EDMOND — Cross Timbers Elementary School will be the pilot school for an outside consultant to operate its cafeteria for the 2009-10 school year.

Edmond Board of Education members voted 5-0 Monday night to begin the program, along with high praise from some board members.

Dave Fouts, with Simply Smart Food, made the proposal to develop and implement a cost-effective, nutritious and tasty school breakfast and lunch program that will be healthy, contribute to academic performance and that eventually can be implemented district-wide.

“I was absolutely thrilled by the board’s action last night to follow the recommendation of the Child Nutrition Advisory Committee to implement a Pilot CN program under the very capable Chef Dave of Edmond and his staff,” said board member Kathleen Duncan.

“We are so fortunate to have Chef Dave, a nationally renowned corporate chef and consultant, culinary instructor, author and speaker who lives right here in Edmond, to direct this Elementary School Nutrition Pilot program. I believe Chef Dave, with the help of our outstanding dietitian, Amy Herrold, will provide the nutritional expertise, creative ideas and nutritional education for our students that our CN department has needed for a long time.”

The project has a total budget of $88,990, and will employ three full-time hourly staff and one part-time registered dietitian. The budget also pays for miscellaneous expenses and supplies to be used for training other cafeteria workers.

Fouts will be project director and the part-time assistant project director will be Vicki Bovee, who works with Fouts on some of his other projects.

Two full-time chefs will be responsible for assisting the project director in staff training, meal preparation and serving, inventory and cost controls.

The goal is to increase student participation during meals.

“We want to offer good, nutritious meals to pull (the students) back into the cafeteria,” said Bret Towne, associate superintendent in charge of district operations.

Besides offering nutritious and tasty meals, the meals also will have to be cost-effective. Towne said the program will work with the same funds as provided to other schools.

“The average cost for a school lunch is $2.41,” Towne said. “Students in elementary school pay $2.05 while high school students pay $2.30. Our free and reduced lunch reimbursement is $2.57, and the profit from a la carte sales makes up the difference.”

The pilot program must work staying within the boundaries set by and for the district, Fouts said.

“I do plan on incorporating more farm-to-school products, a program already being used in the district, as well as using more Made in Oklahoma products,” he said. “We also will be making nutrition-based menus, not just food-based meals.”

He believes child nutrition is the responsibility of the community as well as the school.

“I am going to be looking for corporate sponsors because I don’t think child nutrition should be the sole responsibility of the school district,” Fouts said.

“I would like to see corporate sponsors give gifts of time as well as their services by sponsoring speakers to talk with the students about healthy eating.”

Chef Dave’s Healthy Kids Week has introduced healthier meals within the district for the past two years. The event started with one school and this past school year five schools participated.

“It is anticipated that number will more than double for the 2009-10 school year,” Fouts said.

Duncan said she anticipates many more students eating in the school cafeteria.

“He has some exciting ideas about monthly food themes, classroom nutrition education projects, field trips to local farmers and a nutrition fair for the whole community,” she said.