Cupcake Wars in Elementary Schools

A cupcake war of an unusual sort is taking place at Orange Schools. This week, notices came home with every elementary school child notifying parents that cupcakes and sheet cakes will now be available for purchase for classroom parties.

Since parents bring food to their child's classroom to celebrate birthdays, holidays and special occasions, Orange's Food Services figured it would offer a time-saving convenience to families.

Beginning Monday, Dec. 13, cupcakes will be available for order at $8 a dozen. Half single-layer sheet cakes are $15 and full sheet cakes are $30. All are available in chocolate or vanilla.

The new program is actually intended to raise some revenue for the School of the 21st Century after school program and the food services program.

All of the items for sale 'will meed the state's healthy food certification requirements,' the note to parents read.

Parents see the new offering as an interesting one, since many schools across the state are actually eliminating cupcakes-healthy or not-from classroom celebrations.

Orange does not throw caution to the wind when it comes to healthy food choices. School lunches must provide, on average over each school week, at least one-third of the Daily Recommended Dietary Allowances for protein, iron, calcium, and vitamins A and C. Schools must meet Federal nutrition requirements, but decisions about what specific foods to serve and how they are prepared are made by local food service authorities.

Bethany has declared its own war on the cupcake, though it hasn't been met without resistance. (It is a cupcake, after all!) At a recent school board meeting, one parent stood during the public commentary period and said the school should rethink their ban on celebratory food in the classrooms and bring back the cupcakes, while another spoke of the need to educate all children about healthy eating and food allergies.   

Bethany Declares Cupcake War

At the recent Board of Education Public Forum, Bethany BOE member Chris Pittenger explained that the board developed a policy back in June that fazed out all food in classrooms, but people were uncomfortable with it so the policy came back for more tweaking.

"It's a very complicated issue," Pittenger said, "and at the board level there is no strict policy in place at this time."

BOE member Maura Harrigan admitted the task-at-hand is daunting.

"We're not trying to police everyone to death," Harrigan said, "but we have a big picture to look at and whatever we decide won't make everyone happy."

But decide they must as the state has mandated a "food policy" be in place, specifically to address allergies.

"People use the term 'policy' when they really mean a set of procedures," said Bethany School Superintendent Tim Connellan, adding that the recommendations in the current draft of the policy are undergoing a renovation.

Some recommendations in the current document were suggested by the BOE Wellness Committee, which was formed to look at options that could help better develop the health and welfare of students. While the Bethany BOE considered all recommendations from the Wellness Committee, the committee is only in an advisory position and cannot make policy.

The rampant "Cupcake Culture," as Connellan described it, was not only unhealthy for the students who sometimes had as many as three cupcake-oriented celebrations in a week, it also caused disruptions in the classroom.

"It was not just about the cupcakes," Connellan said, "it's also about the interruptions in the day."

While the policy attempts to limit food brought into the school for celebrations, Connellan said birthdays continue to be acknowledged and children are given a coupon to use for a healthy snack from the cafeteria.

"They are certainly not neglected," Connellan said, "but it has helped to cut down on cupcakes in school." 

It's a government issue

In response to the increasing risk of food allergy related reactions, the State of Connecticut has published a 78-page document titled "Guidelines for Managing Life-Threatening Food Allergies in Connecticut Schools." Cheryl Resha is the Education Manager of the Connecticut State Department of the Education 
Bureau of Health, Nutrition, Family Services and Adult Education. According to Resha, a state law requires every school system to publish guidelines on managing food allergies in schools.

"Local schools have to adopt a local policy," Resha said. "There is a growing desire to address healthy foods in schools, and it's not only around managing allergies; it's about promoting healthy foods and habits."

The state makes recommendations in its guidelines, such as limiting food brought into classrooms from home for celebrations, and substituting non-food oriented activities for special occasions. They also recommend establishing a peanut-free table in the cafeteria.

"In the guidelines we talk about pros and cons of bringing food into schools," Resha said, "but how do we monitor it? How do we make it safe for all kids? It takes a lot of collaboration from schools, families and communities to reach the overall goal."

Resha admits it's almost impossible to make everyone happy. Some parents protest that their children only eat peanut butter, making it nearly impossible to feed them in a peanut-free school. Some parents are angry their school system banned birthday cupcakes in the classroom, robbing their child of their special day. In the end, Resha said, it boils down to this; "There is a growing recognition that health and education are linked and children who are unhealthy do not do well for a variety of reasons. We need to promote health to promote academics."