How’s the school lunch kids?

I read the school lunch menu's every morning here at KSEN and everything seems fine, but that's not what I'm hearing out on the street.  Last week when we talked to Shelby Student Council President Caydon Keller, he noted that they planned on using the $25-hundred dollars from Shopko (nice gesture by the way) to start a school store with lunch provisions in the store.   He noted that the students weren't basically very happy with the lunch.

Later on in the week I hear more about students unhappiness due to the lack of taste and portions that are being provided.

The real spur for writing this blog came when State Senator Lew Jones in Conrad advised us of some specifics.  He related the story of his active daughter who he says will lift weights on Monday morning 5:45 to 6:30, go to basketball practice from 6:30-7:45 am, begin school at 8:30 and then after school go to tennis from 4:30 to 5:30.

Now, I didn't realize that schools have limited lunch to a maximum of 650 calories, which Senator Jones says may be appropriate for a less active person, but now requires that his daughter take extra food to school.      I have heard the same thing in Shelby.  And, what of the child, Jones says whose family does not prepare breakfast, or perhaps simply cannot afford breakfast or dinner.    Jones reports that many of the local schools are now seeing reductions in the students eating lunch at school and, of course, this causes other concerns.

Jones concludes by saying, "how disappointing that our local control has once again been eliminated by big government in the name of helping all of us, and how disappointing that montanans meekly accept this intrusion.

Jones says he would suggest having the parents, schools, and trustees ask State School Superintendent Denise Juneau to resist these types of federal mandates.

This won't be the last we hear about this, I have to go buy some groceries.