Students forced to throw school-provided lunches away

[redheadbaker]

Sorry, couldn't get the full headline in the thread title. I get that the vendor should be paid for their service and the food they provide. But make the kids go hungry? 

Students with no lunch credit told to throw school lunches away

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Students at Robert J. Coelho Middle School in Attleboro were told to throw their school lunches away if they didn't have lunch credit.

School officials told FOX 25 that employees of the school lunch vendor, Whitsons School Nutrition, denied lunches to students with outstanding balances or forced them to throw their lunches away over the last two weeks.

One fifth grader tells FOX 25 she was told to throw out her lunch before she could even take a bite.

"They told me to throw it away because I didn't have enough money in my account," says Victoria Greaves.

Greaves' father, John, said he has never had an issue, but this incident was enough to make him angry.

Coelho Middle School Principal Andy Boles told FOX 25 that he became aware of the situation at about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday after an angry parent contacted him. He immediately launched an investigation.

Boles said that Whitsons told him about deficient accounts at the beginning of the year and offered to pass along a statement to parents. Boles said the company never gave him the statement.

The principal also said the school his taking corrective action and that he has met with at least 15 upset students, as well as the cafeteria workers responsible.

"They apologized for their actions," says Boles of the cafeteria workers. "Their intent was not to humiliate or upset the students, which I stated to them they had done."

In a statement to FOX 25, Whitsons said that they regret how their employees handled the situation.

"We regret that these students were denied meals and agree that this situation should have been handled differently," said Whitsons. "We apologize to the students and the community for this incident and are conducting a full investigation."

Boles said it was "unacceptable" that any student go without a lunch.

Whitsons said they are working on a policy to handle future unpaid debt and said that no child will go without a meal in the meantime, regardless of outstanding balances.

The superintendent tells FOX 25 she has placed the on-site director on administrative leave as the investigation continues.

www.myfoxphilly.com/story/21872106/cashier-denies-school-lunch-credit-to-students-orders-others-to-throw-lunch-out

[Deleted]

 WTMF.

[gpw]

[AJL]

Seriously!?   

[gpw]

It's abusive, really. Who had the fucking brilliant idea, is what I'd like to know. "Oh, they have no money in their account? NO SOUP FOR YOU!". I mean, really. We're talking about kids here. Middle school kids, FFS. They have no control over whether they have money in their fucking lunch accounts.

[cattledogkisses]

When is forcing children to go without food EVER an appropriate response to something?

[mominatrix]

What the everlovingfuck is the point of giving them food that they then have to throw away?

[ttt]

WTF? I don't even understand the point of this, apart from sheer sadism.

If they only had enough lunches for the kids who had prepaid for them, sure, that makes sense. But serving a lunch and making them throw it away?? Who does that benefit??

I'm so sad for these kids and furious at this company.

[gpw]

Apr 4, 2013 15:45:35 GMT -5 tillie said:

Such a strange story. Apparently when the "child" doesn't have enough to cover lunch, they are supposed to get a cheese sandwich and milk until it's resolved, that's fine, but throw out the lunch and get nothing? Yeah, that's makes a lot of sense, lol.

Small tangent....I don't think that's "fine" anymore than what this company did.  There is just as much stigma attached.  Yeah, the kid gets to eat, but it's still humiliating.  

[Deleted]

Really? If their point wasn't to humiliate and starve them, what exactly was the point? Assholes.

[meshaliuknits]

Apr 4, 2013 16:47:24 GMT -5 gpw said:

Apr 4, 2013 15:45:35 GMT -5 tillie said:

Such a strange story. Apparently when the "child" doesn't have enough to cover lunch, they are supposed to get a cheese sandwich and milk until it's resolved, that's fine, but throw out the lunch and get nothing? Yeah, that's makes a lot of sense, lol.

Small tangent....I don't think that's "fine" anymore than what this company did.  There is just as much stigma attached.  Yeah, the kid gets to eat, but it's still humiliating.  

If only we could grill those suckers. Everyone would be happy because everyone would be eating grilled cheese at lunch. Well, except the lactose intolerant kids.

[pedanticwench]

This truly is outrageous. What were these fucks thinking?

[miniroller]

Apr 4, 2013 17:16:14 GMT -5 NewOrleans said:

It's like they got together and brainstormed the absolute worst way to handle kids with overdrawn lunch accounts. Shaking my head.

AGREED!!!
'You know what'll really get them?! If we put it in front of their hungry little faces, & them make them toss it!! YEAH...'
What??? I wish that every person who took part in this ordeal was left unemployed. Grrr!!!!

[penguingrrl]

WTMF? On top of how assholish it is to punish kids for something they have no control over, isn't this also teaching them that it's better to throw food out than give it to poor people?

[Dumbledork]

Were there not any teachers on lunch duty that saw this happening and could stop it? How did the principal not hear about this until 4:30?? WTF, all around.

[KateAggie]

I'm glad to see such a strong response from the principal.  It sounds like he handed some people their asses.

[Knight]

That's just fucking evil.

[mrslefty]

In middle school there may very well be no teachers in the lunchroom. That's how it is in our middle and high schools. And in my limited experience, I wouldn't trust the most of the lunch staff to handle kids with respect.
We got a new cashier this year, mid year. Something like 98% of our kids get free or reduced lunch, and yet if the kids needed new paperwork she tried to make them go with out lunch. Even after we explained that they could have a sandwich and anything from the fruit and vegetable bar. Luckily teachers stay for lunch and we were able to use our accounts to pay for kids that day, until our principal could sort it out at the end of the day. She has the audacity to complain that she doesn't feel like teachers support her....

[Velar Fricative]

What the fuckety fuck???

So the company makes a mistake themselves when they didn't give the principal a statement to give to the families in the beginning of the year, and then waits until April to do this, with nothing else happening for most of the school year? Something isn't right here.

In any case, what a waste of food and punishing kids like this makes me ragey.

[BNL2]

This is disgusting. I can understand how anyone with any decency can take food from a child and throw it away.

[cc]

This enrages me. It's not the kids' fault that there isn't money on their account.