Nutrition education initiatives, while tough to fit into a busy schedule, are crucial reinforcements of your school meal mission.

School nutrition professionals may not be classified as instructional staff, but they are educators in their own right. In many cases, the cafeteria is going to be the best—or perhaps only—place where students learn how good, healthy food nourishes their bodies and their minds.

Of course, with so many other responsibilities to manage, it’s tough for even the most well-intentioned school nutrition team to take on the task of nutrition education. Here, representatives of five school nutrition departments share why it’s important for them to take a leadership role in nutrition education, along with how they’ve incorporated inventive initiatives into meal offerings—even triumphing over pandemic-related obstacles...