Reproduction without permission is prohibited. A trip through lunch lines in some schools today can be comparable to a quick stop by the food court in a mall. Choices chicken soup or nuggets, pan pizzas or pasta salads have jumped from restaurant menus onto the place mats of students around Hamilton County. Schools are celebrating their cafeteria aides and initiating new programs this week during National Lunch Week 2000, which began Sunday. Many schools in Hamilton County are taking part in an Offer vs. Serve Program that provides students with one third of the nutrients they need each day.
Students choose one meat, two servings of vegetables or fruits, one serving of bread and a drink.
About 75 to 80 percent of the 360 students at White River Elementary School in Noblesville choose to eat school lunches and participate in the new initiative. Emily Benefiel made her way through the lunch line Monday, picking and choosing her meal for the day. The school's pizza is my favorite. Barb Tomlinson, the school's cafeteria manager, said it is important to offer students something the want. Not only do we want them to buy the lunch, we want them to eat the lunch.