Population growth in the communities feeding into Jefferson County Public Schools(Jeffco), the second largest school district in Colorado, led to a new school for students in kindergarten to eighth grades: Three Creeks K-8 Schoolin Arvada, Colo. Project goals for the dining program included creating an inviting school meal environment and providing efficient work space for foodservice staff.

The new kitchen, servery and dining room at this Jackson, Miss., middle school use contemporary technologies for a more efficient child nutrition program.

Despite growing participation rates and increased governmental demands, school foodservice providers continue to leverage a battery of heavy-duty foodservice equipment to provide students with healthy meal options.

A kitchen serving new elementary and middle schools brings efficiencies to the child nutrition program at Jackson Public Schools.

Burke to help lead Just 4 Schools program.

There's no question the school foodservice landscape has changed dramatically in the last year and continues to do so. In fact, many trends and movements in school foodservice have opened up new, untapped areas for designers and management advisory services consultants, from creating college-level serveries to helping reduce waste through more scratch cooking and other initiatives.

Thanks to USDA mandates, there is a greater push among K-12 schools to provide fresher, better-for-you meal options. As a result, the equipment packages these foodservice operators now emphasize multi-use items and cold and hot-food holding.

In order to meet new USDA mandates, school foodservice operators are learning how to better leverage their equipment packages to make the most of their often tight budgets.

Just like their parents, children in the U.S. have expanded their food repertoire.