Skip to main content
Main Menu Toggle
X (Formerly Twitter)

HCS Child Nutrition

As you are aware, the Honeoye Central School District recently shared the Reopening Plan for Fall 2020. The following bullet points are intended to provide parents and families with additional explanation and details regarding Child Nutrition and Food Service at Honeoye Central as we seek to reopen school in the fall of 2020.  These items represent the biggest changes in practice and procedure within our Food Service Department.  Please refer back to the Child Nutrition section of the HCS Reopening Plan document (pgs. 20-23) for the “bigger picture.”

  1. Student Access to Meals & Payment Options:

As we plan to return to school in the fall, HCSD will provide all students enrolled in our Elementary and Secondary schools with access to meals each day.  This is true both for students attending school in person as well as for those who may be learning remotely.  It is important to remember that during the public health emergency of the spring and summer of 2020, student meals were available at no cost for all children living within our district.  Beginning the first day of school in September, students not receiving free or reduced meal benefits will once again need to pay for meals.  At the same time, once school begins, HCS will only be providing meals to children who attend HCS (in person or remotely).

 

The pricing menu for student meals for the 2020-2021 school year is as follows:

 
      • K-12 breakfast = $1.50
      • K-5 lunch = $2.35
      • 6-12 lunch = $2.60
 

In an effort to reduce the exchange of money between children and staff, please consider pre-paying for meals through Myschoolbucks, or by pre-paying by check payable to Honeoye Central School (indicate student names and amount per student in the memo line).  Information regarding how to set up a Myschoolbucks account can be found on the Child Nutrition page of our school website.  Families picking up meals for remote learners will need to prepay by check or “My School Bucks” if they do not qualify for free or reduced meal benefits.

 

All families are encouraged to complete the application for Free & Reduced Meals for the 2020-2021 school year.  Given the likelihood that many families have experienced changes in employment or income during this trying economic season, the district encourages those who may not have previously completed this form to consider doing so now.  The school has made the free and reduced application form available to families through a recent summer mailing, the school website, school calendar and monthly lunch menu calendars.  Parents/guardians of students who received free or reduced meal benefits during the 2019-2020 school year should re-apply to continue seamless benefit coverage as 19-20 eligibility expires in October of 2020.

  1. In-School Meal Service:
  • Breakfast offerings for students in attendance at school:
 
  • Elementary students (PK-5) will be offered the opportunity to purchase and eat breakfast in their classrooms.  Grade level instructional staff will support the recording of student participation in breakfast meal service and the transfer of payment (as applicable) to food service staff delivering breakfast to the classroom. 
  • Secondary students (6-12) will be offered the opportunity to purchase breakfast in a grab-and-go format upon arrival at school and will eat their breakfast in their 1st period class
 
  • Lunch offerings for students in attendance at school:
 
  • Elementary students (PK-5) will be offered the opportunity to purchase and eat lunch in their classrooms.  Grade level instructional staff will support the collection of student lunch purchase choices during homeroom and will forward that information to the food service manager using an online reporting tool.  Grade level instructional staff will support/facilitate the delivery of meal payment to kitchen staff.  
  • Secondary students (6-12) will be offered the opportunity to purchase lunch in a grab-and-go format and eat in the cafeteria or other approved location in manner consistent with guidelines for social distancing.
  1. Meal Service for Students Learning Remotely:

HCSD will make “grab-and-go” breakfast and lunch offerings available for purchase and per eligibility to students learning remotely from home on a daily (M-F) basis.  “Curbside” meal pick-up will take place between 10:30 - 11:30 outside of the school cafeteria at the front of the school building.

  1. Changes in Food Offerings for the 20-21 School Year:

Given the changes in school schedules, additional lunch times and the coordination of meals for elementary classrooms and also for remote learners, our Food Service Department will understandably need to make some adjustments to meet these new realities.  The need for pre-bagged, “grab-n’-go” meals will result in some reduction of consumer choice with examples given below.  Please note that the needs of students with food allergies will always be addressed and handled in an individualized, case-by-case manner.  

 

To meet COVID-19 health and safety guidelines and scheduling parameters during the 2020-2021 school year, HCS Food Service Staff:

 
    • Will be offering one breakfast type per day (ie: M/W/F breakfast sandwich and T/Th cereal)
    • Will be offering white milk with all breakfasts
    • Will provide one predetermined cereal offering each morning as students will not be coming through kitchen serving lines
    • Will be preparing one main lunch entree and one sandwich alternative each day
    • Will not be able to sell “a la carte” snack items such as ice-cream and chips both as a safety precaution (student hands on food) and also as a result of our “grab-n’go” and “lunch-in-the-classroom” service models
    • Will be pre-portioning and cupping up all sides that come with entrees
    • Will not be having a salad bar as was the case last year, but now also for reasons relating to COVID-19 precautions (no food stations or student access to buffet-style service)
  1. Summer Meal Service:

If your family is receiving summer meal service, please note that Friday, August 28th will be our last day of meals for the summer.  Our Food Service Staff will need the next week to prepare for the reopening of school and our new meal service plans.  Please plan ahead and consider accessing other community-based food services from August 28th through the start of school for assistance in meeting the nutritional needs of your children prior to the start of school.

  1. Contacting Us:

Honeoye Central School has named Food Service Manager Sheila Lowe as the contact person to receive and respond to communications from families regarding child nutrition at HCS.  Please reach out to her for assistance with the Free & Reduced Meal application or with questions regarding meal service as we return to school in the fall of 2020.

 

[email protected] 

585-229-5171 x3022)