ScratchWorks

Big News! ✨

We’re thrilled to share that ScratchWorks Advisory Committee member Bertrand Weber has been named the Golden Foodservice Director of the Year at the 2025 FAME Awards! 🏆👏

Bertrand, who leads Culinary & Wellness Services at Minneapolis Public Schools, has long been a champion of scratch cooking, student well-being, and raising industry standards. This award—the highest honor given by the Foodservice Achievement Management Excellence (FAME) Awards—recognizes his visionary leadership, dedication to community impact, and commitment to innovation in school meals.

🎉 Congratulations, Bertrand! Your work continues to inspire us all.

📣 Are you in K-12 school food service? Don’t miss out! Join us to hear from three amazing participants who have successfully teamed up with local farmers. 🌱✨

👉 Become a participant at no cost and be part of this impactful conversation—just complete our quick survey https://forms.gle/skwdsxPVmJJdZJdH9 to join!

Already a ScratchWorks participant? Check your calendar. Your invite is waiting! 🗓️

We are excited to introduce Jessica Shelly as the next member of our Advisory Committee! 🎉

As the Director of Student Dining Services for Cincinnati Public Schools, Jessica provides over 55,000 meals every day across 66 schools. Her innovative and forward-thinking approach to child nutrition has earned her numerous accolades, including the prestigious IFMA Gold and Silver Plate Awards, the FAME Golden Director Award, and recognition as the Ohio Department of Education’s Stellar Nutrition Director.

Jessica’s leadership has transformed school meals in Cincinnati. From salad bars and cultural spice stations in every school to reimbursable meal vending machines and the Clean Label Initiative, she has championed healthy, accessible, and delicious student meals. Her work with programs like the Good Food Purchasing Program showcases her commitment to creating a food system that benefits kids and the community.

Beyond her work in Cincinnati, Jessica serves on several national committees dedicated to improving school meals, including the Chef Ann Foundation Board of Advisors and the School Nutrition Association. We are thrilled to have her expertise, passion, and dedication on our Advisory Committee! 🌱✨

Meet Danielle Bock, SNS (she/her), Director of Nutrition Services at Greeley-Evans School District 6 and a passionate advocate for food equity! 🌟

For the past seven years, Danielle has been leading the charge to ensure that every child in her district has easy access to nutritious, tasty meals—because she believes food is a basic human right, not a privilege. Her vision? Meals served with dignity, smiles, and love. 💚

In addition to her role at Greeley-Evans School District 6, Danielle is deeply involved in shaping food policy and nutrition standards nationwide. She serves on the Executive Committee for the International Food Manufacturers Association’s K-12 Food Leadership Council, the Public Policy and Legislation Committee for the School Nutrition Association, and the Governing Council for the Colorado Blueprint to End Hunger. She’s also a proud member of the equity teams for both Greeley-Evans and SNA, working tirelessly to close the food equity gap.

When she’s not advocating for healthy school meals, you’ll likely find Danielle outdoors, enjoying a bike ride and nature. 🚴‍♀️🌲

We’re so fortunate to have her on our Advisory Committee! 👏

We’re excited to introduce Bertrand Weber as the next member of the ScratchWorks Advisory Committee!

With over 40 years of experience in hospitality and school food service, Bertrand has been a driving force in transforming school nutrition. After managing luxury hotels and resorts, Bertrand’s passion for children's health and the environment led him to join Hopkins School District in Minnesota in 2003. There, he spearheaded initiatives like one of the state's first Farm to School programs, earning national recognition.

Since 2012, Bertrand has served as the Director of Culinary & Wellness Services for Minneapolis Public Schools, where he has introduced Market Cart Salad Bars, expanded scratch cooking to 52 schools, and championed forward-thinking programs like the Plant Protein/Plant Forward Initiative and the True Food No Waste Action Plan. His leadership has placed MPS at the forefront of the Farm to School movement, partnering with over 14 local farms and launching MN Thursday, a meal initiative featuring 100% locally sourced ingredients.

Bertrand is a respected leader in school food reform, serving on advisory boards and councils, including IFMA K-12 Advisory Council, the Chef Ann Foundation Lunch Box, and the National Farm to School Network. His progressive vision continues to inspire change in school nutrition nationwide.

📣 We're thrilled to introduce Anneliese, a member of our Advisory Committee! With extensive experience in food service and finance, Anneliese is passionate about transforming our food system. She holds a Master’s in Food Studies from New York University, focusing on food systems and city food policy.

Anneliese has led impactful initiatives, including redefining the urban school meal experience in Austin, Texas, through innovative programs like breakfast in the classroom, food trucks, plant-forward menus, and sustainable practices.

At Chef Ann Foundation, she guided school districts nationwide in shifting to scratch-cooking operations. Now, as the Executive Director for Food & Nutrition at Boston Public Schools, Anneliese is bringing scratch cooking with a focus on values-based procurement to the nation’s oldest public school system. Welcome, Anneliese! 🌱

🌟 Introducing ScratchWorks' Advisory Committee! 🌟

At ScratchWorks, we're on a mission to empower school food professionals and non-profit organizations to serve the healthiest meals to children by cooking from scratch with whole, fresh ingredients. Our Advisory Committee is vital in guiding our work and shaping our initiatives.

The committee helps determine our key pillars of focus: Policy, Shared Learning, and the Bi-Annual Gathering. Over the next few months, we'll introduce you to our Advisory Committee's incredible members, who bring diverse expertise and passion to our collective effort.

Stay tuned to learn more about the leaders driving our vision forward! 💚🍎

🍎 Back to School, Back to Fresh! 🥗

As the new school year kicks off, we're excited to welcome students back to the cafeteria with delicious, scratch-cooked meals made with love and care! 🎉

Our commitment to nourishing young minds starts with the freshest ingredients, and this year, we're more dedicated than ever to serving meals that fuel learning, growth, and healthy habits.

To all the amazing food service directors out there, thank you for making a difference, one meal at a time. Here's to a year full of vibrant flavors, happy faces, and successful school days! 🌟

On March 12, California Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) introduced Assembly Bill 2316, which would prevent public schools from serving food containing any one of seven toxic colorants. This bill seeks to safeguard Californian children from food dyes linked to a wide array of alarming health harms, such as a higher risk of hyperactivity and other behavioral problems, damage to the nervous system and cancer.
Titanium dioxide has been linked to damage to our DNA and harm to the immune system. In 2022, the EU prohibited it from use in food offered for sale, but it is still allowed in food sold in the U.S.

Every kid should have a nutritious, free, scratch-cooked meal during the school day. Thanks to a visionary nutrition director & supportive administration, Auburn Public Schools prove we can do it while prioritizing local produce & teaching kids how to grow food. An amazing model!