Sunday, March 23, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
IF you are what you eat, our high schools may be in worse shape than we think.
As any parent of any teenager knows, nutritious fare doesn't rank high on the post-pubescent priority list. Calories -- empty, fattening or both -- are consumed on the run, or not at all. The five food groups? Hmmmm. That would be Snickers, Pepsi, hamburgers, pizza and Coca-Cola.
Clearly, the high school lunch hour isn't being conducted in your father's cafeteria anymore. For starters, it's more like a half hour. At some schools, it's reduced to a 20-minute snack oxymoronically called a nutrition break.
The loss of meal time has meant a reduction in choices and quality. Here are the typical fast-food entrees: chili cheese fries, nachos, taco salad, submarine sandwiches and pizza.
Because local high schools do not participate in the federal lunch program, they can cater to the culinary whims of the students. Green beans, meat loaf, homemade soups and other stick-to-your-ribs food are out because they don't sell.
But their replacements aren't doing much better. Take Taco Bell, please. The Clark County School District invited the company onto six campuses last year. Yet the local franchisers found that they weren't able to cover their costs. They made a run for the door.
Matt Theriault, a junior at Cimarron-Memorial, said that Taco Bell was very popular.
Indeed, the problem wasn't volume; it was overhead. Taco Bell was required to use contracted district personnel who earn more than the customary minimum wage, and that cut into the profit margin.
While Taco Bell vacated the premises, the district doesn't have that option. And, lo and behold, CCSD lost $1.6 million in high school food service last year. How could that be?
Except at a handful of closed campuses, most students hop in their cars to grab a quick meal. Even at jam-packed Cimarron, Theriault says that a majority leaves campus for lunch. That helps to thin the student body. It also diminishes a captive clientele.
To serve the students who stay, the district purchased scores of food carts and hired workers to staff them. Food service director Dan McPartland believes that these start-up costs hurt the bottom line.
But others suggest that theft and pilferage are more to blame. Students and administrators have observed money being pocketed and food being given away. With meals costing $2 to $5, the numbers add up.
Principals are especially frustrated because they don't get a dime from food service operations at their schools. Now they are being asked to help erase the deficit. District officials have floated the idea of taking over all campus vending machines.
Chaparral Principal Mike West opposes such a plan. "If the district pulled them, we'd have no money at all. The drink machines give us revenue to buy band uniforms and to pay for trips." He estimates that the machines generate $700 to $2,200 a month for high schools.
Some schools have even used to machines to subtly steer the tastes of their students. A few offer only juice and bottled water.
Others, however, are hearing criticism for charging students 75 cents a can while teachers enjoy the cut-rate price of 25 cents.
The politics of soda aside, West believes that the $1.6 million loss should be a wake-up call for the district's food service program. He and others would like it to drive a harder bargain with local franchisers.
While he doesn't necessarily agree with students' culinary choices, West acknowledges that cafeteria-style fare hasn't always been particularly tasty either. And forced-feeding inevitably leads to garbage cans brimming with uneaten vittles.
If young people are attracted to brand-name foods, West figures that the district should take steps to accommodate them. For the privilege, CCSD could establish a competitive bidding process and impose a franchise fee.
None of this is to say that the district should try to make a profit on the palates of its pupils. But is breaking even too much to ask? After all, how many places do you know where Taco Bell could lose money?
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