A healthy lunch is more than just a meal. It fuels young minds and supports learning and growth. Every year during the second week of October, National School Lunch Week serves as a reminder that a well-balanced lunch is an essential part of every student's day. By showcasing the importance of a healthy lunch, we can encourage better eating habits while promoting overall wellness among students.

At Heartland, we strive to deliver innovative solutions that strengthen school operations, simplify tasks for parents, and enrich the student experience through our school enablement platform. This includes MySchoolBucks, our online school commerce service that’s trusted by over 30,000 schools and millions of families nationwide.

Our school menu templates are back for the 2023-24 school year with all new designs! You can choose from four designs to showcase your daily lunch menu with ease.

In summer 2022 universal free meal waivers expired and, due to this change, many school nutrition programs are again faced with the challenge of managing student meal debt. In a November 2022 survey of school nutrition directors conducted by the School Nutrition Association, districts reported meal debt as low as $15 and as high as $1.7 million with an accumulated debt totaling over 19 million dollars nationwide. 

Choosing the right Point of Sale software for your school district can be a daunting task. With so many factors to consider, from data security to user experience, it's easy to get lost in the weeds. However, one crucial factor that often goes overlooked is how your POS software can help you deal with staff shortages.

In fact, according to the School Nutrition Association's 2023 School Nutrition Trends Report, over 90% of schools report staff shortages as a challenge. Hear from our Nutrition experts, Mike Walker and Katy Munna, as they discuss how your POS software can help alleviate the hardship of staff shortages.

Our Connect conference is our largest training event of the year! This year, we gathered together in-person in Nashville for the first time since 2019. As a Marketing Specialist here at Heartland, I had the opportunity to participate in the conference for the first time. I am thrilled to be sharing my experience at Connect 2023. 

Next week we're heading to Nashville for Connect 2023! After a two-year hiatus, Connect is back live and in person. Join us at the Nashville Marriott at Vanderbilt University to meet with product experts, attend over 30 live sessions, network with your peers, and reconnect with the Heartland team.

Connect 2023 is almost here! Join us in Nashville March 21-22 or virtually March 27-30 for our largest training conference of the year. This is your chance to learn more about your Heartland products, connect with peers, meet with product experts, and so much more. Here are a few things to look forward to:

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.

Summer has ended and a new school year is here! We look forward to serving you and the families in your community as you ramp up for your busiest time of year.

We know the start of school is a critical time for you and your staff. Our goal is to help make it as calm and stress-free as possible (though as a parent myself, I'm not sure that it is!) by anticipating your needs and questions in advance.