t provide recipes so the nutritional information was available.”
The Newberg Public Schools Facebook page publicized the “Tiger Bowls” on April 12 as a notable addition to its nutritional fare. But, according to the former employee, Quinn did not disclose the ingredients. Sauce for the Tiger Bowls used almonds, and a student allegedly suffered an allergic reaction as a result.
The one-time kitchen manager left their post because of the stress caused by the nutrition department supervisor. “Most of the nutrition staff have gone to the union, gone to HR, reported him to ODE, reported him to Yamhill County Health (he has refused to show that he has a basic food handler’s card),” they wrote. “The administration (superintendent and HR director) REFUSE to do anything about the situation.”
Of course, the problems in the nutrition department cannot be solely due to school board oversight (or lack thereof). But in a district already hemorrhaging students and employees; in a district beset by problems with transparency and accountability; in a district where thousands of dollars are being spent on legal fees while classrooms suffer, the mismanagement of the nutritional department is one more place where children ultimately lose. Some, like those with food allergies and those with food insecurities, will suffer most.
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