FULL TRANSCRIPT (with timecode)
Voices E4 Darlene Carmack
File Name: Voices E4 Darlene Carmack.mp3
File Length: 00:06:16
SPEAKERS
Int - Introduction
JK - Jeff Krakoff
DC - Darlene Carmack
00:00:02:24 - 00:00:07:24
Introduction: Welcome to Voices, a Podcast brought to you by the Seneca Valley School District.
00:00:10:20 - 00:00:17:19
Jeff Krakoff: I'm Jeff Krakoff. I'm here with Darlene Carmack, Seneca Valley's Food Services Director. Thanks for joining us today.
00:00:18:27 - 00:00:49:03
Jeff Krakoff: I know you've you've been in the industry for a few decades, whether it's been other school districts like Hampton and North Allegheny, or universities such as Gannon University. You've been working in the field of nutrition, food service. You've been your current role at Seneca Valley for about 10 years now. I know a question on a lot of our minds is how do we keep the cafeterias and food service for the school district safe?
00:00:49:05 - 00:00:57:27
Jeff Krakoff: So can you tell us a little bit about what you're doing in terms of keeping the lines clean and whatever mitigation efforts that you're working on?
00:00:58:05 - 00:00:58:20
Darlene Carmack: Sure
00:00:58:22 - 00:01:31:23
Darlene Carmack: Sure I'd be glad to. First of all thank you for talking with me today. It's exciting for us in the food service department to prepare our lines in preparation for the students coming back. It looks slightly different this year because we have installed hand sanitizers at the beginning of each line so that the students hands are perfectly clean when they walk along the tray line. We have covered all food and food items to avoid spills and to urge a bit more speediness through the lines.
00:01:31:27 - 00:01:50:09
Darlene Carmack: We also have plexiglass that's being installed between the line's server and the students. There's also plexiglass at the cash register and we are trying to streamline that process so that the operation moves organized and swiftly.
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Jeff Krakoff: Mm hmm. How about what steps in terms of spacing and
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Darlene Carmack: So you have social distancing markers on the floors
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Jeff Krakoff: Right.
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Darlene Carmack: And we are really really encouraging the six foot social distancing with masks on through the lines. They'll be something that the student needs to do whether put up his finger for lunch two,
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Jeff Krakoff: Right.
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Darlene Carmack: or have a little card that says "Today I get the chicken patty sandwich." We are working on that process right now.
00:02:16:21 - 00:02:30:05
Jeff Krakoff: OK, so we've talked a little bit about the food part, what about the over this what used to be a simple task is paying for one's lunch. Has that changed? Do you have a preferred method you'd like to see students using?
00:02:30:12 - 00:02:47:02
Darlene Carmack: Well especially now more than ever our current MySchoolBucks online payment system is our preferred method that would certainly mitigate all the transactions at the end of the food service line at the point of sale. However, we still would encourage all students to eat
00:02:48:29 - 00:02:57:12
Darlene Carmack: because we are still taking paper check,s we are still taking checks through the mail and we do have a charge system in place. So if a student has
00:02:59:03 - 00:03:01:22
Darlene Carmack: no means to pay that day it's irrelevant to us at this point.
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Jeff Krakoff: Right.
00:03:02:18 - 00:03:05:00
Darlene Carmack: We just have to come through the line and we'll check them out.
00:03:05:18 - 00:03:14:11
Jeff Krakoff: OK. So what is the science saying now as far as COVID-19 and food.
00:03:15:03 - 00:03:28:04
Darlene Carmack: OK well the science and the data behind food and the coronavirus disease is simply that the risk of getting COVID-19 from food or food packaging is extremely low
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Darlene Carmack: as a matter of fact food cannot host
00:03:36:02 - 00:03:42:09
Darlene Carmack: food cannot be a host for the coronavirus. Because the coronavirus needs a human or an animal to host on.
00:03:44:05 - 00:04:07:18
Jeff Krakoff: So that's comforting to know you're doing spacing, you're disinfecting and cleaning you're you're trying to maximize you know reducing passing things from one person or another as far as payment methods. Why don't we talk a little bit about the idea of feeding all students I know since the pandemic began things were a little bit different in March.
00:04:07:20 - 00:04:16:21
Jeff Krakoff: You were providing meals for for all students. What's happening now as we get ready to go back to school?
00:04:16:23 - 00:04:32:02
Darlene Carmack: Well as you know Seneca Valley is on a cohort model. Our students will be in school two days and they'll be out three days. So for us it is always important to note that our main goal in this department is to feed children.
00:04:33:27 - 00:05:07:04
Darlene Carmack: So in an effort to feed all children, especially those on the free and reduced program, we will operate very similar to how we operated in March. We are in the process right now for developing our procedure for parents to sign up and to drive by a designated area and to pick up meals -breakfast and lunch- for three days or if you're one of our new cyber students at Seneca Valley, we have plans in place to pack up for five days for you; five lunch meals and five breakfast meals.
00:05:07:10 - 00:05:13:18
Darlene Carmack: So we're ready to serve and we can't wait to see the children come back to school.
00:05:13:20 - 00:05:28:17
Jeff Krakoff: Great. Great. So in leaving us for all the parents listening. What what should be their main takeaway or takeaways when it comes to food services at Seneca Valley?
00:05:28:19 - 00:05:56:10
Darlene Carmack: Well, I think the parents need to feel definitely assured that we are on the top of our game with sanitizing and disinfecting, social distancing, whatever is recommended by the Pennsylvania Department Health and the CDC. We are definitely implementing everything so that they can relax and know that it's perfectly safe to have a school lunch at Seneca Valley School District.
00:05:56:15 - 00:06:08:12
Jeff Krakoff: All right. Well I'm sure everyone's looking forward to getting back to school as well. Thank you so much for taking the time. I know that you're busy with preparations. Again thanks for joining us. Have a great day.
00:06:08:14 - 00:06:08:27
Darlene Carmack: Thank you.