This year, the Heartland School Solutions team headed to Dallas, TX to host attendees for Connect 2026. Take a look at some of the highlights:
Keynote
To kick off the conference, attendees gathered for the keynote presentation led by Rosemary Orliss, Vice President of Heartland School Solutions, alongside members from our product and sales teams.
Rosemary acknowledged the hard work all school staff put in day after day. Whether on the nutrition team, a business administrator, or a part of the technology department, district staff are continuing to work overtime to ensure students are getting the most at school. With continued progress and innovation our team is working hard to make sure our products help to alleviate some of the workload.
The product team, Grace Geary senior director of product management, Tino Padilla Director of Project Management, and Troy Jones Senior Product Manager also spoke, showcasing some of the exciting products and features the team has been hard at work on.
Watch the full Keynote below to see more of what was covered:
Most popular classes of 2026
For the first time at Connect, we introduced new sessions led by guest speakers, Elizabeth Campbell from the School Nutrition Association (SNA), and Donna Martin, a school nutrition consultant. They shared the latest industry updates and best practices, focusing on effective advocacy for nutrition programs and the impact of new dietary guidelines on menus. This provided attendees with a unique opportunity to gain firsthand insight from SNA leaders themselves and leave with valuable knowledge to utilize throughout the rest of the school year and beyond.
As usual, there were a number of different classes being offered, too. Here’s just a few of the most popular courses attendees enjoyed this year:
See what’s coming in 2026 for MySchoolBucks
In this popular session, attendees had the chance to be the first to hear about what’s new and upcoming for MySchoolBucks this year. Our MySchoolBucks Product Managers shared exciting new features and enhancements planned for 2026, which ended with a Q&A session.
MCS Edison | Beyond Basic: Level up your item management
In this session, attendees learned important skills for success such as how to efficiently execute mass updates, strategically merge duplicate items, and how to troubleshoot complex issues that may arise.
Mosaic BOH | Smart Cookies: Unleash the potential of AI for school nutrition programs
During this class, attendees learned from our product experts how Mosaic BOH is utilizing AI to help improve the way schools feed their students. They reviewed features such as how to create menus with AI suggestions, how to utilize automation to save valuable time, and much more.
“All of the classes we attended were valuable, as well as the time allowed to connect with other child nutrition professionals. It was also valuable to be able to connect with Heartland staff. They were all extremely helpful and took the time to answer all our questions."
Biggest takeaway
This year at Connect, learning and growth, both for customers and for our products, shined at this year’s conference. While product specialists shared exciting new updates on what's to come, there was also a great emphasis on district staff members meeting and learning from each other, too. We can't wait to see what next year has in store!
“This was my first Connect and everything was unexpected but educational. It was inviting, fun, informative, and useful."