Poudre School District Nutrition Director Receives Regional Award

The national, non-profit School Nutrition Association (SNA) has named Craig Schneider, Director of Child Nutrition for Poudre School District, Colorado, the Mountain Plains region Director of the Year. The award recognizes the extraordinary contributions of school nutrition directors who manage effective school meal programs providing healthy, appetizing meals to students.

Craig Schneider has transformed the child nutrition department by promoting outstanding customer and employee satisfaction, exhibiting superb financial management and ensuring the highest degree of safety. Under Schneider, the district's special diet program has become one of the most extensive in the industry, incorporating a variety of menus daily to accommodate common dietary needs as well as religious and customer preferences. The nutrition department offers one-on-one consultation services to students and parents.

Schneider has evolved breakfast and lunch menus, regularly offering a minimum of six fresh fruits and vegetables daily, including non-traditional fruit and vegetables monthly. All 50 schools in the district offer all-you-can-eat fresh fruit and vegetable bars. The district has an extensive ingredient database where parents can see exactly what is in the food being served. Schneider's implementation of the database has also led to reductions in additives from menus.

Schneider believes healthy lifestyles start with eating properly. He encourages the district's registered dietitians to speak to classes about topics such as differences in healthy dieting and fad diets for adolescents, dealing with food allergies, as well as assessing sugar levels of popular beverages and considering healthier alternatives.

Schneider started a Physical Fitness and Nutrition Advisory Committee of local physicians, parents, students and university professors to provide feedback on everything from ingredients on the menus to the outreach of the meal program. Schneider also implemented a showcase event called Taste of Poudre School District for the community to meet nutrition team members, learn nutritional info and sample school meals.

Schneider found ways to engage district students with an annual Kids Cooking Celebration to show off their culinary skills around a healthy recipes theme. Past contest themes include My Favorite Dinner, No-Bake After School Snacks and My Attempt at My Favorite Restaurant Food. The school board, superintendent, parents and students' teachers are invited to the cook-off.

Knowing the benefits of school meals, Schneider has been an advocate for universal school meals in the community and the state, helping to champion Colorado's recent successful efforts. He looks forward to assisting schools in this transition back to providing free meals for all.

“Craig Schneider is an advocate for child nutrition whose actions on the local, state and federal levels show his deep commitment to providing the healthiest school meals possible for the students in his community,” said SNA President Lori Adkins, MS, SNS, CHE.

Scheider believes in the benefits of School Nutrition Association membership, which has given him the chance to meet with former First Lady Michelle Obama as well as members of Congress to discuss school meals. He also understands the benefits for employees to gain networking and training experiences through SNA. He championed for the school district to pay for staff members to join SNA and helped get them more opportunities to attend conferences and trainings.

The Director of the Year Award was created to recognize school nutrition directors who exhibit an extraordinary commitment to their school meal programs. The directors are responsible for maintaining the quality of the program through student interaction, menu planning and a commitment to serving nutritious, tasty and well-balanced school meals. Through effective oversight of all aspects of food service operations, including budgeting, staffing, training, marketing and community outreach, school nutrition directors ensure the overall success of school meal programs.

Schneider was announced as the Mountain Plains region Director of the Year during an online awards ceremony on May 2 in advance of School Lunch Hero Day, celebrated on May 5, 2023, to honor all of America’s dedicated school nutrition professionals. The accomplishments of Schneider and all SNA award winners will also be highlighted in a special publication and promoted in SNA's annual Hero Day social media campaign on Facebook.com/TrayTalk and TrayTalk.org.

About School Nutrition Association:
The School Nutrition Association (SNA) is a national, non-profit professional organization representing 50,000 school nutrition professionals across the country. Founded in 1946, SNA and its members are dedicated to making healthy school meals and nutrition education available to all students. For more information on school meals, visit www.SchoolNutrition.org/SchoolMeals.