November 3, 2009—Three SNA past presidents will be recognized for their longstanding and ongoing contributions to the school nutrition profession at the 2010 FAME Awards ceremony in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
SNA Past President Karen Johnson, SNS, gets the gold as the 2010 recipient of the Golden School Foodservice Director of the Year in the annual FAME (Foodservice Achievement Management Excellence) awards competition! The Golden School Foodservice Director demonstrates outstanding achievement in leadership, spirit/dedication, innovation, career awards, management systems, humanitarianism/community involvement and bettering the lives of students. Johnson is director of child nutrition programs for the Yuma (Ariz.) Elementary School District. She is well-regarded as an inspirational leader and top-notch foodservice operator.
This year’s Silver Friend of Child Nutrition Award will be awarded to a well-known individual who embodies a lifelong commitment to the advocacy of school nutrition programs both in the United States and abroad: Gene White, RD, SNS, president of the Global Child Nutrition Foundation and an SNA past president.
And, FAME’s first Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Gertrude Applebaum, an SNA past president, school nutrition pioneer and independent contractor based in Corpus Christi, Texas. Applebaum will be recognized for her indelible contribution to the school nutrition profession.
A number of other school nutrition professionals were recognized for their outstanding achievements by a selection panel that included last year’s FAME winners, as well as trade press editors and SNA President Dora Rivas, RD, SNS.
Mary Anderson, director of Culinary Express, the school nutrition operation at Wayzata Public Schools, Plymouth, Minn., is this year’s winner of the Silver Leadership Award, which recognizes a director who demonstrates outstanding leadership, dedication, fiscal achievement and innovation in menuing/merchandising.
The 2010 Silver Spirit Award is bestowed on Jacci Morrow, SNS, assistant director of child nutrition and foodservice programs, Westminster (Calif.) School District. This award is given to an individual in a management role who shows commitment to the people and programs of school nutrition with innovative programs, marketing, training, customer service and staff innovation.
The Silver Rising Star Award recognizes a director with three or fewer years of experience and this year’s honoree also hails from California: Harold Sullins, MBA, foodservice director, Fontana Unified School District.
School nutrition innovation in districts with 10,000 or less student enrollment is rewarded with FAME’s Silver Special Achievement Award, which this year goes to Lori Adkins, CHE, SNS, nutrition supervisor, West Bloomfield (Mich.) School District.
The 2010 FAME Awards are sponsored by Basic American Foods, Schwan’s Food Services, Inc., and Tyson Foods, Inc. The awards will be presented Sunday, January 10, 2010, in conjunction with SNA’s Child Nutrition Industry Conference in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
CNIC 2010