Every day at Lakewood High School, students line up for breakfast and lunch, ready to refuel between classes. But behind the trays, ovens and lunch lines is a hardworking cafeteria team that keeps everything running smoothly. From preparing meals at dawn to serving hundreds of students, these staff members play an essential role in keeping the school day moving and students’ energy up throughout the long school day.
The day starts early for the team, as both breakfast and lunch are served at the high school. Students can come into the building as early as 7:30 a.m. and have the option to eat breakfast at the school, prepared for them by the cafeteria staff in the school’s kitchens. But the early morning for students means an even earlier start for the cafeteria team. One team member, Abby Jerkins, says her schedule is from “6:15 to 2:45.” But it doesn’t stop there; the cafeteria team continues to work hard to prepare for four periods of lunch and long lines of students needing to be fed again.
After breakfast, the team performs a variety of duties to prepare for the day. Team member Amber Tucker confirms this, saying, “So I do vending machines every morning. I help with dishes. Sometimes I serve, sometimes I’m at the cash register, and we basically stock everything up.”
The cafeteria workers have mastered how to be efficient. It’s important to be efficient when preparing two meals each day and serving hundreds of students waiting in line to get their meals. The staff has developed a responsibility rotation to help things run smoothly. “So we work together like a team, and I have responsibility for… fruit… [and the] cashier job. We rotate it [so that] each week we have a different responsibility,” staff worker Haseena Khan said. “So this week I have a serving responsibility, and in the morning, I do the cashier job… And if somebody needs help, then I can help them”. Their rotation of roles helps them stay focused and on task while also adding a little bit of fun to the job, so they aren’t doing the same thing every week.
Having a cafeteria team is more important than some may think. People usually only see the food that’s produced, but not how much work and planning go on behind the scenes. “The first responsibility [is to] feed the kids,” Khan said, but the cafeteria staff’s job is so much more than that. They work hard to find meals that most kids enjoy, stock vending machines so students can enjoy fun drinks at school, and keep the cafeteria environment clean–all at the same time. “There’s got to be some kind of order to make it run smoothly,” Jerkins said.
It’s not just a fun job for the cafeteria staff but for the students as well. The cafeteria is a place where students can gather and spend time together without having to go out of their way to find lunch. It’s a time to unwind from school stress and enjoy free time with friends while eating. The staff enjoys engaging with the students and is proud to serve them. “I enjoy the students, I do like [to] try to engage with them…. and make sure they’re having a good day,” Jerkins said.
It’s all about working together and having fun in the process. “We all work together. You know, the kids are always very polite. We’ve never had any issues with disrespect,” Tucker said. “So we work together, [and] we get everybody ready to get their food and get out the door.”
The cafeteria team plays a key role in keeping students ready to go throughout their day. They are reliable, hardworking and kind. Their efforts can be seen behind every lunch tray, line and table.