Category Archives: Nutrition Services

HISD Nutrition Services earns top 10 spot in international challenge

HISD’s Nutrition Services Department is committed to mitigating inequity in childhood nutrition in the Houston area. Since the inception of Mykawa Farm, home to the department’s Food and Agriculture Literacy Center, Nutrition Services has prioritized practical and tangible uses for the education they provide through the Get Growing Houston program.

Nutrition Services recently took their ideas to a global stage, reaching top 10 in the Healthy Childhood Challenge (HCC). The international competition launched by Novo Nordisk in collaboration with UNICEF calls for ideas designed to improve the nutritional, physical, and emotional well-being of children in their home environments.

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HISD asking parents to complete socioeconomic form for the 2022-2023 school year

The Houston Independent School District will provide free breakfast and lunch to students in the Community Eligibility Provision Program (CEP) for the 2022-2023 school year, but all parents/caregivers will still need to fill out a new socioeconomic form (SIF).

It can be completed online via the HISD Parent Portal or submitted in a paper form to their campus.

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HISD to continue offering free and reduced-price meals to students

Houston Independent School District will continue its policy to operate the Community Eligibility Provision Program (CEP) under the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program for the 2022-2023 school year.

Schools qualifying to operate CEP serve breakfast and lunch to all children at no charge and eliminate the collection of meal applications for free, reduced-price, and paid student meals. This approach reduces burdens for both families and school administrators and helps ensure that students receive nutritious meals.

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Burbank MS cafeteria manager celebrated with June Customer Service Impact Award

When Burbank Middle School Cafeteria Manager Rosalyn Parks was led into a meeting room with her eyes covered, she had no idea what was waiting for her. The room was decorated with garlands of balloons, some spelling out “CONGRATS.”

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Food service attendant honored with May Customer Service Impact Award on School Lunch Hero Day

Yabidia Guerra was worried that she was in trouble when Principal Jose Santos and Instructional Specialist Roberto Leyva told her they needed to speak with her in the cafeteria on Friday, May 6.  But, when she walked in, the food service attendant at Middle College High School at Felix Fraga was received by a room full of her cheering colleagues as she was presented with the May 2022 Customer Service Impact Award.

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Waltrip HS honors school lunch heroes

Waltrip High School wrapped up Teacher Appreciation Week on Friday, May 6, with the presentation of a proclamation from Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner recognizing School Lunch Hero Day. It’s a day of celebration in honor of HISD’s dedicated Nutrition Services staff and the lasting impact their work has on the students they feed every day.

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Lamar senior teaches students about bees at HISD farm

Amongst the blooming plants and swarming insects that lay claim to a sprawling green space in Southwest Houston, stood the youngest of instructors who was developing a buzz all her own.

In her final weeks as a senior at Lamar High School, Lisa Rollinson was tapped to lead educational workshops for nearly two dozen students at the Food and Agriculture Literacy Center at Mykawa Farm.

As one of just five experts selected for the job, Rollinson received the honor after being designated by the Texas Department of Agriculture as one of 12 Health Ambassadors for a Ready Texas. The designation recognizes teens who advocate for healthy lifestyles.

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HISD launching summer meals program with 10 curbside pickup sites

Find out more about how to get no-cost healthy summer meals

The Houston Independent School District is launching its 2021 summer meals program this week, in conjunction with the start of summer school.

As part of the summer meals program, Nutrition Services will host weekly curbside student meal pickup at 10 of the district’s highest-need campuses. The distributions will be held at the end of each week and provide students with meals for the weekend, as well as hand sanitizer and reusable masks.

Weekend meals also will be provided to students enrolled in summer school. They will receive no-cost breakfast and lunch at school each day as well as meals to take home for the weekend at the end of each week.

“As we have learned from this past year, we have an overabundance of students from food-insecure households in HISD,” Nutrition Services Officer Betti Wiggins said. “I’m grateful that we’re able to provide this program to help ensure our students continue to have access to good food through the summer.”

Campus curbside pickup locations include:

  • Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technical Center, 9400 Irvington Blvd.
  • Northside High School, 1101 Quitman St.
  • Furr High School, 500 Mercury Drive
  • Chavez High School, 8501 Howard Drive
  • Milby High School, 1601 Broadway St.
  • Washington High School, 4204 Yale
  • Braeburn Elementary School, 5550 Pine St.
  • Bonham Elementary School, 8302 Braes River Drive
  • Almeda Elementary School, 14226 Almeda Road
  • Jane Long Academy, 6501 Bellaire Blvd.

The first curbside pickup will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. on Friday, June 18. Students will receive two days’ worth of breakfast and lunch to eat over the weekend.

Beginning Thursday, June 24, all remaining pickups will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. on Thursdays to better align with the district’s summer work schedule. On Thursdays, students will receive three days’ worth of breakfast and lunch to eat over the weekend.

The program is slated to run through the end of summer school.

For more information or to find a curbside pickup location near you, visit HoustonISD.org/StudentMeals.