Page 4 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, November 12, 2021 MALDEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS NOTEBOOK: K-8 parents want spotlight on food service, quality of school meals MPS to lead forums on diversity and equity for parents, caregivers & students; Malden High Info Night to include 7th- and 8th-graders By Steve Freker T he administration and School Committee had already planned on a close analysis of the food services provided to the Malden Public Schools, anyway. But after Monday night’s Malden School Committee meeting, where several parents Gerry D’Ambrosio Attorney-at-Law Is Your Estate in Order? Do you have an update Will, Health Care Proxy or Power of Attorney? If Not, Please Call for a Free Consultation. 14 Proctor Avenue, Revere (781) 284-5657 WE CAN HELP PAY YOUR HEATING BILLS! You may qualify for ABCD’s Fuel Assistance Program and be eligible for as much as $600 towards your heating costs (oil, gas, or electric). Maximum benefit is $600 Household of 1 = $40,951 Household of 2 = $53,551 Household of 3 = $66,151 Household of 4 = $78,751 Cold days are coming. ABCD’s got you covered. Voter Registration Drive: from left, Eric Chen, Ethan Wong, Lauren Mallet and Justin Long of the Malden High School Civics Club conducted a successful Voter Registration Driver at MHS. (Advocate Photo) mittee at a previous meeting agreed to examine and determine the scope of the district’s wishes and needs as the new contract goes out to bid. Ward 3 School Committee Member Jennifer Spadafora had previously taken the helm of the task, and this designation was confirmed at Monday night’s Malden School Committee meeting. At Monday’s School CommitAPPLY TODAY! Last day to apply is April 30, 2022 Residents of Boston, Brookline, and Newton: 178 Tremont Street, Boston, MA — 617.357.6012 Residents of Malden, Medford, Everett, Melrose, Stoneham, Winchester and Woburn: 18 Dartmouth Street, Malden, MA — 781.322.6284 tee meeting, during the public comment segment, several Malden K-8 parents, from both the Beebe and Forestdale Schools, criticized the food services being provided at this time in those schools – both the breakfast and lunch offerings. In the Malden Public Schools, all breakfast and lunch meals are available to all students free of charge. But despite this availability and the convenience of having the foods prepared and served at school, one parent said she often serves her children breakfast at home and frequently sends a homemade lunch off to school with them. “Half my home budget is already spent on groceries,” Kerry Long, a Forestdale parent, said. “Of course, I would like to save money on groceries and have my kids eat the school meals, but I have concerns over the nutritional value of the meals.” “The pizza sauce [on one slice of pizza] has more than half the recommended sugar that my child is supposed to have on a daily basis,” she said. “I’m very unhappy with the school lunches.” Another parent, Amanda Linehan, whose children attend the Beebe School, said she is pleased School Committee Member Spadafora is “putting s critical eye on [MPS] food service.” Linehan, how is also the recently reelected Ward 3 Councillor, said she and her children throughout the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and part of 2021 picked up the school lunches at Beebe along with many others on a daily basis. “It was a way to have myself and my kids keep a connection to their school.” Since the return to in-person learning, Linehan said, “I have observed quality is deteriorating” in the school lunches. “I am grateful member Spadafora is taking this on. This [school food service] is a huge issue I hear about from my constituents.” The Beebe School eighth-graders specifically asked if the older students, like sixth-, seventh– and even some Beebe School eighth-graders – addressed the members, count on an even wider, deeper lens. With the food service contract with Whitsons Culinary Group, which has served the Malden Public Schools for a while, expiring at the end of the 202021 school year, the School Com
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