Understanding the day-to-day health of your K-12 food service operation is essential to ensuring its success. The right set of operational metrics can help you determine if you might be missing out on potential revenue, if your serving lines are running smoothly, and if your labor and food dollars are being used most effectively.

Below is a practical framework around five key operational areas:

Budgets are tight, food and labor costs are volatile, and staffing is hard. In this challenging environment, school nutrition programs can’t afford to run in the red for very long. Tracking every meal sold does more than tidy up reports. It protects revenue, speeds service, reduces waste, and strengthens compliance. The good news is most of this can be managed with a modern cafeteria POS (point of sale) solution.

Every year, school districts all across the country release multiple Request for Proposals (RFPs) to procure a full range of goods and services including cafeteria food purchases, equipment, office supplies, technology services, and more.  While RFPs play an essential role in the buying process, they are also very time-consuming and costly to develop. That’s why many districts are increasingly turning to purchasing cooperatives to simplify the entire procurement process.

Our school menu templates are back for the 2022-23 school year with all new designs! With three designs to choose from, these templates are the perfect way to showcase what's for lunch each day.

Our school menu templates are back for the 2021-22 school year with all new designs! With three designs to choose from, these templates are the perfect way to showcase what's for lunch each day.

Throughout the year, we shared many helpful tips and hints to help you get the most from your program. Here's just some of our favorites from 2019:

In 2018 mobile commerce sales in the U.S. reached a record $208 billion, representing over 39% of all ecommerce sales. This year, that figure is expected to grow to over $270 billion.

Afterschool programs play an essential role in boosting academic performance, promoting physical health, and creating a safe environment for children of working parents.  If you're a teacher or director who operates one of these programs, you know how much work goes into keeping children engaged.

Here are five websites we found that are packed with tons of free (and fun!) activities for kids:

MySchoolBucks is excited to honor the 850,000+ afterschool professionals nationwide who are dedicated to enriching children's lives during out-of-school hours. We are proud to partner with several afterschool programs, and in celebration wish all staff a Happy Afterschool Professionals Appreciation Week! With an estimated 10.2 million children participating each year, afterschool programs play a vital role in enhancing education, promoting physical and emotional health, providing a safe environment and exposing youth to new experiences.

I'm sure no one will be shocked to hear that Farm to School has been growing in popularity over the last few years.  So much so, that a recent national Farm to School Census conducted by the USDA, showed that roughly 42% of all districts surveyed participate in farm to school activities.  

These programs include serving local foods in school meals, holding taste tests and food demonstrations showcasing local foods, and planning student field trips to farms or orchards.  Another 16% of school districts surveyed plan to start farm to school activities in the future.