Kiera Kowalski
Fort High students have one less option for lunch this year because the cafeteria kitchen there is not running due to the lack of a cook.
Students either are bringing their own lunch or going out to one of the nearby fast-food restaurants.
For senior student Sierra Cousineau, this is the first year without a cafeteria at school.
“I used to eat in the caf every day but now I find myself eating out a lot more often,” she noted.
“I don’t always have time to pack a lunch,” Cousineau added.
“Going out to eat every day sucks,” echoed Grade 9 student Madison Morrison.
“We need affordable food in the cafeteria,” she stressed.
A similar situation emerged in 2011 when Kathy Cuthbertson opted not to continue managing the cafeteria.
At the time, local school board trustee David Kircher expressed concern for the students.
He was worried the high school was “not doing anything to feed the students healthy food” and that the students would “go stampeding across the highway” to get to McDonald’s.
To resolve this issue, FFHS hospitality teacher Kelly Connor took over managing the cafeteria. He and his students prepared the food, and volunteers served at lunch time.
That lasted until this past June. The reason cited for shutting down was a lack of time.
“I couldn’t put 100 percent into three classes and 100 percent into the cafeteria,” Connor explained.
“Something had to go.”
The board went through a tendering process for the 2014-15 school year but no one applied.
“It’s hard for businesses to follow [the tender] and make money,” reasoned FFHS principal Peg Keffer.
If the cafeteria were to run, there is the added complication of the food falling under nutrition guidelines established by the Ministry of Education to encourage healthy eating among students.
Despite the effort to keep the cafeteria running, students still are eating at restaurants.
“A lot of students who were going to go [to restaurants] would go out anyway,” noted Keffer.
In the meantime, Director of Education Heather Campbell is encouraging students to “focus on bringing healthy foods for nutrition breaks.”
She’s also urging them to take advantage of the microwaves and vending machines the school provides.
