Starting Monday, students at Norton Elementary will be the first in Alachua County to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner in their school cafeteria.
Norton will make warm and cold dinners available for students in the after-school education program, a project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and paid for by the Child Care Food Program, a Florida Department of Health initiative.
As the pilot school in the program, Norton was chosen because of its high percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch — 55 percent of the school’s about 600 students — said Caron Rowe, a food and nutrition specialist for Alachua County Public Schools.
The school also boasts one of the largest after-school programs in the county with 162 students enrolled and an average of 150 students staying after school each day, Rowe said.
[A version of this story ran on page 1 on 10/30/2014]
Alachua County Public Schools has been looking to implement the program since the summer as a way to supplement the county’s free and reduced school breakfast and lunch options.
“We thought, ‘Hey, what a great opportunity to offer supper here,’ because we do find that there is a need for it just because of the homeless statistics we have from the county,” Rowe said.
Although about 6 percent of families living in the school’s 32605 ZIP code are below the poverty line, its 2200 NW 45th Ave. address performs well compared to other county zones. According to Zip Atlas, the highest Gainesville poverty zones include 32641 with 29.15 percent of families, 32603 with 21.88 percent and 32601 with 20.73 percent.
Rowe said Norton qualified under the Child Care Food Program because it services a large enough student population with free and reduced lunch.
The new dinner meals will meet nutrition department requirements, providing meat, vegetable, fruit, grain and dairy. A selection of cold items — like ham and cheese wraps, grilled cheese sandwiches and tuna salad sandwiches — will be interchanged with warm meals, such as chicken tenders, ham-and-broccoli pasta and spaghetti with meat sauce.
Rowe said students can opt out of the meals, and as the program progresses, she expects to gauge demand and avoid being wasteful.
Marie Broling, whose fifth-grade daughter, Anna, attends Norton, said the program seems like a good way to alleviate concerns for parents who may have trouble balancing late hours with preparing meals, but she warned of wastefulness.
“Anytime you can help out people less fortunate in these ways, I think it’s a great idea, and I hope it’s successful,” Broling said. “You just don’t want to discard food.”
As the project takes off in Norton, Rowe said the county will explore taking it to other schools.
Outside Norton on Wednesday afternoon, parents expressed excitement over the additional help the program can provide for families.
One parent, Jasmin Calhoun, said she has left her daughter, 6-year-old Chanel, in after-school care various times and found that students are often hungry by the time they leave school.
The dinner program will supplement the snacks students already receive in after-school care, which are paid for by the after-school care program.
“This will relieve their budget as well because it will be something that is funded through the state,” Rowe said.
Anna Sallet, parent of Norton students 7-year-old Naomi and 12-year-old Quincey, has her children on the waiting list for after-school care.
News of the dinner program sparked her interest even more, she said.
It will be especially beneficial for single parents, she said, who have to juggle work, meals and help with homework after school.
“It’s really exciting to hear that Norton is the first school in Alachua County,” Sallet said. “I love it.”
