--.-\—'-:-. v—v—-‘—_ ‘ --.'v— m‘ CONFLICT OF PHILOSOPHICAL AND LEGAL DETERMINANTS WITH PERFQRMANCE DEMANDS IN “HOG-L FOOD SERVECE THS Thesis for flu Dunn of M. 5. MECEIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY Mary Catherine Kifligrew 1968 LIBRARY Michigan State University l-s. .L 1. .J. .1. (HM-raw .. i“"I«.;~ftr"\/' 13:51lint-9r" 'i m» I: V. .. I .' . "\ ' ' x, n I (fl “1., ,1. l.“ l... I.) I MI .11. .1. 1:1 15-; 11'.) pl": .ii. i": a ‘l and l r '1 .. .. (.. .. .:'.'"_-v-‘ «:31 f4 .. 1:) ’ IL"; "1'": - - .1. .>f::..;;. f--“‘.._”37." meme 3.30- M‘CHIGAN STATE UI‘II‘JERSr‘ITY COLLEGE OF HOME ECONOMICS EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN PLACE IN RETURN Box to remove this checkout from your record. TO AVOID FINES return on or before date due. MAY BE RECALLED with earlierdue date if requested. 0315 put DATE DUE LU’J' II " 0 o Q I :- A." Ec' (id-ppm'enoazadpapIOd/OHIOIid 90/8 JII AI J M'CHIGAN STATE UI‘II‘JERSITY COLLEGE OF HOME ECCI‘IDEIIICS EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN ABSTRACT CONFLICT OF PHILOSOPHICAL AND LEGAL DETERMINANTS WITH PERFORMANCE DEMANDS IN SCHOOL FOOD SERVICE by Mary Catherine Killigrew This study delineates major conflicts experienced in school food service administration resulting from the inter- action of the philosophy and goals of the National School Lunch Act of 1946 with the environmental, economic and social forces which shape the practical operating considerations of a school food service program at the local level in an indus— trial City. The National School Lunch Act of 1946 is the basis for the philosophy that school food service programs are rightfully committed to children and their proper food needs, and that to meet these needs organizational policies and procedures should be designed and directed toward sound nutritional and educational services on a nonprofit basis and at minimum cost to children. Adherence to this philos- ophy requires program policy development motivated by the desire to serve the well-being of children with the business aspects serving as an adjunct to the program‘s operation rather than as the determinant factor in the purpose and scope of the school lunch program. Mary Catherine Killigrew The administration, management and operation of school lunch programs are vested in local boards of educa— tion who are responsible for all phases of the school pro— gram. The educational program reflects the value orienta- tion and the concerns of a community. Thus, the school lunch program is influenced by the background of the commu nity and the general development of the educational system. These environmental determinants have produced conflict in the operation of the school lunch program. Examination of the social and economic aspects of an industrial community as well as the federal legislation provides pertinent infor— mation for administrators who are attempting to reconcile the conflict between differing value commitments. These conflicts must be recognized, identified and resolved for the operation of a successful school food ser— vice program. The implications for resolution of these con- flicts provide pertinent information for school food service administrators facing similar problems in varying degrees now and in the future as they attempt to meet the rising costs, decreased federal assistance and increasing demands for expanded school food services while embracing the philosophy of the National School Lunch Program. CONFLICT OF PHILOSOPHICAL AND LEGAL DETERMINANTS WITH PERFORMANCE DEMANDS IN SCHOOL FOOD SERVICE BY Mary Catherine Killigrew A PROBLEM Submitted to the College of Home Economics Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE Department of Institution Administration 1968 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author expresses appreciation to Professor Katherine Hart for her guidance and assistance in the development and completion of this manuscript. The author also wishes to acknowledge the helpful suggestions of Dr. Kaye Funk and to extend special appreciation to Mr. Lionel W. Brookins for his valuable editorial critique of this manu- script. Particular gratitude is eXpressed to Professor Gladys Knight for her constant encouragement throughout the author's year of graduate study. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 THE SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Historical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Nutritional Philosophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 The Federal School Lunch Agreement . . . . . . . 10 Program financing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Nutritional requirements . . . . . . . . . . 14 Reports and records . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Additional provisions . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Special milk program . . . . . . . . . . . . l7 Donated commodities . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 THE INDUSTRIAL COMMUNITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Environment for a School Lunch Program . . . . . 22 City 0 O O I O O O O C O O O O O O O O O C O 22 School system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Food service department . . . . . . . . . . 30 Social and economic forces . . . . . . . . . 35 Unionization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Skill variations . . . . . . . . . . . . 4O Racial balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Economic climate . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 PROPOSED RESOLUTION OF CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE PHILOSOPHICAL AND THE PRACTICAL DETERMINANTS IN SCHOOL FOOD SERVICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 BIBLIOGRAPHY’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 iii INTRODUCT ION Numerous administrative problems in school lunch programs arise from the conflict between the philosophical and legal determinants and the performance demands as required by local school policy. Historically, feeding of school children was concep- tualized as a means of combating malnutrition, thus giving the child increased health and vitality necessary for his learning. It was also thought that school feeding would provide a nucleus for teaching principles of food selection and good health habits. Initiated in 1853 in New York, school feeding in the United States received its greatest impetus with the enact- ment of the National School Lunch Act of 1946 (P.L. 396, 79th Congress). The purpose of this law is: "to safeguard the health and well-being of the nation's children and to encourage the domestic consumption through grants-in-aid and other means, . . . in the establishment, maintenance, opera- tion and expansion of nonprofit school lunch programs." From this legislation stems the philosophy that school food service programs are rightfully committed to children and their proper food needs, and that to meet these needs orga— nization policies and procedures should be designed and directed toward sound nutritional and educational services on a nonprofit basis and at minimum cost to children. This act is the primary source of federal funds allocated to the states. Eligibility for federal reimbursement necessitates compliance with all regulations of the Act. Each state administers the school lunch program through the State Department of Education, which may impose additional regulations and standards. Implementation of school lunch programs is the responsibility of local boards of education. Wide latitude is permitted in establishing the framework for programs. Therefore, formulation of pol- icies reflects the value orientation of the community. The city of Gary, Indiana is situated in one of the most heavily industrialized areas of the United States. Settled in 1906, in conjunction with construction of steel mills, Indiana's second largest city now has a population of 178,000. The city has witnessed a great influx of diverse ethnic groups, with immigrant peoples from many parts of Europe, and a Negro population which comprises at present, approximately one—half the city's population. These circum- stances provide Gary with elements of a sociological micro- cosm. In the process of development, the educational system has been shaped by the concerns and needs of persons from a wide range of ethnic, linguistic and cultural back— grounds as well as from all levels and types of social and economic circumstances. The value orientation of these environmental determinants has produced conflict in the operation of the Gary school lunch program. Examination of social and economic aspects of this industrial community and of federal and state legislation can provide pertinent information for administrators who are attempting to reconcile the conflict between the differing value commitments. This study interprets and reports the implications of these conflicts for policy development in school food service administration. THE SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM Food service has become a permanent part of the contemporary school scene and one of growing importance and influence in school life. While it performs the worthwhile service of providing sustenance for millions of the nation's school children it is conceived as fulfilling the even more important role of teaching children how to appreciate and assimilate the lifetime benefits of good eating habits which develop stronger, healthier, happier citizens. As a conse- quence school food service occupies an important place in the total educational program. Since education is the most important business our country is engaged in today, educators have the vital role of developing the greatest natural resource of the nation, the youth. Educators in a free society are committed to help each child become as creative and productive as his capacities allow and national survival may depend on how well this is done. Since inadequate nutrition is an obstacle to learning, schools must cooperate with the home to help youngsters develop wholesome attitudes toward food, estab- lish and practice good eating habits and understand the importance of maintaining these habits throughout life. The hope of the future lies in children's ability to cope with problems of a new age and will depend on how well the total educational responsibility is met today. Therefore good nutrition is the best guarantee of an energetic long—lived population. Food contributes to phys- ical, mental and emotional health if an understanding of nutrition is applied to the selection of food. The purpose of the school lunch program is not merely to feed hungry children or relieve parents from the necessity of feeding children, it is a matter of teaching boys and girls what to eat and why in order to become healthy adults and better citizens. School lunch is an integral part of the educational program, and operating as a business enterprise must func— tion in its proper role as part of the total school program, if its potential is to be fully realized. Historical Background During the last half of the nineteenth century charitable and humanitarian societies in various industrial cities such as New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, initiated school feeding for children. The meals attracted vagrant children to school and provided the energy needed by under- nourished children to enable them to attend classes. School lunch first became an integral part of the educational system in Boston, Massachusetts. Ellen H. Richards, a well—known home economist, focused attention to the need for prov1ding wholesome food in schools, she urged school authorities to provide food for the children as an integral part of the educational system. As a result of her efforts, the Boston School Committee passed an ordinance in 1894 whereby lunches were served to children under the auspices of school author— ities (2). Between 1905 and 1910 school authorities in various sections of the United States began assuming some of the responsibility and direction for food service in the school. In the majority of the schools, rooms and equipment were supplied by school authorities and the cost of the food was met by the sale of meal tickets and funds contributed by Private groups. Mothers of school children became interested in the program and contributed time for cooking the food. In some programs, "free" breakfasts and nourishments at recess were included. In the following years, the school lunch program progressed slowly. During World War I and again in World War II, many boys were rejected for military service because of reasons directly or indirectly related to faulty nutrition. Early in World war II, Dr. Thomas Parran, Surgeon General of the United States Public Health Service made this statement: ' ' ' e with N:1E£:t::::Engo$I::¥ tTfiéggc:EniguggzerhEigthng. They hold back classes, require extra time of teachers, and repeat grades. This is expensive stupidity, but its immediate cost to our educational system is nothing com— pared to the ultimate cost to the nation. Something like nine million children do not have adequate diets for health and well-being. Malnutrition is our greatest producer of ill—health. Like nearly fresh fish, a nearly adequate diet is not enough. A plan to feed these children properly would pay incalculable dividends. A growing concern for the welfare of young people and a depressed economy during the 1930's resulted in an expansion of the school lunch program. Government agencies purchased agricultural products that could not be profitably channeled through the regular markets, and these surplus foods were distributed to schools. The Reconstruction Finance Corporation provided loans for sustaining labor costs in school lunch programs for several communities in Missouri. This same service was later provided in 39 states through the Civil Works Administration and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. Later, the Works Project Administration and the National Youth Administration fur- nished both labor and trained management personnel for lunchroom operations. The federal government progressively became more involved with the school lunch program as evidenced by the following legislation: Public Law 320, 74th Congress, 1935 Section 32 — appropriated annually 30 percent of customs receipts for purchase of surplus food commodities; lMarian L. Cronan, The School Lunch (Peoria, Illinois: Charles A. Bennett Co., Inc., 1962), pp. 18—19, quoting Dr. Thomas Parran. Public Law 396, 79th Congress, 1946 NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH ACT - authorized annual appropria— tions in amounts sufficient to carry out specified pur- poses; and Public Law 690, 83rd Congress, 1949 AGRICULTURAL ACT - Section 416 — authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to donate commodities purchased under price supports of the Commodity Credit Corporation for distribution with priority given to school lunch programs. Nutritional Philosophy Nutritional research has identified the school years as a period of rapid growth for children and has illustrated that eating habits during these years contributed signifi— cantly to better health through life (14). For adequate nutrition, the diet must provide sufficient nutrients for building new tissues, energy needs, regulating body functions, and repair of tissues. Children who are well nourished reflect their state of well-being in their general appearance of vitality and fitness, their good posture, and well—devel— oped musculature (33). To be well nourished is one of the rights of childhood. The school has a responsibility toward fitting chil- dren to live productively in society. Essential to the child's development is his health. Health and nutrition authorities emphasize the significant contribution of the school lunch to the child's nutrition, by furnishing a nutri— tionally adequate noon meal and by providing an educational basis for forming good food habits (l4). An extensive study over a period of five years in Florida showed the school lunch to be of distinct benefit to the physical well-being of the children. The children showed symptoms of poor nutrition at the beginning of the school year. These symptoms lessened during the year (1). 0n the other hand, children who were in fairly good physical condition at the beginning of the school year, showed little difference in physical status with school feedings (30). In a Pennsylvania study, the only children who showed improvement following their participation in the school lunch program were those whose lunches had been care- fully planned by someone trained in nutrition and dietetics, who took care that the noon meal supplemented those served at home to provide a more adequate total daily food intake. The nutritive value of the lunches was compiled and the nutritional status of the children assessed at intervals; medical and dental examinations were included (13). The noon meal should provide approximately one-third of the day's total caloric and nutrient needs. When the lunch is inadequate in calories or nutrients, the food in- take for the day is apt to be inadequate also. The defi- ciencies caused by a poor lunch are not supplied by other meals or snacks (33). Good eating habits developed during childhood will establish a life pattern. However, young children need guidance in developing good eating habits. Correlation of 10 school lunch programs with classroom instruction can help to provide this guidance. Courses such as geography, biology, and health afford opportunities for incorporating nutrition education. Food variety offers greater assurance of obtaining nutrients essential to health and it also widens the child's food experience to include many foods. Variety in foods can be introduced to the child through the menus planned for school lunches. It is on this basis that the plate lunch or complete meal is considered most desirable for children under fourteen years of age. Thus, the natural tendency of the child to limit menu choices to only foods liked is over- come. Along with good eating habits and nutrition educa- tion, participation in the school lunch program affords the students the occasion for training in good citizenship and social graces, through the exercise of good conduct and acceptable table manners. The Federal School Lunch Agreement The National School Lunch Act of 1946 established conditions for federal assistance that enabled many schools to serve adequate meals at a low price (28). The United States Department of Agriculture is responsible for carrying out the provisions of the Act in cooperation with state departments of education. Control is assumed locally in ll accordance with federal and state regulations. Funds are appropriated by Congress biannually and are divided among the states on the basis of the number of children partici- pating in the National School Lunch Program. Schools that have an agreement with the state department of education to meet federal requirements may take part in the national pro- gram and receive aid from funds provided by the Act. Aid is given in two forms: (1) a small cash reimbursement for each Type A lunch served to the children and (2) food purchased by the United States Department of Agriculture solely for use by schools in federal lunch programs. The program rep- resents the nation's largest single sector of the food ser— vice industry and is a billion dollar business serving over three billion meals yearly to children in the nation's schools (25). Program financing Funds are provided by the federal government for actuating school lunch programs which meet the nutritional pattern of Type A lunches on a matching ratio of 3:1. For each dollar the federal government provides, the state must supply three. State funds may be provided by: (1) sale of meals to school children, (2) legislative action providing cash appropriations, and/or (3) state and county taxes. The State of Indiana makes no direct state appropriation for support of the school lunch program. Because the amount of funds from the income of meal sales to children is sufficient 12 to meet the matching quota, money from state or local taxa- tion is not required and the only cash subsidy for Type A lunches is the money received from the federal government. The present reimbursement rate for Indiana has been estab- lished at four cents per lunch. However, as participation in the school lunch program increases throughout the state, the amount allocated per lunch is reduced, resulting in either an operational cut back for some school programs or an increase in lunch price. The food service must be maintained for the benefit of children on a nonprofit basis. Thus, all funds accruing from operation are used to reduce the price of the lunch to children, improve the quality by increasing the portion size and/or varieties of food, and the purchase and maintenance of supplies, services, and/or equipment used in preparing and serving lunches. The money cannot be allocated for land or building acquisition or for remodeling facilities. Oper— ational balances must be kept consistent with operational needs, usually an amount sufficient to sustain the program expenses for one or two months. The federal agreement stipulates that meals must be served without cost or at a reduced price to children unable to pay the full cost of the lunch. Inability to pay is determined by the local school authorities. No physical segregation or other discrimination is allowed because of inability to pay. 13 The contract also stipulates that milk or food ser— vice operated under a contractual arrangement with a conces— sionaire or management company is not eligible for federal subsidy. Where the food service is recognized as an integral part of the educational program of a school district and a nonprofit enterprise, financial policies will reflect this position. School board funds are usually provided to sus- tain the cost of central administration, clerical and office expenses. School board funds may also be used for initial equipment, fixed equipment replacements and repairs, util— ities, insurance and employee retirement costs. Cafeteria funds will usually purchase food and sustain original and replacement cost of equipment as well as wages for cafeteria workers. The expense of free meals provided to children unable to pay may be carried by cafeteria funds, school board funds, or contributions from other sources. Some authorities assert that financing the school food service program is a shared responsibility for federal, state and local tax funds (12). They believe the charge to the individual child should not exceed the cost of the food and that remaining program expenses should be paid from other sources. Such a program would meet the intention of the National School Lunch Act to provide low cost meals to the greatest number of children. 14 Nutritional requirements Through the years, scientific studies have indicated the close relationship of the quality of food a child eats to his general health, stature, behavior and learning prog- ress. The effective utilization of nutritional requirements necessary for a growing child cannot be met without a noon meal. The National School Lunch Act recognizes the impor- tance of diet in the promotion of health. Its goal is to safeguard the health and well—being of the nation's children by providing nourishing meals. While early efforts in school feeding were aimed at the needy and poor of the large cities, high family income is no guarantee of diet adequacy. Family living habits often preclude the child receiving an adequate lunch unless he eats at school. Therefore, ALL children are eligible for lunch under the provisions of the Act. The local school food service is obligated to follow the nutritional pattern which is based on scientific re- search and delineated by the United States Department of Agriculture.1 The Type A lunch includes: 1. one—half pint of fluid milk as a beverage, 2. two ounces (edible portion as served) of lean meat, poultry, or fish; or 2 ounces of cheese or 1 egg; or 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans or peas; or 4 table- spoons of peanut butter; or an equivalent quantity 1State of Indiana, National School Lunch Agreement (Indianapolis: Department of Public Instruction, School Lunch Division, 1967). 15 of any combination of the aforementioned foods. (To meet this requirement these foods can be served in only one additional menu item aside from the main dish.) 3. a 3/4 cup serving of 2 or more vegetables or fruits or both. No more than 1/4 of this amount may be met by serving full strength vegetable or fruit juice. 4. one slice of whole-grain or enriched bread; or a serving of biscuits, rolls, muffins, etc., made from whole-grain or enriched meal or flour, and 5. two teaspoons of butter or fortified margarine. (Part of this amount may be used in preparation.) The essential nutrients most often identified as lacking in the American diet are calcium and vitamins A and C (33). It is therefore strongly recommended that milk and a vitamin C food be included daily and a vitamin A food be included several times a week in the school lunch menu pat— tern. The Type A lunch is designed to provide approximately one-third to one-half the daily nutritive requirements of a student ten to twelve years of age. Additional high caloric foods are generally allowed for older children. Portion sizes are adjusted to fit the needs of the child. Menus are expected to include foods designated monthly by the United States Department of Agriculture as "plentiful." Reports and records Reports and records of the school lunch program must be kept in accordance with procedures established by the state board of education. Records must be maintained for a period of years as prescribed by the respective states. These records include the following: 16 1. daily number of Type A lunches served to children; 2. daily number of Type A lunches served free or at a reduced price to children; 3. daily number of lunches served to adults; 4. income accruing as a result of payments made by children, federal reimbursement for lunches, federal reimbursement for special milk, all other income, in money or in kind, accruing as a result of the operation of the program; (1:0 (In: 5. itemized expenditures for all labor; 6. itemized records for all program expenditures for items other than food; 7. receipt of any donated commodities by the United States Department of Agriculture; and 8. a record of the value of all donated food, service, equipment, and other donations. All accounts and records are subject to audit by the state board of education and the United States Department of Agriculture Consumer and Marketing Service. Operating balances are reported monthly to the state board of education for scrutiny. This procedure serves as a check on the cost of the meals to the children. Meals should be provided at the lowest possible cost to permit the maximum number of children to participate in the school lunch program. Additional provisions All schools are to comply with assurance that no person in the school will be denied participation in the lunch program or be subjected to discrimination on the grounds of race, color, or national origin. 17 Schools accepting government donated commodities are obligated to properly store and utilize the food. The food in fact is federal property for which the local school authorities are held accountable. Food damaged through improper storage must be replaced by the local school. In the storage, preparation and service of food, sanitation and health standards must be maintained in conformance with all applicable state and local health laws and regulations. Evidence that full compliance with the terms and conditions of the agreement have not been fully met by the school district can result in termination of the federal agreement by the state agency. Special milk program Concurrently with lunch programs, school districts operate a Special milk program. This affords an opportunity for milk service in schools which may not have facilities for food service. This program, initiated in 1954 pursuant to Pablic Law 690, 83rd Congress, was a price support mea— sure for the purpose of increasing milk consumption. Reim— bursement can be claimed for milk served to children over— and—above the first half pint of milk served with the Type A lunch. The reimbursement allowed is to be used to reduce the individual serving cost to the child and allows for margin or overhead expenses within school distribution cost. However, this margin is computed in percentages of mils and can be less than costs in order to accommodate coinage. 18 Pricing to adapt to convenient coin usage cannot be made over the allowed margin. Adults and students above the 12th grade level cannot participate in the program for reduced cost of milk. A maximum of four cents per half pint is set for schools serving the Type A lunches, and three cents per half pint for all other schools. Records and controls simi- lar to the lunch program are maintained under this program. Donated commodities Assistance is provided to local school lunch pro- grams through foods donated by the United States Department of Agriculture and distributed through state agencies. These foods are offered to schools and are accepted by the donees on the basis of anticipated utilization and adequacy of storage. Schools submit estimates of needs, along with re- ports of inventories of such food and numbers of meals served. Schools usually are required to pay the cost of handling and transportation incurred within the state for delivery of the commodities. Since 1965 the surplus of agricultural commodities has been reduced. Dairy products have not been available from the price support operations. However, school lunch programs had been built upon and depended to a great extent on these products. For example, an extensive educational program was undertaken among the employees on the use of dried eggs. To retain this item after surplus supplies were 19 no longer available represented a purchase cost. This represents a factor of instability for the local operation. The kind of food available for commodity distribution changes, but the demand exists for continual use of some products and this in turn means additional purchase costs. At one time beef roasts were supplied under the price support program. School lunch clientel heartily accepted the item. The fol- lowing year, beef in the normal domestic market was in short supply and consequently priced out of cost range for a thirty— five cent lunch. Elimination of the menu item caused dissat- isfaction. Occasionally an attempt is made to promote a market for a product in which agricultural authorities are trying to interest sectors of the farming community, such as bulgur wheat. Much energy and money may be expended in recipe development for the products and thus represents additional training costs to the local operator. Commodity donations and cash assistance provide approximately eleven cents of each lunch served to children in the United States. Approximately 80 percent of the food utilized in the school lunch program is purchased from the local domestic market with the exception of dairy products. School lunch programs are becoming less dependent upon the surplus commodity donations as the main source of food supplies. 20 Food and labor costs continue to rise while commod- ity offerings and reimbursement rates remain the same or are reduced. However, school food service management is pres— sured by the dilemma of operating a self-supporting program and still fulfilling the precepts of the federal program. Increasing the price would eliminate the lunch for many students while serving a less nutritious lunch defeats the original purpose of the National School Lunch Act. There- fore, school administrators and the community are obliged to take a more realistic assessment of the function of the school lunch program. THE INDUSTRIAL COMMUNITY The administration, management and operation of school lunch programs are vested in the local boards of education who are responsible for all phases of the school program. The educational program reflects, and is shaped by, the value orientation and the concerns of a community. Therefore the school lunch program is influenced by the heritage or background of the community and the general development of the educational system. This paper presents the development of a school food service program in an indus- trial setting characterized by heterogenous cultures and rapid economic growth in the short span of sixty years. The author takes the position that the environmental, political, economic, and social factors which shaped the community, conflict with the philosophy of the National School Lunch Program, resulting in numerous administrative difficulties for the school food service program. Further, it is the author's belief that the conflict between the philosophical and practical operating considerations must be recognized, identified and resolved for the operation of a successful school food service program. Therefore, factors contribut- ing to this conflict must be brought into focus in order to understand the nature of the conflict. 21 22 Environment for a School Lunch Program 9.1.2.2 Gary, the second largest city in Indiana, is located in one of the most heavily industrialized complexes in the United States, the Calumet Region; an area bounded on the north by Lake Michigan and extending south approximately twenty miles, with the Indiana Dunes forming its eastern limits and the Illinois—Indiana state line, its western boundary. The industrial and commercial prominence of this region dramatically typifies the industrial age of the 20th century. At the beginning of this century the site of the future city was an isolated tract of white sand dunes and marshy swampland within 30 miles of Chicago. The United States Steel Corporation selected the uninhabited section at the sourthern extremity of Lake Michigan for a modern plant site. In 1906, eighty foot high sand dunes were leveled and swamps drained as simultaneous construction of the mill and the city was undertaken.1 This project quickly caught the interest and atten- tion of steel workers from the Ruhr Valley in Germany and Birmingham, England as well as men from YOungstown, Ohio and 1The steel corporation formed a subsidiary to build the town, named for Judge Elbert H. Gary, Chairman of the Board of Directors of U. S. Steel Corporation. 23 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Real estate promoters, engineers and medical men, along with adventurers and wanderers, con- verged on the site at the south shore of Lake Michigan. A year later, with the population of Gary approaching 1,000, the frontier town aspect was still evident since most of the inhabitants lived in tents, dugouts and shacks which lacked gas and electricity. In 1909 the first Open Hearth produced steel. Sub— sequently, auxiliary mills, subsidiary manufacturing plants as well as rail and dockage facilities were erected. The industrial complex was now auspiciously underway. The building of the city paced the industrial devel— opment. Highways opened the city to Chicago and westward as well as to the eastern seaboard. Cross-country railways established Gary as one of the stopping places on east-west runs and the prevailing atmosphere became that of a "boom city." The 1910 census indicated almost 17,000 persons, mostly men, had come to Gary in less than four years. The next ten years marked a transition for Gary from a town to an industrial center of over 55,000 persons. Through sub- sidization by the steel corporation construction of private homes and public buildings was accelerated. By 1938 Gary was the youngest city of more than 100,000 population in the United States. Although numerous independent industries were established, Gary had become the steel center of the middle west and was primarily a steel town. 24 Before‘World.War II the majority of the adult popula- tion was foreign-born. The highest percentage of unskilled immigrants came from southern Europe; Polish residents were largest in number, followed by Slovaks, Greeks, Germans, Croatians, Italians, Serbians, Hungarians and Russians. Adherence to customs of their native lands persisted in home, social and religious life. The women had less contact with native Americans and experienced language difficulties. After brief attempts at night English classes, they often reverted to their native language, relying on children and husbands to act as interpreters. The children, on the other hand, more quickly adapted to American dress, language and mannerisms, although the different nationalities, for the most part, clustered in their individual sections of the city. Each nationality group formed lodges, social clubs, patriotic groups, political organizations, churches and .singing societies. Those who became naturalized citizens more readily discarded the old world ways, frequently became active in city and county activities, and by influencing a large group of voters who spoke the same national language, were elected to office. Early immigrants to Gary were often peasants who intended to work in the mills, save their money and return to their native countries. Many of these men, without suit- able training from a nonindustrial old world economy were 25 often ill-equipped and bewildered in their new surroundings. As such, they presented a problem of rehabilitation for the community and the community responded by providing church settlement houses, special school curricula, and programs of social welfare (5). From its beginning Negroes also settled in Gary. When World War I and immigration quota laws shut off the flow of Europeans, Gary eXperienced a steady increase in Negro migration from the southern states, as Negroes were lured by the promise of northern economic security, by employment agencies and industry representatives. By 1967 Negroes represented over 50 percent of the total population of Gary. Early civic efforts with economic cooperatives provided some commercial facilities and demonstrated to some extent time effectiveness of group effort in generating a measure of self—sufficiency and group unity among the Negro community. After World War II the people migrating to Gary were predominantly Puerto Rican and southern Negroes. With the migration of the Puerto Ricans another distinctive culture was introduced into the ethnic complexity of the community. The city's background of rapid population increase and economic progress, along with adjustment of diversified ethnic groups, has produced a hetergenous community climate. Gary is now a city of over 178,000 persons. While it is built on sand with steel as the bedrock of its 26 existence and lacks the mellowness of age, it has seized upon and exploited its industrial preeminence as a twentieth century city--"The Steel City." School system Gary has extolled its educational system as well as its steel production. The new city, lacking educational facilities provided an actual laboratory site for the theo- ries and ideas of an educational innovator, Dr. William A. Wirt. As the founder of the Gary School System in 1907, Dr. Wirt envisioned broadening the instructional program to equip the child to better adjust to society by advocating that elementary and secondary education should encompass more than preparation for college. As the first school superintendent (1907-1939), Dr. Wirt gained personal and civic fame with the Wirt Work—Study-Play System which he inaugurated in Gary. Cognizant of Gary's industrial environment and social complexities, Dr. Wirt advocated that the conventional academic school program be extended to include practical work experience, extensive recreational activities, and opportuni— ties for educational and cultural development of adults as well as children. The school was established as a community center. The core of the Wirt System was the K-12 (kindergar— ten through twelfth grade) unit school, the two-phase school and extended curriculum at practically all grade levels. Throughout the city, buildings were designed to provide a 27 single school center from kindergarten through the twelfth grade for children within a given community. Each "unit" school, or school center encompassed all facilities. With the two-phase school program, the student spent half of his time in classroom activities and the other half in extended activities. Students were "platooned," (divided into two groups) to move as a unit among classrooms and extended program areas where specialized teachers taught specific subject matter. With grade level adjustment to all students the extended program facilities included gymnasiums, auditoriums, playgrounds and shops sized to accommodate half of the student body. These facilities were regarded as sub- ject matter areas, and programs were planned for all grade levels. The student attended school classes eight hours daily, six days per week. Attendance at summer school was optional but strongly encouraged. In this way the school proposed to keep the children off the streets for fifty weeks of the year thus providing a more advantageous climate than the "boom city” environment. The Wirt program involved "learning by doing" with classroom instruction combined with productive work. Work- shop classes made and repaired school furniture; printing classes produced school bulletins and instructional forms; and classes in cooking prepared meals for cafeteria service. Student labor thus afforded reduction of operation costs. The Wirt System emphasized economy in building and operation 28 with full utilization of facilities. Although a study by the General Education Board of the Rockefeller Foundation in 1919 indicated that the special features of the Gary program had no marked effect on the academic products of the Gary Schools and scholastic achievement of students was at a low level, the Wirt System was never challenged by the community (18). On the contrary, the program engendered great civic pride, a tribute to the Wirt personal magnetism and commu- nity esteem for the articulate school founder. The job production approach, learning by doing, while noted in education texts, was never completely accepted outside of Gary: ". . . in spite of the fact that the Gary system became an object of study by educators from parts of the United States and from abroad . . . many came, many saw, few adopted."l Following the death of Dr. Wirt in 1939, Gary's educational program continued relatively unplanned as suc- ceeding administrators, perhaps out of expediency, made departures from the original tenets of the Wirt System. In 1954, facing administrative difficulties, the Board of Education employed the Public Administration Ser- vice of Chicago2 to survey all major phases of school opera— tion; namely, curriculum, instruction, business affairs and 1The Public School System_of GaryL Indiana (Chicago: Public Administration Service, 1954), p. 5. 2Hereafter referred to as PAS. 29 physical plant needs. The report of this survey pointed out one of the chief objectives of Gary school officials was to keep the cost of education at a minimum. "Pride in low educational costs is a point that had been emphasized in Gary since the founding of the city and the development of the platoon plan for full plant utilization."1 The survey also revealed no evidence that the low educational costs had provided Gary students with a good education, but in fact, the quality of education left much to be desired. Although the PAS survey findings provided the basis for the 1956 reorganization of the school system's adminis- trative services and appointment of a new superintendent, the community has never been totally convinced of the inade- quacies of the Wirt System and has continued to cherish it. In keeping with the job production approach, stu— dents in home economics classes prepared all food for the self-supporting school cafeterias. Students worked one to three hours daily in the cafeterias under the direction of paid cooks and received academic credit although no formal instruction was given, and no evaluation was made of acquired skills and knowledge. The teaching program was subordinated to the production and profit requirements of the cafeteria. While the supervisor of the home economics program.was also head of the cafeterias, the home economics teacher—managers 1The Public School System of Gary, Indiana (Chicago: Public Administration Service, 1954), p. 23. 30 were almost autonomous in individual school operations. The report of the PAS survey indicated the cafeteria program lacked sound management and business procedures as well as an absence of quantity purchasing practices and volume food preparation techniques. Among recommendations made in this report those relating specifically to school cafeterias were: 0 separate the cafeteria operation from the instruc- tional program; 0 establish an independent food service department under the direction of professionally trained personnel; and 0 consider establishment of a central kitchen for city-wide food production. It is against this background that the environment for the School Lunch Program in Gary must be assessed because the difficulties of its operation arise from the aforemen- tioned factors in varying degrees. Food service ggpartment With the 1956 reorganization of the school adminis- tration, the board of education employed a Director of Food Service to supervise the management of the school system's lunchrooms and to provide leadership in the development of improved cafeteria services for children. Thus the respon- sibility of the director of food service encompassed the physical operation and management of cafeterias. Specific responsibilities were: 0 establishment of coordinated and efficient central record keeping and inventory systems; 31 0 development of a menu pattern that complied with the nutritional requirements of the National School Lunch Agreement; 0 development of procedures for quantity food produc- tion; 0 interviewing, selecting, training, and supervising the personnel required for the food service; 0 formulation of employee physical and health standards; 0 adjustment of labor grievances in accordance with union contract guidelines; 0 establishment of equipment specifications; 0 make recommendations for kitchen equipment repair and replacement in compliance with prescribed health and sanitation standards; a advise on design and layout of new or remodeled cafeteria facilities; and 0 preparation and analyses of statistical data with reports submitted to the chief finance officer. Centralization of food service operations placed cafeteria facilities of eighteen schools under the direct supervision of area managers trained in dietetics or insti— tutional management and allowed for the reassignment of home economics teachers to full-time teaching duties. Initially, five area managers were employed. Subse- quently,the cafeteria service was redirected toward the wel- fare of children consistent with the goals of the National School Lunch Program and the former production-profit pre- cept of the Gary cafeteria program was de—emphasized. Stu- dent labor was discontinued. A plate lunch, adequately meeting the requirements of the Type A pattern outlined in the federal school lunch agreement, was introduced and the 32 practice of extensive teacher-preference ala carte service curtailed. A city-wide menu was initiated and a food ser- vice guide for routine policy formulated. Systematic business procedures and records for collection of pertinent data on materials and labor were developed along with systematic financial recording of in— come and sales conforming to requirements for federal-state accounting. Employment records were formulated for food service personnel and job responsibilities delineated clas— sifications for food service employees as head cook, assis— tant cook, food service assistant and cashier. Traditionally, women with homemaking skills comprise the school food service labor force. A majority of appli- cants lack experience in volume feeding while a few have had experience in short order and/or church-community supper work. Consequently, in 1957, a food service training pro- gram in quantity food preparation was initiated for the Gary program. This training program was later expanded to pro- vide pre—school workshops and monthly cooks' conferences as well as periodic training sessions for employees of all classifications. A program of annual employee evaluation was devised to increase individual effectiveness for those working in fobd service. By means of a test kitchen, recipes were developed by the food service supervisory staff to afford maximum use of government commodities and to insure product 33 standardization. This program resulted in increased control of food quality and cost. The organization of centralized food services and the establishment of the new departmental procedures pro— vided city-wide consistency in cafeteria operation. Each school principal has the responsibility for the individual school plant and supervision of cafeteria operations became the responsibility of the Food Service Department in cooper- ation with the local school administrator. The majority of principals do not want direct supervision of cafeteria oper— ations, however, a few school administrators experience some difficulty in accepting the concept of centralized food ser- vice which follows the nutritional philosophy of the National School Lunch Act. Good rapport and effective interpretation of food service department policies to principals and teach- ing staffs thus becomes one of the major responsibilities of the food service area supervisory staff. Financing the food service program is accomplished by general budget funds and food service income. Adminis- tration and supervision costs in the food service department are sustained by the school system's general budget. In 1958, a year following implementation of the new school lunch program, budget programming resulted in a staff reduc- tion from five to two area managers who were then designated as-Area Food Service Coordinators. Budget restrictions 34 since that year have prevented staff expansion for adequate food service supervision. During the ten year period, 1956—66, the Gary Food Service Department has expanded facilities and service while maintaining a solvent financial status. Increases in food and labor costs have been met since 1958 without advancing lunch prices, and at the same time the nutritional standards of the meal have been maintained. The food service program is self—supporting to the degree that costs for food, labor, supplies, equipment and transportation costs are sustained primarily through income from meal sales. The Board of Education's general budget pays for administrative and supervisory salaries, installa— tion of new kitchen facilities, cost of utilities and custo— dial services. The food service income pays the cost of employee fringe benefits such as holiday and vacation pay, sick benefits and health insurance while the School City2 sustains pension, social security and workmen's compensation expenses. Presently, school cafeteria service is maintained in twenty-eight of the forty-four schools in the Gary system. Approximately 160 persons are employed in the school lBeginning January, 1968 the board of education assumed the payment of health insurance and the vacation payment was converted into hourly wage rate. 2The statutory designation of the Gary school district. 35 cafeterias. Annual food service approximates three-quarters of a million dollars and other than several industrial plant cafeterias, the Food Service Department is the largest food operator in the city. ,Social and economic forces The administrative characteristics of a school lunch program develop through practical operating considerations which are primarily determined by social and economic forces. .Unionization. In an industrial city a high percentage of persons employed in mills and factories are members of labor unions. The influence of the labor movement is strongly felt in the school system where all employee classifications, aside from administrators, have union representative groups. These groups include teachers, secretaries, custodians, main- tenance workers and food service personnel who first achieved a union agreement in 1956. That higher wages and other eco- nomic benefits are obtained through collective bargaining is a commonly accepted fact in an industrial city. Schools are financed through yearly appropriations from tax levies on property. Wage and salary increases for school employees, other than food service employees are supported through additional property taxation levies passed directly to the community. The amount of increase depends on the level of taxation which can be absorbed through the school budget. 36 Personnel policies of a school system are primarily written to accommodate the teaching staffs in such matters as sick benefits, leave regulations, severance payments, and working conditions. It follows, then, that union representa- tives can be expected to bargain for the same economic bene- fits for all school employee groups. However, when food service employees are paid from cafeteria funds and the source of income is derived princi- pally from the sale of lunches to children, increases in wage rates and other economic benefits can not be easily met unless the price of lunches is increased. Failure to grant increases to food service employees at the same time and in proportion to other school personnel groups can result in justifiable resentment by the food service group. Labor representatives take the position that cafete- ria funds in excess of operating expenses should be distrib— uted on a profit—sharing basis to the workers. When these funds are insufficient to meet their economic demands, addi- tional monies should be obtained by increasing lunch prices. When a food service department is organized, as in Gary, with limited day—to-day supervision and with decen- tralized production units, the success of the program depends upon the employees' sense of participation, as well as their commitment to the objectives of the school lunch program. A spirit of teamwork based on mutual trust between management and the food service personnel is essential. 37 However, the cooperative effort attitude on which successful operation of this type of program depends can be distorted considerably through the face-to-face labor nego- tiation procedure. This technique can be detrimental to relationships of administration with employees as the sub- tleties of labor—management negotiations are not fully under- stood by employees. The average female worker is not famil- iar with the intricacies of collective bargaining. Negotiations for the food service labor contract are carried out by teams representing the union and the school system. Most of these people have a limited understanding of food service operations. The School City is represented by the chief officers of the Departments of Finance and Personnel along with the director and supervisors of the Food Service Department. The union team is composed of the union business managers and a group representative of the various food service employee classifications. When the school food service employees are governed by union contracts, wise employee selection is of increased meortance and probationary periods must be judiciously used in determining the competency of workers prior to their reclassification to permanent or regular employee status. This status places employees under a seniority provision and entitles all persons within the food service department to bid on positions of assistant cook as well as head cook when such positions are vacant. However, longevity does not 38 necessarily measure employee's technical skills and leader- ship attributes which are essential to effectively perform in school food service. Therefore, management must develop tests or similar means of determining how well an employee's qualifications fit advanced job responsibility. Management's authority to upgrade workers may be limited through the con— tract bidding procedure, which permits every regular employee from all classifications to apply for an open position. Per— sons who have potentialities for a higher classification but lack confidence, may fail to advance on their own initiative. It is incumbent on management to develop and motivate capable individuals for advancement. The very nature of school cafeteria service, primar— ily one meal daily and the service of large numbers at peak periods, requires scheduling employees for short periods, such as three and one—half hours daily. However, the cost of union membership may discourage persons from accepting work schedules for short periods of time. This aspect, coupled with high employment periods, greater opportunities in the labor market for all people, and diminishing need for home-makers to seek additional employment outside the home requires school food services to compete more aggressively for manpower. The operation of a school food service program, financed through its own income, has a degree of instability because of uncertainties in the federal reimbursement and 39 the fluctuation in student participation affecting income. Consequently, the director of food service must retain the necessary controls to allow for flexibility in the utiliza- tion of manpower. If union negotiations destroy or seriously weaken these controls, the entire program can be rendered ineffec- tive. Thus training must develop employees with a variety of skills. Job responsibilities must avoid specific detail- ing of work to allow staffing adaptability to the existing demands of the program. Emergency situations will arise. Adjustments often need to be made immediately for continua— tion of service and labor contract provisions must allow for these emergencies without disruption of cafeteria service. A recognized basic goal or guideline of food service management is the production and service of the best possible food within the financial resources of the particular organi— zation. This principle is applicable to school food service but requires that workers be wisely selected, carefully placed, be adequately supervised and provision be made for education and training in the present job as well as for future positions. These are the responsibilities of food service management and must remain within the control of managers if effective control of a school food service pro— gram is to be retained. When these prerogatives or controls are relinquished through collective bargaining, the managers' effectiveness is diminished. 4O .gkill variations. School food service operation requires employment of persons with skills in food preparation based on quantity production. Many women seeking employment in school food service lack skills beyond those of a homemaker. Some have had eXperience preparing church suppers or civic group dinners. Applicants with any commercial food prepara- tion experience may be persons, who, as the eldest child in the family, terminated school to assist in supporting the family during the depression years of the 1930's, or, they may be persons who have migrated from the south where educa— tional opportunities for Negroes were limited but opportunity for kitchen employment was not:. In both cases, formal educa- tion was probably terminated before the 12th grade. Until recently, only persons with a high school diploma could be employed regularly in the school system. Although a high school diploma is desirable, too often it does not necessar- ily guarantee satisfactory work performance or give an indi- cation of the individual's skills in particular types of work. Elimination of the hiring restriction policy has helped the Food Service Department in recruiting employees. Seldom are school food personnel employed who are fully qualified for the job they are expected to do. Opera- tional efficiency of a food service program is reduced by personnel who lack job knowledge, skills, and good work habits. Training of personnel is one of the most effective 41 methods of increasing the efficiency of a food service pro- gram. The increasing costs of labor require that efficient methods be used in the preparation and serving of food to assure the most adequate lunch at the least cost to the child. Both management and employees gain from an effective training program. Management gains by increased production through improved work methods, lower operating costs through less supervision of employees, increased sources of skilled workers and reduction in labor turnover. The employees gain through increased job satisfaction and security, more oppor— tunity for advancement as well as maintenance of the wage structure. However, employees often must be convinced that more training results in an added advantage for the individ— ual. While the union contract can provide a donated time requirement by the employee for training purposes, a large measure of training unionized food service workers is a direct cost item for the operator. Employees generally exPect to be paid for training time. Therefore, it is imperative that maximum use be made of this expenditure through a planned, sequential, follow—up training program which includes quality food preparation techniques, proper use of institutional equipment and the logical sequence of work required in volume feeding. Employees' aptitudes and abilities need to be stimulated toward assuming more responsibile positions to assure continuance of the program. People interested in taking responsibility are less in 42 evidence today among the labor force. As the nation's level of employment rises with higher wages in other employment areas, the shortage of persons attainable and willing to do food service production in schools becomes more critical. Racial balance. In the assignment and scheduling of food service personnel where labor costs are high and the supply of skilled labor is limited, individuals need to be placed where their skills can best serve the efficiency of the operation. In a multi-ethnic community, consideration is also given to obtaining a racial balance among staffs in all the city's schools. The food service department policy, for the past ten years, has been to utilize talents of all per- sonnel in all school food service operations in all school districts of the city. During these ten years racial inte— gration of food sercice staffs has been achieved in a major— ity of the school cafeteria staffs. In pre-employment inter- view an individual's willingness to accept work assignments- in any school is determined. However, it must be recognized that there is a reluctance on the part of some persons to go out of their own school community to work. In food service, individuals work in close proximity to each other, in demand- ing work situations and they must be temperamentally suited for smooth operation of the kitchen. Work must be accom— plished through people and individuals cannot be forced to work in locations in which they do not wish to work. They decline to accept work assignments. 43 Traditionally, school food service staffs are com- posed of women living within the particular school district. In a centralized system, this procedure is not feasible for economical operation, because individuals possessing the needed skills are not always available. Also when districts become more affluent the availability of persons for the labor market within that area declines. As applicants and workers become more selective about work situations the abil- ity to maintain a racial balance among all cafeteria staffs decreases. In an operation dependent upon effective utilization of resources, manpower and materials for solvency, persons with the requisite technical skills must be willing to take reSponsibility and be receptive to working in all communi- ties regardless of ethnic origins. The fewer employees available with these attributes, the more limited is manage- ment's ability to maintain an efficient, solvent operation and at the same time accommodate each school kitchen with a staff ethnically balanced. Economic climate. Gary's sixty-year rapid growth, coupled with local pride in maintaining low city property tax rates and the inability to sufficiently meet the needs for ade— quate educational facilities, almost constantly strains the local economy and finds school funds at a continuing level of crisis. Consequently, any attempt to provide through the general budget a significant increase in funding for the 44 school lunch program meets the resistence on the part of administrators and the board of education. For example, while food service facilities are expanded to include more schools and the need increases for providing training and supervision of additional numbers of employees, budget pro- visions for an adequate number of food service supervisors to maintain an effective operation is disallowed. When an industrial community experiences economic prosperity high employment results in additional family income thus increasing the availability of money for pur- chasing school lunches. Under these circumstances the support of the cafeteria program through its sales is rela- tively assured. However, when mill production is down, as in the case of a labor strike, with the economy bound pri— marily to one industry, the cafeteria income reflects the immediate curtailment of available money in the community as lunch participation declines. Simultaneously, the school revenue is affected by a reduction in the amount of taxes collected while requests for additional assistance through welfare programs increase. Even in times of relative economic prosperity, the Public Assistance Program is historically extensive in this community and there is an apparent growing philosophy in some social service circles that all children whose families are on the rolls of public welfare agencies should receive lunch at school without cost to themselves. In the past, a 45 child's need for free lunch allowance was determined by the school doctor or nurse, along with the school principal and the authorization was granted by the director of food ser— vice under the provisions of the school lunch agreement. .At present, the school social worker makes the determination of need, generally on the basis of the family's qualification for county welfare aid. This determination is often only a cursory assessment of the family's ability to provide the child's lunch money. Presently, approximately 4,000 chil— dren, or almost one-twelfth of the student enrollment, are declared eligible to receive free lunches. The cost of free lunch assistance of this proportion, about 27,000 dollars monthly, could not be supported through cafeteria income. Consequently, an alternative remedy has been adopted whereby the Township Trustee makes payments for these lunches. The food service department, however, is required to extend credit for as long as six months to the Township Trustee for this program, thereby, limiting the food service department's ability to meet payments of monthly invoices and payrolls. In some schools the majority of stu— dents receiving lunches are welfare students and when prepa- ration, serving, and dining facilities are limited it neces— sarily limits accommodations for the number of students who might otherwise participate in the school lunch program. The diverse backgrounds and experiences of the Gary citizenry, heterogeneously grouped in a relatively new city, 46 contribute to the unusual community climate which determines the program of the school system. And it follows that the food service program is equally affected by these factors. Inability to stabilize operational procedures in the edu- cational program places unresolved pressures upon school administrators to seek solutions through measures of expe— diency which merely spawns yet other problems. .And because the role of school lunch is an integral part of the educa- tional system it can be clearly seen that what affects one affects the other. PROPOSED RESOLUTION OF CONFLICTS BETWEEN THE PHILOSOPHICAL AND THE PRACTICAL DETERMINANTS IN SCHOOL FOOD SERVICE Since 1956 the organization and the operation of the school lunch program in the Gary schools has been based on directives stated in the National School Lunch Act of 1946. Difficulties have arisen in the management of the Gary pro- gram due to the interaction of environmental, economic and social forces of the industrial community with the goals of the 1946 Act. The philosophical determinants of the Act, supported by legal provision, are: 0 provide nutritionally balanced meals at low—cost which meet the needs of growing children; 0 operate such service on a nonprofit basis with accrued monies used to reduce the price of the lunch to the child, thereby widening participation to more children; and o conduct the lunch program as an integral part of the total educational opportunities offered children. Concurrent with administering the school lunch pro— gram according to the guidelines of the 1946 Act, management must adhere to certain operational requirements of the local school policy which, in Gary, are: 0 operate th school food service department within a self-sup orting framework which means that food, supplies, hourly wage rates, fringe benefits and some equipment costs, along with the expenses for expanded operating facilities and services, must be paid from cafeteria receipts. Thus, funding of the 47 48 school lunch program is principally obtained from the sale of children's lunches; 0 provide for extension of cafeteria service as well as maintenance of existing service to individual schools dependent upon evidence of customer support sufficient to sustain operational costs incurred for that operation; and 0 limit staff expansion to minimum numbers of supervi— sory personnel, a provision which restricts effec— tive management and control of existing and future food service facilities. .Administrative conflicts unavoidably result when attempting to meet the operational demands outlined in the local policy within the philosophical and legal guidelines of the 1946 Act. The provision that school food services operate as a self—supporting program with present increased cost of food, labor, supplies and equipment along with the stipula— tion that expenses for expanded operating services be paid from cafeteria income, requires either an increased lunch price or a reduction in the nutritional quality of the lunch. Either action would violate the expressed intent of the School Lunch Act of 1946: ". . . to provide low-cost nutri- tionally balanced meals to school children."1 While an objective of the national school lunch pro— gram is the operation of local programs on a nonprofit basis, increased wages remain the constant goal of labor representa- tives who also take the position that any accrued operational 1U.S., Statutes at Largg, Vol. 60, Part 1: Public Laws — Chapter 28, June 4, 1946, P.L. 396. 49 monies should be distributed to employees rather than the use of them for reduction of lunch prices to children. Conflict also results when local administration endeavors "to conduct the lunch program as an integral part of the total educational program"2 and the local district lacks a clearly enunciated policy of the role of the school lunch program in the total educational opportunities offered to all school children. When the local policy requires that participation of schools in the lunch program be based upon their ability to sustain the costs incurred in that facility, it restricts the number of children who can participate and the school lunch program is then no longer available to all students alike in every school. Another cause for conflict is failure to allow ade- quate supervisory staffing in proportion to expanded opera— tional services and facilities, thus resulting in decreased efficiency and lack of enforcement of sufficient managerial control._ This control is required for effective food ser- vice management to realize the maximum return from eXpendi- tures, thereby making possible lower costs which affords retention of a low selling price. These resulting conflicts between the philosophical and the practical determinants under which school food ser- vice may be required to operate are seriously wasteful of lIbid. 50 organizational energies and damaging to effective organiza— tional functioning. Therefore it becomes incumbent upon management to seek resolution of these conflicts. The major considerations for resolving present opera- tional policy conflicts, conflicts which, if left unresolved, will subvert the future effectiveness of the School Food Service Program in Gary, Indiana, are delineated and inter- preted for school food service administration. 1. Formulation of a definitive policy. Effective administration requires recognition by the board of education of the need for a definitive policy re- garding the place of the school lunch program in the total educational program. Continuation of the school food ser- vice program based on the strict philosophy of the National School Lunch Act within the terms of the federal agreement, requires program policy development motivated by the desire to serve the well—being of children. Therefore business aspects must serve as an adjunct to the program's operation rather than as the determinant factor in the purpose and scope of the school lunch program. Consequently, policy should provide for adequate school food service facilities in all schools and should remove the burden of financial support for program continua- tion from the individual school. This could be accomplished by an innovative approach, that of installation of a central- ized school food service system. Through such a system a 51 greater number of students could benefit from the availabil- ity of a balanced meal. A centralized production center, with a delivery system supported by the School City, in conjunction with other trucking services, would be the means of providing meals to schools lacking preparation facilities. This would in turn remove the present inequities which exist in the service of food offered to the total school population. To carry out the philosophical considerations of the School Lunch Act, a definitive policy must also incorporate the school lunch program into the total educational program, providing principals and teachers with a basis for positive support of school food services just as other phases of the educational program are supported. Principals, through pro- gramming and scheduling, can make the lunch program adminis— tratively possible within individual schools by stimulating cooperation of staffs and by giving recognition to nutrition education as part of the total health program. 2. Adequate financing through the general budget. The school food program today is an expensive busi- ness venture, representing one of the most costly programs among educational facilities. Consequently, the present approach to financing this program is impractical in today's economy. It cannot be too strongly suggested that the pro- gram needs to be considered as a budget expense along with other phases of the school system and funded more adequately through the general budget. In the past, school lunch __flf¥firl___q—ngnr———Vt 52 programs operated at relatively low cost because of the workers' low wage level and the extensive support obtained from the federal government in food and money. Today fed- eral support continues to decrease. At the same time, to eXpect that persons will work in school food service for wages below the general economic level is unrealistic and to demand that this program meet increased costs and retain a low price for meals is equally unrealistic. Further, it must be realized that if school food services are to be maintained, management must compete in today's labor market for persons with skills required for volume food production. To vie successfully with other areas of employment for required manpower, a competitive wage level for food service employees will need to be pro— vided, proportionate to all other school staff personnel, through the general budget. Therefore, financing the school food services needs to be accomplished in such a manner that the lunch will be within the paying ability of the majority of the students and if sale prices are to be kept reasonably low without decreasing the quality of the meal, budget funds must be allowed to meet food service expenses. 3. Adequate supervisory staffing Sufficient numbers of supervisory personnel are a requisite for effective operation of the food service pro- gram. Management must be able to control waste in manpower and materials by means of developing the technical skills of 53 employees. Insufficient staffing also reduces the capacity of the food service department to work with school princi- pals and teachers in correlating the educational aspect of the school lunch program. Sufficient supervision is neces- sary to help workers relate to their tasks and to the orga— nization as a whole. Management's span of supervision is affected by the capacity and skill of the workers because it requires more time and effort to supervise the untrained workers. Proper supervision is essential to control and increases the stability of an operation which is involved in continuous change. Critical shortages of supervisory personnel also limits necessary contact with other depart— ments and adversely affects communications so vital to the teamwork which the school food service operation requires. An alternative to continuing the school food service program under the auspices of the National School Lunch Act would be food services operated as a commercial enterprise with operating funds acquired from sales and a pricing policy which would insure self—supporting revenues. However, efficient food service management recognizes that small decentralized units are managed more economically with a limited menu in order to reduce labor costs. Therefore,in such a program the plate lunch might be retained in the elementary schools while the junior and senior high school units could be placed on an ala carte program outside the 54 purview of the National School Lunch Agreement and thus not restricted by its requirements. The author has attempted through this study to delineate major conflicts experienced in food service admin- istration resulting from the interaction of the philosophy and goals of the National School Lunch Act of 1946 with the social and economic forces which shape the practical operat— ing considerations of a school food service program at the local level. The author believes that through this examina- tion and report of the conflicts experienced during ten years of administering this particular school food service program, the implications for resolution of these conflicts can pro- vide pertinent information for assisting others in school food service administration. Given a parallel school envi- ronment, others will face similar administrative problems in varying degrees now and in the future as they attempt to meet the rising costs, decreased federal assistance, and demands for increased expansion of school food service while still adhering to the philosophy which has advanced the school lunch program in the United States for over twenty years. Some guidelines for policy development for those confronted with variations of the conflicts as reported here may assist in fuller realization of the purpose of a school feeding program, namely that of safeguarding the health of 55 the nation's children. The task of those responsible for administering school food service programs must have the support, through a clear policy enunciation, of those responsible for the total educational program if the goal of providing nutrition education for children is to be reached. 10. BIBLIOGRAPHY Abbott, O. D., R. O. Townsend, R. B. French, and C. F. -Ahmann. Effectiveness of the School Lunch in Improving_the Nutritional Status of School Children. Gainesville: University of Florida Agr. Expt. Sta. Bull. 426, 1946. Bryan, Mary de Garmo. The School Cafeteria. New York: F. S. Crofts and Co., 1946. Cox, Marion. "School Lunch and the Board of Education," School Lunch Journal, XIV, No. 9 (November, 1960), 58-61. Cronan, Marion L. The School Lunch. Peoria, Illinois: Charles A. Bennett Company, 1962. Federal Writers Project. Calumet Rggion Historical Guide. East Chicago, Indiana: Garmen Printing Co., 1939. Flambert, Richard. "What the Business Manager Should Know About Cafeteria Operations," The Nation's Schools, LIV, No. 12 (December, 1954), 80-86. Food Services Agreement. School City of Gary and Building Services Union Local 208, 1966—67. On file at Food Service Department, School City of Gary, Indiana. Gavian, Ruth (Wood). The School Lunch: Its Educational Contribution. Washington, D.C.: U. S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Office of Educa- tion, 1954. George, N. L., and Ruth D. Heckler. School Food Centers, A Guide to Operating the School Lunch Program. New York: The Ronald Press Co., 1960. Gessell, A., and F. L. Ilg. Child Development: An Introduction to the Study of Human Growth. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1949. 56 ll. 12. 13. 14. 15. l6. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 57 Jeffers, Myrtis Merrit. State Provisions for School Lunch Proggams: Laws and Personnel. Washington, D.C.: Federal Security Agency, Office of Educa- tion Bulletin No. 4, 1952. Linn, Henry H. School Business Administration. New York: The Ronald Press Co., 1956. Lowther, M. E., P. B. Mack, C. H. Logan, A. T. O'Brien, J. M. Smith, and P. K. Sprague. "The School Lunch as a Supplement to the Home Diet of Grade School Children," Child Develgpment, XI, No. 3 (September, 1940), 203—47. Martin, Ethel Austin. Robert's Nutrition Work with Children. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1955. McCallister, James. "Second Goal of School Feeding," The Nation's Schools, LXV, No. 2 (February, 1960), 48, 50. Moore, Powell A. The Calumet Region, Indiana's Last Frontier. Indiana Historical Collection. XXXIX, Indiana Historical Bureau, 1959. National Education Association. Health Aspects of the School Lunch Program. 2nd ed. Report of the Joint Committee on Health Problems in Education. National Education Association and the American Medical Association. Washington, D.C.: National Education .Association, 1962. Public Administration Service. The Public School System of Gary, Indiana. Chicago: Public Adminis- tration Service, 1955. School Food Service Laws, Regulations and Policies. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: PennsylvaniafiSChool Food Service Association, 1967. Southern States Work Conference. School Food Service Policies and Standards. 3rd. ed. Southern States Work Conference on Education Problems. Tallahasse, Florida: Florida State Department of Education, 1967. State of Indiana. National School Lunch Agreement, 1967. Indianapolis, Indiana: Department of Public Instruc- tion, School Lunch Division. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 58 Stokes, John W. Food Service in Industgy and Institu- tions. Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown Co., 1960. University of the State of New Ybrk. School Business Management Handbook. Albany, New Ybrk: The State Education Department, Bureau of Field Financial Services, 1955. U. S. Department of Agriculture. Chronolggical Legisla— tive History of School Lunch Program. Agricultural Marketing Service, August, 1961. U. S. Department of Agriculture. The Market for Food ig the Nation's Schools. Economic Research Service, Marketing Research Report No. 702, 1964. U. S. Department of Agriculture. .School Lunch Programs in Elementaryjand Secondary Schools of the United States. “Agricultural Marketing Service, Research Report No. 262, August, 1958. U. S. Department of Agriculture. A Yardstick for School Lunches. Interagency Commission on School Lunch, Production and Marketing Administration, Revised, 1948. United States Statutes At Largg, LX, Part 1: Public Laws - Chapter 28, June 4, 1946. Reorganization Plans, Public Law 396. Amended 1962 P.L. 87—823, 1962. Van Christierson, Jean. "Financing School Feeding Worries,“ The Nation's Schools, LXIV, No. 4 (October, Velat, C. O. Mickelsen, M. L. Hathaway, S. F. Adelson, F. L. Meyer, and B. B. Peterkin. Evaluating School Lunches and Nutritional Status of Children. Washington, D.C.: U. S. Department of Agriculture and Fed. Sec. Agency, Circ. 859, 1951. Well, 0. V. "Policies of National School Lunch Program,“ Journal of the American Dietetic Association, XXXIV, No. 8 (August, 1958), 805—809. West, Bessie Brooks, Levelle Wood, and Virginia F. Harger. Food Service in Institutions. 4th ed. New Ybrk: John.Wi1ey and Sons, Inc., 1966. Wilson, E. D., K. H. Fisher, and M. E. Fuqua. Princi- ples of Nutrition. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1965. (It... MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF HOME ECONOMICS EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN Problem M.S. 1968 KILLIGREW, Mary Catherine Conflict of Philosophical and Legal Determinants with Performance Demands in School Food Service. ICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PIN ! , 'II II III! (Him I I I I III II I II, II I iv }I III 3 1293 02533 4685