Food Service Menu Coordinator at New Haven Public Schools in New Haven, CT

Job description

Job Description : FOOD SERVICE MENU COORDINATOR PRIMARY FUNCTION: The Menu Coordinator is responsible for planning, coordinating, and maintaining nutritious, appealing, cost-effective, and compliant school meal menus for a large, multi-site public school food service system. This role ensures alignment with USDA Child Nutrition Program requirements and Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) initiatives while meeting the diverse dietary needs of students, including food allergies and medically prescribed special meals. The Menu Coordinator also supports nutrition education efforts, oversees recipe development, and provides supervision and mentorship to interns participating in the school food service program. REPORTS TO: Executive Food Service Director, Deputy Director, Administrative Bureau Supervisor, or designee. SUPERVISES: Dietetic Assistant, assigned interns TYPICAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: Menu Planning & Coordination Plan, coordinate, and maintain cycle menus for breakfast, lunch, supper, snack and other reimbursable meal programs in compliance with USDA and CSDE regulations. Ensure menus meet required meal pattern components, portion sizes, and nutrient standards. Review and update menus based on participation data, student preferences, ingredient availability, seasonal considerations, operational needs, and program requirements. Utilize POS software as it pertains to menu planning. Communicate menu updates, substitutions, and other changes to food service leadership and school-based staff. Recipe Development & Standardization Develop, test, and standardize recipes that meet USDA meal pattern requirements and CSDE nutrition standards for use throughout the school food service program. Modify and adapt recipes to accommodate food allergies, special diets, cultural preferences, and student acceptance. Conduct taste tests and recipe evaluations with students and staff to improve quality and participation. Create and maintain standardized recipe documentation, including yields, portion sizes, ingredient lists, preparation steps, and allergen identification. Ensure recipes align with available equipment, labor capacity, and food safety requirements in school kitchens. Collaborate with vendors to evaluate new products and integrate them into menus and recipes as appropriate Allergy & Special Meal Coordination Coordinate the development and implementation of special meals for students with documented medical, allergy-related, religious, or dietary needs. Ensure recipes and menus clearly identify allergens and approved substitutions. Maintain and update records and maintain database of student allergies and special meal accommodations. Collaborate with school nurses, parents/guardians, administrators, and food service staff to ensure safe meal preparation and service. Support staff training on allergen awareness, cross-contact prevention, and special meal preparation procedures. Compliance, Documentation & Quality Assurance Ensure all menus, recipes, and substitutions comply with USDA, CSDE, and local health department regulations. Assist with nutrient analysis, creation of production records, standardized recipes, and documentation for administrative reviews and audits. Monitor compliance and assist with corrective actions as needed. Maintains records and documentation necessary to support menu planning, special meals, recipe standardization, and program compliance. Procurement, Product Evaluation & Forecasting Support Assist with the development of food service-related Requests for Proposals (RFPs), bids, and contracts, ensuring menu requirements and nutritional standards are accurately reflected. Provide menu specifications, product criteria, and nutrition requirements to support competitive procurement processes. Collaborate with food service leadership, and vendors throughout the procurement cycle. Review product submissions and samples for compliance with menu needs, nutrition standards, allergen requiremen