Waterford Today

At its June 5 board meeting, the Pontiac City School District Board of Education received a presentation proposal from members of the Detroit Region of SFE Food Services regarding a food service contract.

Rodel Endaluz, director of Area Operations for SFE; and Jarvis Richardson, general manager of SFE for the region; advocated for the board to approve another contract for the next school year. The duo assured board members that any changes the company was making were appropriate for the district, and any pending concerns would be addressed in their new agreement.

“Thank you for being an outstanding partner and we look forward to continue enhancing our partnership with you,” Endaluz said. “It was a tough year with not a lot of our what, two of our main kitchens being down and some staffing issues. But next year is going to be so much brighter than this year.”

Endaluz revealed some of the plans for the next school year that he said should spearhead more excitement and engagement between students and their lunch programs.

The company is looking to bring in parfait bars for breakfast, where students can choose their own fruits and granolas to add to their meal. Other assembly-type meals that allow for more student choice are also planned.

SFE also wants to try adding in comfort food-style meals to their middle school. These have garnered significant interest in other states, and SFE wants to use Pontiac as the trial area for Michigan.

“We've always felt like Pontiac gives us a really, really good baseline for whether it's going to be very, very successful in another district,” Endaluz said.

At the middle school, they are considering the addition of shawarma bowls and other dishes including homemade soups. The high school will see similar menu items, along with days dedicated to potato bars and chicken wings days with various sauces. During this past school year, they conducted a few trial runs that received very positive feedback.

Richardson explained that they were going to get more involved in promoting and recognizing the individual school kitchens and their staff, along with individuals who constantly go the extra mile to serve their students.

After Endaluz eased their concerns about quality assurance, the board voted in favor of renewing its partnership with SFE.