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Teacher Information: Elementary

KPS PreK & ELEMENTARY TEACHER INFORMATION FOR 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR

Meet The Team

Resident District Manager Kimberly Morey 

Executive Chef Sam Dunn 

Resident Dietitian Kirsten Strong 

Marketing/Outreach Specialist Matt Kusmack 

Assistant Director/Catering Manager Lyndsey Ritchie

FREE BREAKFAST AND LUNCH FOR ALL STUDENTS!

Nutrislice

To see daily menu descriptions, filter common food allergens, translate the menu into another language, create a menu PDF to print, view carb counts and calories, and much more, go to https://kalamazoopublicschools.nutrislice.com/. Elementary schools will have 2 main entrees to choose from each day. Choice 1 will be an assortment of kid favorites such as mac n cheese, breakfast for lunch, and pizza with a few new concepts sprinkled in to encourage adventurous eating. Choice 2 will be a “fun lunch” that changes daily. One of the two options will be vegetarian.

REMEMBER: STUDENTS CAN GET 1 FREE BREAKFAST AND 1 FREE LUNCH. IN ORDER FOR THE MEALS TO BE FREE, THE STUDENT MUST TAKE A COMPLETE MEAL BASED ON THE USDA MEAL PATTERN GUIDELINES.

Click here for Examples of Complete Meals

Breakfast In The Classroom

Teacher Responsibilities

  • According to MDE, since we serve breakfast in the classroom instead of the cafeteria, the teacher is responsible for monitoring that each student chooses a “reimbursable” breakfast.

  • A reimbursable breakfast consists of at least 3 items, one of which MUST be a fruit (juice or whole fruit).

  • Only breakfasts that meet the 3 item minimum will be reimbursed through the School Breakfast Program.

  • Students must take a full, reimbursable breakfast; they should not take individual items.

  • If you do not have enough of a certain item for the amount of students wanting breakfast, contact your on-site food service supervisor immediately.

  • Please use this link for examples of reimbursable breakfasts and further details on the School Breakfast Program.

Leftover Food

  • Any student may decline to participate in the School Breakfast Program.

  • Please do not send items from ‘already served’ reimbursable meals back to the kitchen. For example: If a student takes a reimbursable breakfast (apple, graham crackers, and milk), but does not eat the graham crackers, please do not send the graham crackers back to the kitchen. This would mean that we technically did not serve this student a reimbursable meal and therefore have given the milk and apple away for free. Our department only gets its funding from federal and state agency reimbursement so being diligent in these processes is detrimental to our department.

  • Any food items that need to be kept hot or cold may not be saved for consumption at a later time due to food safety and sanitation regulations.

Head Start/ECSE/PEEP 

Extra Meals 

  • If you have received more meals than the number of students participating in a meal service, please send the extra meals back to your kitchen or with your next delivery if you are at an off-site location. Keeping extra meals is very much against the state and federal regulations and results in a loss of funding to our department and possible citations.  

We appreciate your help and cooperation with this. Meals in the classroom can be challenging because of the shared responsibility and the logistics, which can contribute to increased risk of non-compliance and food waste. At this time, this is the best procedure in-place to ensure that our students have access to a balanced breakfast. If you would like further information or training on the SBP, please do not hesitate to reach out to KPS Dining Services. Thank you for working together with us on this!   

Special Dietary Needs

  • Allergy/special meal accommodations are available for students with an approved Diet Accommodation Form on file. If a student has a special dietary need due to a disability or medical issue, this form must be completed and signed by the student's healthcare provider. 

  • If a student follows a diet due to a religious preference, for example, a halal diet, the Diet Accommodation Form should include the diet details and needs to be filled out and signed by the parent or guardian. All forms need to be returned to the school nurse or Kirsten Strong (Resident Dietitian). 

  • Before KPS Dining Services can make changes to the standard menu for diet accommodations for any student, they must first have the completed Diet Accommodation Form on file. 

  • If a student has a health plan in PowerSchool that includes a diet-related issue, KPS Dining Services still needs a completed Diet Accommodation Form because KPS Dining Services does not use PowerSchool.

  • The KPS Dining Services Team will prepare and distribute safe meals. However, after we distribute the meal, we cannot be responsible for further guidance to ensure the student eats that meal and/or does not eat additional food that might be shared by other students.

  • As part of our allergen protocol, students requiring special meals should be introduced to the on-site kitchen supervisor. At times, we may ask teachers to help facilitate this quick introduction with kitchen staff.

Field Trips

  • If you need meals for a field trip please fill out this form and give it to your on-site food service supervisor at least 7 days in advance. 

  • If your class is going on a field trip but you do not need meals, please let your on-site food service supervisor know the date and number of students going at least 3 days in advance. This helps us to reduce food waste. 

Catering

  • KPS Dining Services provides catering for the district. If you would like to order a catering service, please email catering@kalamazoopublicschools.net to place your order. Note: All catering orders need to be placed 2 weeks in advance. If you need to cancel, please do so at least 3 days ahead of the event. If you cancel with less than 3 days notice, we may have to charge your account if we have already purchased/prepared product. Call our catering manager, Lyndsey Ritchie (269-808-2468) with questions.

Adult/Staff Meals

  • Adult price for lunch on the daily menu is $5 for lunch and $3 for breakfast. Staff can use their Meal Magic account to pay for meals. (see below) 

  • Kitchen staff are not allowed to distribute free food to adults (teachers, activity helpers, custodians, principals, etc). This is a USDA law, and must be followed to maintain compliance.

  • Staff can manage their account including depositing funds, checking activity, and more.

  • If you do not have a staff account in Meal Magic, you can create one. Follow these instructions to create your account. 

    • Go to Meal Magic Family Portal site https://kalamazoo.mealmagic.cloud/ 

    • Click on “My Account” and “I need to register as a FP user”

    • Follow prompts to create account 

Meal Magic Family Portal

Families and staff have access to the Meal Magic Family Portal at  https://kalamazoo.mealmagic.cloud/

These features are available:

  1. Parents can apply for free and reduced price meal benefits

    Please help to encourage parents to apply for free and reduced meal benefits. 
    • Although breakfast and lunch are free for all students, you are still strongly encouraged to apply for free or reduced price meals. This information is critical in determining the amount of money that our school receives from a variety of State and Federal Supplemental programs, including, but not limited to: Instructional supports, non-instructional services, professional learning for staff, parent and community engagement supplies and activities, and technology. Your family may also receive benefits outside of school such as reduced fees for activities, discounted internet service, and more. 

  2. Staff can manage their account including depositing funds, checking activity, and more. If you do not have a staff account in Meal Magic, you can create one. Follow these instructions to create your account. 

 

Click to view the Parent Information Sheet