Staying in touch
Communication with other district departments will be essential, Bauscher says, and as officials continue to map out their plans for the fall, she is making sure that the foodservice team has a say in the decision-making process. “We must be at the table when those decisions are made,” Bauscher says. “In other words, the district cannot allow principals to come in and say, ‘This is the way I want foodservice to work in my building.’ We have to say, ‘No, here's how it's going work.’”
The nutrition team is also prioritizing internal communication. Each week, Bauscher sends out a newsletter to keep the team up to date. “I think one of the biggest worries is the fear of the unknown for our employees and our department,” Edington says, “and we think that [the newsletter] helps tremendously.”
Doubling down on communicating safety procedures is another big focus, Ellnor says. The district recently had a number of custodians say they would not return to work when they were supposed to due to safety concerns. “Over 200 [custodians] called out and said, ‘We're not coming back to work. We don't feel comfortable.’ So, with 1,000 employees in our district, we're going have to be very hyper vigilant in indicating those safety pieces,” he says.
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