The May 5 operations committee meeting of the Salisbury Township school board opened with an in-depth presentation by Nic Correa, or “Chef Nic” as he likes to be called, director of child nutrition for the district.

He started with a sincere thank you and acknowledgment of the Salisbury food service staff saying, “We have a great staff here at Salisbury. They make it wonderful to come to work every single day.” He continued by thanking the board for hiring a team consisting of people that want to pitch in and be successful.

To put things in perspective, Correa established that during a normal year there would be about 14 staff who served 750 meals. This year, 10 staff served about 430 meals. The team has been offering in-person, five day a week meals as well as curbside service to remote and hybrid learners.

From April through August last year, 550 curbside meals were issued, with distribution service at two campuses. They offered only a straight-serve menu of breakfast and lunch items and made use of on hand product whenever possible, which aided the process by requiring minimal purchasing and cooking.

When school returned to session in the fall, Correa saw an opportunity to test various offerings through meal service in the absence of students in the building. Options like Nutrislice were implemented to bring ease and convenience to community families.

The team also periodically reviewed menu items and packaging in order to identify areas for cost savings to the district or for areas to improve the ease of process.

When discussing the opportunities and obstacles of operating the food program over the past year and half in the midst of a pandemic, Correa listed community participation as both a success and a challenge. He noted families have been incredibly appreciative of having the food options available.

The board issued appreciation for Correa and his team. “Kudos to you, Nick and your staff. I want to thank you and your staff for feeding our students,” board member Carol Klinger said.

Board member Sarah Nemitz asked what Correa needed to be able to better serve families with food insecurities. He said he faces the challenge of identifying individuals and families who have a need. He said often people don’t want to participate because they don’t want to take from anybody else.

Correa wants the community to know that’s not the case, and the more supplemental nutritional services the district can provide, the better.

Next, Tara Mossman, coordinator of human resources for the district, presented a possible solution to substitute shortages in the district.

In the era of a global pandemic, staffing shortages have become commonplace and Mossman said, “This year has been challenging recruiting and hiring substitutes.” She informed the board of the option of working in concert with an organization called School Operation Services Group. The staffing solution is composed of retired administrators who are familiar with students’ educational needs. Mossman said several options were investigated, but SOS Group was the organization most amenable to working within Salisbury’s existing needs.

The district currently has four substitutes, five nurse assistant substitutes and no custodial substitutes. The benefit of using a service such as SOS Group is it allows the district to utilize its existing substitutes, but when a need arises beyond the established pool, SOS would be there to provide coverage.

Board members responded tentatively, explaining hiring from within the district would be the ideal best practice. The initiative will be brought to a vote during the June board meeting.

Chief Financial Officer and Board Secretary Michael Taylor also provided an update on the proposed final budget.

With current funding and adjustments from recent developments, the budget deficit has been eliminated. Taylor cautioned the board about the zero balance; however, mentioning this was achieved based on one-time government funds and the sale of old technology assets within the district.

Creating balanced budgets in the future will remain a challenge. One proactive solution, he mentioned, was to use government allocated funds to improve technology infrastructure in the district, which later down the line could become an imposing cost for Salisbury.