Menu calendars are a staple to any school nutrition program. Whether they're available in print or online, parents at your school district check them regularly. The design of your menu calendars give you the opportunity to portray your program's personality while offering important information in a clear and concise way.

Here are 7 steps to help spice up the look and feel of your school menu calendars:

The history of school lunch programs in America is anything but brief.  The Children's Aid Society began feeding hungry, needy school children in New York City as far back as 1853.  But it wasn't until the late 19th century that some major US cities, including Philadelphia and Boston, started their own school lunch programs.  Over the next century, authors, war, and politics continued to shape the school lunch program into what we know it as today.

Coming up with new, healthy recipes for school cafeterias can be challenging to say the least.  Fortunately, many states and organizations across the country have developed cookbooks full of nutritious recipes school kids will love.

Here are 13 of our favorite school cookbooks that feature plenty of locally sourced ingredients and flavors from around the globe:

For many people (including myself), talking about data protection can be a boring topic.  Like buying insurance for your car or house, we don't want to think about the consequences of not having it until something goes wrong.  Well, the same logic applies to your program data.  Whether your district uses a Point of Sale (POS), Menu Planning or Inventory solution, making sure your data stays safe is paramount.

Project Bread is a non-profit organization based in Boston, MA that strives to “bring a fresh approach to ending hunger”. With a dedicated group of public educators, thought leaders, nutrition professionals, and loyal donors, Project Bread has grown to become a huge player and catalyst in the fight for ending hunger.

One of their primary initiatives is providing schools with resources that help them serve healthy meals to our students every day. In Project Bread’s Let’s Cook Healthy School Meals Cookbook, they generously provide 100 healthy, satisfying, kid-approved recipes for schools across the nation.