BLAINE, Wash. — Speed matters as the cooks at Blaine Elementary school serve up hot food to hundreds of hungry kids that will line up during six lunch periods.
“I need to get these kids through in about ten minutes,” said Sue Wozniak, who has worked for the Blaine School District in Whatcom County for 26 years.
The goal, as she whips out piles of mashed potatoes and gravy onto trays, is to get kids as much time as possible to sit and eat their lunches.
A KING 5 survey earlier this year found that most school districts are falling short of the recommended time for students to sit and eat their lunch. Twenty-one of the 26 school districts that responded to the survey said they have at least one school with a 20 minute or shorter lunch period (five schools did not respond to repeated requests from KING 5).
The Centers for Disease Control and many nutritional experts said kids should have at least 20 minutes in their seat to eat their meal after they get their food.
Blaine has found a way to make it work.
In addition to a speedy pair of cooks, including Wozniak, administrators have resorted to creative scheduling to get all classes a 25-minute lunch period.
“It’s extremely difficult because there are so many demands on their time elsewhere. We cannot compromise on educational time,” said Blaine School District Nutrition Director Brenda Bowles.
The pinch on lunch scheduling is especially pronounced in elementary schools where a new state law requires elementary students receive at least 30 minutes of recess during the school day.
Blaine received a state waiver that allowed them to break recess into two 15 minutes sessions so that the 25-minute lunch period could fit into the jigsaw puzzle of a schedule.
Without that waiver, which may be unavailable next year, Blaine Elementary may be like other schools with a 20-minute lunch.
“That’s gonna be tough, and we’re in the exact same boat as all the other districts,” said Bowles.
The five additional minutes that Blaine eked out for lunch can make a big difference.
“When kids had more time to eat, especially when they had at least 25 minutes of seated time in the cafeteria, kids are significantly more of their meals,” said Dr. Juliana Cohen, a Harvard adjunct professor and nutrition researcher at Merrimack College.
Her team is working on a project in Alaska studying the impact of a 30-minute lunch period in the Anchorage School District. She says kids eat the healthier food on their trays when they have more time and dump fewer fruits and vegetables.
She says that makes them better learners. “We’ve also been looking at other things like classroom behavior, hunger-related visits to the school nurse (and) looking at disciplinary referrals to the principal,” Cohen said of the Alaska study.
Adding to the lunchtime pressures, the expansion of free and reduced breakfasts and lunches at school has contributed to longer lines for hot food and shorter seat time.
At Blaine Primary, which schools kindergartners through second grade, more creative planning has led to 30-minute periods. Students visit a small kitchen and salad bar to pick up their food and then return to the classroom to eat for a half hour.
Bowles notices a difference with the increased time. "They take longer to eat. The atmosphere is more relaxed,” she said of the classroom environment. “When they transition back to learning time, they can still be finishing up and munching on the last carrot.”
Could Washington lunch periods get even shorter?
In late November, the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction proposed a new rule that will make lunch scheduling even more difficult for Washington’s 295 school districts.
A public hearing has been scheduled for Jan. 14 on a plan to require schools give students at least 20 minutes of “seated time” to eat their lunch. That would require 20 minutes, in addition to the time kids need to get to the lunchroom, stand in line, and clean up.
Dr. Cohen says administrators can make it work by carving out time in academic schedules. “There are going to be maybe five minutes less of English, five minutes less of math, but what we’re hearing from teachers is that the students are better learners,” she said.
That solution may not sit well with administrators, who worry that cuts to learning time could result in a drop in test scores – the ultimate measure of a school district success.
“The reality of how we’re judged is by how people report our student’s academic performance on school report cards across the state and (through) federal accountability,” said Dr. Christopher Granger, Superintendent of Blaine School District. He says there was a push in the district to get more lunch time for kids, but requiring a longer lunch period could be a problem.
“Where do you get the minutes from? I think that’s something that all schools are probably challenged with in different ways,” Granger said.
The state’s proposed 20-minute rule will likely see support from parents and some nutrition experts, but face pushback from districts.
“I’m the nutrition director, so I want them to have 30 minutes, of course. I want them to have as long as they need, but I also recognize that’s a challenge,” said Bowles.
Anyone wishing to view or make comments for the Jan. 14 virtual hearing can register at this address here.