<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><span></span></div><div><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">Courtesy of the Salt Lake City Tribune at:</div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><br></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><a href="http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/57468293-78/lunches-olsen-lunch-district.html.csp">http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/57468293-78/lunches-olsen-lunch-district.html.csp</a></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"> </span></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">-----------------------------------</div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><div class="headline" style="padding: 0px 0px 20px; margin: 0px; font-size: 35px; line-height: 45px; font-weight: bold; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Lunches seized from kids in debt at Salt Lake City elementary</div><div class="moreInfo" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 14px; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: -1px; line-height: 23px; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Education • School officials cite unpaid balances on students’ meal accounts.</div><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Up to 40 kids at Uintah Elementary in Salt Lake City picked up their lunches Tuesday, then watched as the meals were taken and thrown away because of outstanding balances on their accounts — a move that shocked and angered parents.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“It was pretty traumatic and humiliating,” said Erica Lukes, whose 11-year-old daughter had her cafeteria lunch taken from her as she stood in line Tuesday at Uintah Elementary School, 1571 E. 1300 South.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Lukes said as far as she knew, she was all paid up. “I think it’s despicable,” she said. “These are young children that shouldn’t be punished or humiliated for something the parents obviously need to clear up.”</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Jason Olsen, a Salt Lake City District spokesman, said the district’s child-nutrition department became aware that Uintah had a large number of students who owed money for lunches.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">As a result, the child-nutrition manager visited the school and decided to withhold lunches to deal with the issue, he said.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">But cafeteria workers weren’t able to see which children owed money until they had already received lunches, Olsen explained.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The workers then took those lunches from the students and threw them away, he said, because once food is served to one student it can’t be served to another.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Children whose lunches were taken were given milk and fruit instead.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Olsen said school officials told the district that their staffers typically tell students about any balances as they go through the lunch line and send home notifications to parents each week.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The district attempted to contact parents with balances via phone Monday and Tuesday, Olsen said, but weren’t able to reach them all before the child-nutrition manager decided to take away the students’ lunches.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“Something’s not working, and that’s what the school and child-nutrition department are going to work on together,” Olsen said of the notifications.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">He said there’s no plan to use the same tactic at other district schools.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“This can be easily prevented,” Olsen said. “We need to make sure proper notification goes out to the parents and they have time to put money in the accounts.”</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">But Olsen said he would not describe the tactic as a mistake.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“If students were humiliated and upset,” Olsen said, “that’s very unfortunate and not what we wanted to happen.”</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">However, after further investigation, Olsen released an updated statement that was also posted to the district’s Facebook page. It said: “This situation could have and should have been handled in a different manner. We apologize.”</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The post adds: “We understand the feelings of upset parents and students who say this was an embarrassing and humiliating situation. We again apologize and commit to working with parents in rectifying this situation and to ensuring students are never treated in this manner again.”</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Olsen said it’s standard in the district to give kids fruit and milk in lieu of lunch if they don’t have the money to pay for lunch.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">He said it’s unclear how Uintah had been handling such situations before this week. Attempts to reach Uintah’s principal were unsuccessful.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Olsen said the district encourages parents to use its electronic system to pay for lunches and set up email notifications. He said the software for the system is new this year, though it’s not much different than the old one.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Lukes said she never received a notification that her daughter would have her lunch taken.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">She said it was a difficult day for her daughter and other kids. She said her daughter told her one of the cafeteria workers cried at the sight. And her daughter’s best friend was so upset that she went home Tuesday night and made lunches for all the students who had theirs taken, she said.</span></p><p class="TEXT_w_Indent" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“You would think in a public school system your child wouldn’t be turned away from lunch,” Lukes said, “especially when people usually settle their balances.”</span></p></div><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;">-----------------------------------<br><br><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"Moscow Cares" (the most fun you can have with your pants on)</span></div><div><a href="http://www.moscowcares.com/" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font color="#000000">http://www.MoscowCares.com</font></a></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> </span></div><div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Tom Hansen</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Moscow, Idaho</span></div></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"There's room at the top they are telling you still.</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">But first you must learn to smile as you kill,</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">If you want to be like the folks on the hill."</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">- John Lennon</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> </span></div></div></div></body></html>