From providing information to families to ensuring all students have access to nutritious food and meals, our School Nutritionist, Kayla Timmerman, has an everchanging role that is centered around the well-being of our students.
Tag along with Kayla for the day in the life of a school dietitian.
8:00 a.m. - As soon as I’m in the office I start answering emails and planning out my day which can vary based on nutrition requests, staffing, and more. Each morning our office manager emails our team letting us know which locations have substitute employees. If an elementary kitchen lead is out, as is this day, I call the substitute employee to make sure they are aware and comfortable with the special diets at the site.
Answering emails in the morning can take up to an hour; most of my emails are from the SNS staff, nurses, or parents/caregivers of children with special diet needs. This morning I received a new special diet statement, and I call the parent to discuss their child’s individual needs. I gather enough information to draft a menu for this parent and then email it to them to review.
While I’m working through my emails, I learn that one of our suppliers is short on some of the lunch menu items we ordered for delivery this week. In discussion with the SNS admin team, we discuss possible substitute products and decide which schools they can go to. I review all nutritionals and allergens to make sure they are acceptable. Unfortunately, we do not have an acceptable substitute for one of the elementary menu items for next week due to allergens, so we make the decision to pull this item from the menu. I email all elementary health office staff so they are aware of this change and update the lunch menu document.
As part of my role, I oversee a snack program called the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program at three of our eligible elementary schools. After developing the menu for the month, I need to calculate the number of cases of each snack to send to these three locations for our warehouse staff. I create a shipping guide for them to ensure the snacks get to the right location. I get this ready to bring with me to the warehouse at our Facilities Service Center (FSC) where we distribute all of our student nutrition products and send them to schools.
10:00 a.m. - Before I leave for FSC, I have a list of special diet food items that need to be purchased and delivered to some elementary locations. I head to Hy-Vee to purchase these items then go to FSC to add these items to tomorrow’s deliveries. While at FSC, I pull together the warehouse staff to discuss the snack calendar. I also mention a delivery I have coming in the next day of pureed food and which locations these products need to be sent to. I pick up a case of vanilla soymilk and a case of tube-feeding formula that I need to personally deliver to an elementary school because they are needed for today’s lunch.
11:30 a.m. - By the time I get to the elementary school to deliver these items, lunch is being served. I drop off their items and observe the cafeteria and lunch service. Walking taco is on the menu and the students seem excited for lunch today!
12:00 p.m. - I take a break and have a walking taco myself. USDA allows for Student Nutrition employees to have lunch each day as long as they work a certain amount of hours. It’s important for me to sample and eat the same food the students are having to make sure it’s always an acceptable product.
12:30 p.m. - I’m finally back at my office at the Edison Administration building and begin to catch up on emails and voicemails I have received since I’ve been gone.
1:00 p.m. - Quickly, I have a brief meeting with the Communications Department to discuss posting menus on our district website and mobile app to make sure this process is seamless for our staff and families.
1:30 p.m. - Tomorrow I have a menu meeting with our distinct chef, so I spend time preparing for the meeting researching new products and recipes. We have these meetings every other week to discuss menu options, and sample new recipes and new products. It can take months to solidify new recipes for our menus, so these meetings are crucial to rolling out a new menu item. USDA sets nutrition guidelines that we are required to follow and SNS is also often restricted in the variety of products available from our supplier. In addition, SNS also needs to ensure that we are providing enough calories for students and that we are meeting the required meal components. Most importantly, we need to make sure it tastes good for our students and it’s something they would enjoy.
2:30 p.m. - From now until the end of the day, I spend my time updating nutrition and allergy guides for the elementary, middle, and high school levels because we have new menu items on our November menus. For each menu, I need to create production records for our staff, so I start working on these as well. Each month, I create over 30 different menus, so there are always menus to work on.
Thanks for following along on this day with me. This job is rewarding, everchanging, and there is always something to be working on, but I love knowing that each day I’m helping our students meet their nutritional needs.
Sincerely, Your School Nutritionist