RAPID CITY, SD — Feeding thousands of students each day takes more than kitchen staff and lunch trays. It requires careful planning, logistics and teamwork, according to Rapid City Area Schools Student Nutrition Manager Christa Lechner and Assistant Student Nutrition Manager Kayla Taylor, who reflected on the past school year while looking ahead to new menu items and expanded services for the fall.

The district’s student nutrition team served more than 1.2 million meals during the 2025-26 school year, including approximately 240,000 breakfasts and nearly 1 million lunches. On a typical school day, staff prepare up to 6,500 lunches across the district, a workload Lechner said is only possible because employees consistently overcome staffing shortages, supply chain issues and unexpected challenges while keeping students fed.

Rapid City Area Schools operates eight production kitchens, while another 11 elementary schools receive meals prepared at Central High School and transported by warehouse trucks. Those schools have limited kitchen space, often staffed by a single employee responsible for serving between 200 and 450 students each day. Lechner said the behind-the-scenes coordination includes food preparation, transportation and adapting quickly during weather events, power outages or delivery disruptions.

The district’s lunch count system also helps reduce food waste while giving elementary students more menu choices. Teachers collect meal selections each morning, allowing kitchen staff to better estimate how many students will choose each entrée and ensuring children receive the meal they selected.

Taylor said cereal remained the most popular breakfast item, while a new cold brew coffee option at the high school level helped increase breakfast participation. Chicken wing bars also proved to be one of the year’s biggest lunch successes, with students choosing from a variety of sauces. She noted that many of the products served in school cafeterias differ from grocery store versions because school meals use products with lower sugar, natural coloring and, in many cases, higher protein.

The nutrition department also continues introducing students to new foods through its Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, serving items such as star fruit and sea beans to encourage children to try produce they may not otherwise experience.

In addition to serving students, the department has expanded its catering program during the past three years. School nutrition staff now cater foundation events, Breakfast with a Buddy programs, graduation celebrations, Board of Education meetings and other district functions. Lechner said the goal is to keep catering affordable while allowing money to remain within the school district, and Taylor said the ordering process begins with a simple form outlining the event, menu preferences and budget before staff handle the planning.

Looking ahead, students can expect several new menu items during the upcoming school year, including buffalo chicken tater tot casserole, taco bake served with cilantro lime rice and a new breakfast calzone. The department is also continuing work on its Farm to School grant, which includes expanding produce grown in Central High School’s “Veggie Vault” greenhouse for use on school salad bars.

Summer feeding remains another major focus for the department. While daily meal counts drop to about 500 lunches compared with the school year, Lechner said the program continues making a significant impact by providing free meals to children, along with adults and seniors who accompany them. Partnerships with the Black Hills Area Community Foundation and Meals on Wheels South Dakota help cover those additional meals. The district currently operates 11 summer meal sites across Rapid City, including mobile feeding locations that reach neighborhoods without nearby schools.

Lechner said one of the greatest strengths of the nutrition department is its staff, who build relationships with students well beyond serving meals. Team members often know students by name, remember birthdays, recognize food allergies and understand individual preferences, creating meaningful daily interactions that parents and school leaders regularly notice and appreciate. With about 80 positions across the department, she said employees consistently step up to cover shortages and ensure students are served every day.