The September 2026 Served Digizine marks 50 issues: K-12 school nutrition leaders on the empty cafeteria effect, feedback that fuels growth, and why your staff are your brand.
Highlights from Issue No. 50. Tap through to read the full pieces on FlippingBook.
Low meal participation is more than a revenue problem. Tracie Samp unpacks how empty seats in the cafeteria signal deeper vulnerabilities across a school community and offers a leadership framework for reading those signals and acting on them before they widen.
Two shifts in how school nutrition leaders give and receive feedback can change how the whole team communicates. Janel Wojcik shares practical language and habits that turn feedback into a growth engine instead of a source of friction.
Part one of the Rethink School Nutrition series. Jennifer Martin makes the case that every cafeteria team member is a brand ambassador for the program, and that how leaders invest in staff experience shows up directly in how students experience school meals.
A note from NxtGen Network founder Marlon Gordon on what leadership in school nutrition actually looks like day to day: making decisions, supporting teams, solving problems, and continuing to grow yourself so you can bring others with you.
Read the article →A visual retrospective of the first fifty issues of Served Digizine, honoring the school nutrition leaders, operators, and industry partners who have shared their stories on these pages since day one.
Read the article →Fresh coverage from the ANC 2026 exhibit hall: the conversations, product debuts, and operator moments that stood out on the floor this year.
Read the article →Stephen O'Brien on the leader's dilemma of carrying too much alone. A candid look at where directors trade sustainability for short-term wins, and how to build a team culture that lets you lead without burning out.
Read the article →Fresh content from FSD Quarterly on the three food trends that showed up loudest across the ANC 2026 exhibit hall — and what they signal for K-12 menus in the year ahead.
Read the article →Every Served Digizine issue is free to read, share, and subscribe to. Join thousands of K-12 school nutrition professionals reading each month.
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