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From steaming noodle bowls and flaky croissant sandwiches to student-created recipes and strawberry tastings on campus, the Sunnyvale Child Nutrition team made snack and mealtime something students looked forward to each day during 2025–26. Across the district, students sampled new flavors, shared feedback, and helped bring more variety and creativity to the cafeteria experience.

Beyond the cafeteria line, the department also found creative ways to keep students and families engaged through hands-on tastings, nutrition education, and social media. During National Strawberry Month, Child Nutrition launched a special Instagram video series featuring strawberry-inspired recipes and school-site tastings of Strawberry Balsamic Bruschetta, while the Healthy Snack video series shared simple, balanced snack ideas families could recreate at home. 

“Our goal this year was to create meals that students could genuinely connect with,” said Samantha van Gogh, Executive Chef for Sunnyvale Child Nutrition. “We wanted our menus to reflect the diversity that is so present throughout our school communities, while also sparking students’ curiosity through new and exciting flavors and dishes they may not have experienced before. One of the most rewarding parts of the year was seeing students enjoy these new entrées together and share them with their friends. We hope to continue building on that momentum in the coming school year and beyond by encouraging students to stay curious about food, explore different cuisines, and carry that sense of culinary discovery outside of the cafeteria as well.” 

Throughout the year, students have had opportunities to help shape future menus through the district’s Child Nutrition Meal Survey, which remains open through the end of May. Student feedback helped inspire 42 new breakfast and lunch entrées introduced across the district this year, bringing more bold flavors, comfort foods, and globally inspired meals to cafeterias, which quickly became favorites among students. 

Some of the most popular additions included the Honey Cheddar Chicken Croissant Sandwich, Chicken & Vegetable Dumplings with Rice or Noodles, Caribbean Jerk Chicken with Rice, Potato Cheese Tacos, and Cinnamon Chip Scones, all of which drew strong student participation and consumption. 

This year also brought major improvements to the district’s online Nutrislice menus, making it easier for families to access nutrition information, explore allergen and dietary filters, and view featured menu items with photos. 

“Thank you nutrition services for the good food, there are a lot of options,” Alex, eighth-grader at Columbia Middle School said. “My favorites are the fruta with tajin, fried chicken and mashed potatoes, and the pozole is really good."

One of the year’s biggest highlights came through the Future Chefs competition. Students had the chance to create recipes for district menus. The winning dish was Abby’s Laksa Noodles with Turmeric Chicken. The noodles quickly became a hit, achieving a 98.01% consumption rate during its first districtwide service. 

Students also looked forward to weekly “Fun Friday” lunches, which allowed kitchen teams to test creative menu ideas, reduce food waste, and bring back student favorites using available ingredients in new ways. 

Looking forward, the department’s main focus is to increase menu differentiation for elementary and middle schools, enhance plant-based options, and expand opportunities for student engagement through new programs such as Ramen Day and weekly taste tests.

“I want to thank our incredible Child Nutrition staff for the care, creativity, and heart they brought to our cafeterias throughout the year,” said Gudiel R. Crosthwaite, Ph.D., Superintendent of Sunnyvale School District. “This year alone, the team served more than 922,000 meals across our breakfast, lunch, and supper programs while creating experiences that reflected the diversity of our district and helped students feel welcomed and connected each day. We are grateful for everything they accomplished this year and look forward to continuing to build on that momentum next school year.”