What Skills Does it Take to Shine in School Food?
August 20, 2025
Across California, kids are headed back to school. From San Diego to Mount Shasta and everywhere in between, School Food Professionals are there to meet the demand, providing tasty meals that give children the nutrition they need to succeed. Every parent knows how challenging it is to come up with varied recipes, ensure they’re healthy and match them to their child’s taste. School Food Professionals do that for hundreds of kids or more, two to three times a day.
It takes a lot of skills to work in school food. The job is equal parts art and science. It requires the imagination to explore new recipes. It takes planning and organizational skills to standardize and replicate them across multiple school sites. And, of course, it calls for culinary expertise to perfectly cook those fresh and healthy dishes, all while adhering to department budgets. We asked School Food Professionals from across California about what they think are some of the most important skills needed to plan, cook and serve school meals:
Staying Organized
Cooking for thousands of students isn’t something a person can do on the fly. At each step in the process, there are many details, and members of the school food team have to keep track of them all. “To serve about 1,500 breakfasts, 2,700 lunches, more than 1,000 suppers on a daily basis, it takes a lot of organizational skills,” said Michelle Pruitt Roybal, Nutrition Services Supervisor at Azusa Unified School District. “I have to keep track of the different dishes we’re making and how many pans we need to produce, as well as make sure we’ve got all the spices, ingredients and everything that’s needed for nine schools. Then the next day, I get up and do it again. I love it!”
Understanding What Students Want on Their Trays
To make the meals that students love, School Food Professionals need to start with the flavors and foods they like. To do that, School Food Professionals need to know who students are and what foods they enjoy. That could mean creating dishes that connect with students’ cultural backgrounds, like pozole or chana masala, or whipping up healthier versions of classic cafeteria foods like spicy chicken wings. But the best way to find out what flavors hit the spot is to ask students directly. At Oxnard Union High School District, that can even include digital surveys about new recipes. “We love getting student feedback that way,” says Assistant Director of Nutrition Services Sarah Phillips. “We want our menu to be tailored to them, so they enjoy the foods they’re being offered.”
Flexing Creativity
In the school kitchen, creativity reigns supreme. Whether developing fresh, healthy and tasty recipes, creating exciting menus that keep kids coming back for more, or coming up with approaches that reduce waste and make their programs more sustainable, School Food Professionals have endless opportunities to share their innovative ideas. Just ask Live Oak School District Director of Child Nutrition Kelsey Perusse. She turned a seasonal surplus of kale into a brand new recipe that’s a hit with students. “It’s fun to see them get so excited,” Kelsey said. “You don’t usually expect to hear a third grader shouting ‘It’s kale pesto day!’”
Continuous Improvement
To keep up with changing trends, tastes, and approaches, School Food Professionals have to be students themselves. That’s why they are always learning new skills and scratch cooking techniques and deepening their knowledge about nutrition, food safety and more. By doing so, they continue to raise the bar for themselves and their colleagues while creating tastier and more nutritious meals for the students they serve. “Our team really embraces the trainings we provide, even the optional ones,” said Christina Lawson, Director of Food Services at Western Placer Unified School District. “They do it because they’re excited to expand their skill sets and cook better food for our kids.”
From planning to plating and everything in between, School Food Professionals bring an incredible amount of skill and commitment to their work. And to Azusa Unified School District Chef Carol Ramos, the payoff is more than worth it. “When I see the kids enjoying my food, it brings me so much happiness,” she said. “That’s what keeps me going.”