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School survey says: kids lack food
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The Student Advisory Committee survey for 2015-16 has uncovered some good and some bad results for Warren County students.

According to the survey which was taken by 1,079 students in the school system, 75 percent report not having enough food to eat at least one day per week. The survey was conducted by high school students on the Student Advisory Committee and was included in a Student Advisory Monthly Report given to members of the Warren County School Board.

Board member Bill Zechman expressed unease that 809 students responded “yes” to not having enough food to eat at least one day per week.

“Something I saw that is an area of concern for me is question 11. It says ‘At least one day per week you don’t have enough food to eat’ and 75 percent said yes. That’s definitely a matter of concern.”

Director of School Bobby Cox was encouraged by question 13.

“I think question 13 was very encouraging,” said Cox. “Do you have plans to further your education after high school and 81 percent stated they would be going to either a four-year or two-year school. I think that’s very encouraging. So is question 12. ‘Do you feel that your education is adequately preparing you for the workforce or higher education?’ Seventy-five percent responded yes.”

Zechman also expressed concern for question 14: Do you somewhat understand about the TN Promise scholarship available to graduating seniors? In their response, 67 percent of students said yes.

Zechman encouraged an effort to bring that number up.

The survey was presented to School Board members by Student Advisory Committee members Lexi Vance and Katherine Oxley.

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community