On the Road

On July 31, State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster attended the 49th annual state conference of the School Nutrition Association (SNA) in Green Bay. Burmaster spoke to about 500 school nutrition staff from Wisconsin public and private schools, emphasizing their critical role in closing the achievement gap by ensuring that students are properly fed so they can concentrate on learning. “We know that proper nutrition is critical to the health and well-being of students,” Burmaster told the group. “You make our nutritious lunch and breakfast programs work. This past year our lunch programs, in approximately 2,500 public and private schools, served meals to about 546,000 students a day—or more than 95 million lunches this past school year. You also served more than 14 million breakfasts. Your work on the school wellness policy, required in each local school district by the start of the 2006-07 school year, has brought together parents, students, school board members, administrators, the public, and school nutrition professionals in promoting student health.”

SNA works to endure adequate funding for nutrition programs, supporting local wellness policies, allowing adequate time for mealtime, competency training for school nutrition staff, and food safety issues.

On August 2, the state superintendent attended the Executive Partners meeting of the Milwaukee Partnership Academy, a group dedicated to enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in Milwaukee Public Schools. The partnership academy works to ensure that students in the Milwaukee Public School system will increase their academic achievement, through shared responsibility for student success.

Later that day, Burmaster met with the M-7 Resource Team. M-7 is a regional council formed to promote economic development in Southeastern Wisconsin.

Last updated on 8/7/2006