The Road to Becoming A Successful School Nutrition Leader · Title: Affiliation or Financial Disclosure Author: Toni Vega Aiken Created Date: 7/5/2017 3:24:08 PM

© COPYRIGHT 2017 SCHOOL NUTRITION ASSOCIATION | #ANC17 | ATLANTA, GA© COPYRIGHT 2017 SCHOOL NUTRITION ASSOCIATION | #ANC17 | ATLANTA, GA

The Road to Becoming A

Successful School Nutrition Leader

Linette Dodson & Kelli Cook, Carrollton City SchoolsDebra Kibbe, Georgia Health Policy Center

ANC 2017

July 10, 2017 8:30 am - 9:30 am

© COPYRIGHT 2017 SCHOOL NUTRITION ASSOCIATION | #ANC17 | ATLANTA, GA

AFFILIATION & FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

Dr. Linette Dodson & Kelli Cook

•Employees: Carrollton City Schools, School

Nutrition (SN)

Debra Kibbe

•Employee: Georgia Health Policy Center,

Georgia State University

The presenters have no conflicts of interest or financial support to report.


PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS CODE

• This session provides one (1) CEU

–Key Area: Communications & Marketing – 4000

–Key Topic: Using your #SocialMedia Savvy to take

the 2017 #SchoolBreakfast Challenge


LEADERSHIP SESSION:

OBJECTIVES

• Identify and discuss the most important leadership characteristics

of successful school nutrition (SN) professionals according to SN

survey results and attendee feedback

• Identify and discuss SN leadership characteristics for which the

greatest improvement is desired according to SN survey results

and attendee feedback

• Share and discuss school nutrition leadership examples

• Facilitate attendees to establishing a leadership improvement

action plan


WELCOME

Today’s Goal:

Explore the roads…


…TO IMPROVING YOUR SN LEADERSHIP SKILLS

FOCUS:

8 LEADERSHIP

PATHS


INTRODUCTIONS

Know Your Table Neighbors!

SHARE:

1. Name,

2. Organization,

3. Your Best Reward or Incentive Idea

Share Around

the Table


"Great leaders have clarity of purpose and

are great at articulating their beliefs. Be the

kind of leader that pushes people to be the

very best they can be but still make people

feel safe because it starts with the heart."

Amas Tenumah, CEO BetterXperience

Retrieved from:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/brentgleeson/2016/11/09/10-unique-perspectives-on-what-makes-a-great-leader/#477db5355dd1

Great Leaders…

http://bettercxperience.com/


GROUP ACTIVITY

Speed Ranking Activity*

• You have 2 minutes!!!

• Layout the 8 leadership characteristics

• As a table, rank the SN leadership

characteristics 1 (most important) thru 8

(least important)

• At least reach agreement on 1-3

*Packet on Your Table


RANKINGS IN THE ROOM

STAND UP IF YOUR

TABLE HAD...

GROUP ACTIVITY


GROUP ACTIVITY

Speed Ranking Debrief

• Any missing leadership traits?

• Other thoughts/comments?


Online Survey of

School Nutrition Professionals,

SURVEY RESULTS

N=69


SURVEY DEVELOPMENT

Survey informed by:

• Rushing, Keith; Nettles, Mary Frances; Johnson, James T.

Characteristics and Qualities Needed for Success by School Nutrition

Directors. Fall 2009. Journal of Child Nutrition & Management, 33:2,.

• Society for Human Resource Management. Developing

Organizational Leaders Toolkit. Aug 21, 2012. Retrieved from:

https://www.shrm.org/ResourcesAndTools/tools-and-

samples/toolkits/Pages/developingorganizationalleaders.aspx

• Dycus, Linda Gail. Leadership Practices of School Nutrition

Professionals. 2007. Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper

2160. http://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2160

https://www.shrm.org/ResourcesAndTools/tools-and-samples/toolkits/Pages/developingorganizationalleaders.aspx


Leadership Survey: Years

Worked in School Nutrition

0.0%

5.8%

17.4%

15.9%

24.6%

13.0%

23.2%

Less than 1 year

1 to 5 years

6 to 10 years

11 to 15 years

16 to 20 years

21 to 25 years

Greater than 25years

0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0%


Leadership Survey:

Education Level

1.5% 1.5% 1.5%

10.3%

64.7%

4.4%

16.2%

HS graduate, diploma or theequivalent

Trade/technical/vocationaltraining

Associate degree

Bachelor’s degree

Master’s degree

Doctorate degree

Other Education/Degree


SN LEADERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS

MOST IMPORTANT

N=61


Leadership Survey:

Most Important

3. Strategic Thinking

Ranking leadership characteristics:

1 = most important 8 = least important

• Engage SN team in creating a nutrition program

vision and strategies.

• Help SN team better understand how strategic

planning contributes to the achievement of the

school’s or district’s goals.


Leadership Survey:

Most Important



2. Motivational/Inspirational Leader

• Lead by example; motivate SN staff; work to

build a strong, knowledgeable team.

• Ask for feedback on how my actions affect my

SN teams’ ability to perform their job.


Leadership Survey:

Most Important

1. Maintains Integrity/ Dependable/Trustworthy



• Counted on to carry through on my promises and

responsibilities.

• Spend time making certain that I am adhering to

SN rules, guidelines, and processes.


Most Important SN

Leadership Characteristics

CHARACTERISTIC RANKED #1 BY QUANTITY # Votes

Maintains Integrity/Dependable/Trustworthy 18

Motivational/Inspirational Leader 10

Strategic Thinking 8

Entrepreneur/Innovator 6

N=61


“ROADS” FOR IMPROVEMENT

GROUP ACTIVITY


INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITY:

YOUR TOP 2

• Review the 8 leadership characteristics on

your handout

• Identify the top 2 areas that YOU would most

like to improve upon this year

• Write them on your leadership handout


GROUP ACTIVITY:

AGREE ON 1

• Layout on your table the 8 leadership characteristics

• Agree on the 1 trait that SN professionals need to

improve on the most

• Write the characteristic on tent card


Leadership Survey:

Areas for Improvement

Leadership Characteristic Percent

54.2%

54.2%

45.8%

44.1%

Contribute to Professional Growth of Staff (n=23) 39.0%

Excellent Written and Verbal Communication (n=18) 30.5%

Continuous Learning & Quality Improvement (n=13) 22.0%

Maintains Integrity/Dependable/ Trustworthy (n=6) 10.2%

Motivational/Inspirational Leader (n=26)

Reward/Incent Results (n=27)

Strategic Thinking (n=32)

Entrepreneur/Innovator (n=32)


PATHS TO GREAT LEADERSHIP

SCHOOL NUTRITION EXAMPLES

Carrollton City Schools (CCS),

Carrollton, Georgia


Carrollton City Schools was focused on….

Improving Leadership at CCS


And then Carrollton City Schools got…

Improving Leadership at CCS


Leadership Quality:

Entrepreneur/Innovator

Focus:

School Nutrition Leadership “looked in the mirror”

Measures


Strategies: Employees

➢ Established/Tested Annual Themes

• Seattle Fish! Philosophy - Customer Service

• Packing Your Parachute – Every Job Matters

• Keeping It Fresh – All Have New Ideas


1. Choose My Attitude

2. Play / Have Fun at Work

3. Be There / Be Engaged

4. Make Their Day / Customer Service


How are you going to create the

experience YOU want in the cafeteria

for our students???

Treated Special/Friendly

Fun Atmosphere

Nice Packaging

Good Service

Quality

Clean Environment

Consistency

Food Taste Good

Food Tastes Good


Captain Charles Plumb was a U.S.

Navy jet pilot in Vietnam. After 75

combat missions, his plane was

destroyed by a surface-to-air missile.

Plumb ejected and parachuted into

enemy hands. He was captured and

spent six years in a communist

Vietnamese prison.

“I packed your parachute.”

Going Above

and Beyond!


➢ Community Events & Outreach:

• Creating CCS Brand & Brand Recognition

• Taste of Carrollton

• Reaching primary & secondary customers annually

• Influence perceptions

• Get feedback from parents & students

• Connect School Nutrition Staff with the community

• Nutrition Tour for Community Leaders

• Jingle Bell Jog

Strategies: Customers



1st Annual School Nutrition Tour


Improving Your Leadership Skills:

Strategic Thinking

Focus:

Changing Customer Perception

Empowering Employees



• Engage employees

• SN staff establish “school-specific goals”


● Meet with new Principal & Assistant

● Move fruit bowl to register-encourage last minute pick ups

● Increase Breakfast Participation

○ Add smoothie cart

○ Improve advertising to students about options

● Increase hot vegetable participation

○Move vegetables to the front of the line

○ Identify vegetables and locally grown

● Improve signage for salad boxes

● More lines for the popular entrees


CHS Team Goals



➢ Student Council Feedback

• “Peer influencers” meeting 1x/month while

enjoying school lunch

• Transparency about regulations and rules

• Q & A time

• Kitchen Tours


Monthly Student Council Lunch Groups:

Digging a Little Deeper for Customer Feedback




Motivation/InspirationRewards / Incentives

Focus: Goal setting, sharing ideas & managing changeNew ideas implemented (from students & staff)

Leading / Inspiring others


Improving Your Leadership:

MOTIVATION / INSPIRATION

“A great leader motivates people. They

encourage others to follow them. They also

lead by example, which few leaders do today.”

Mike Dan, SMS Marketing

Retrieved from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brentgleeson/2016/11/09/10-unique-perspectives-on-what-

makes-a-great-leader/2/#42626f092d29

http://bulktextmessage.com/


Improving Your Leadership:

SN RECOGNITION

➢ District Awards, Recognition, & Grants…

…brings recognition to the whole SN team!

➢ Alliance for Healthy Schools Program Recognition

➢ Healthier US School Challenge

➢ Golden Radish Award

➢ Georgia Grown Test Kitchen

➢ USDA and Georgia Shape Grant Recipient



➢ Inspired & Motivated:

• New ideas

• Improving processes

• Taking responsibility/ownership of “their space”

➢ Rewarded:

• Recognition in front of SN peers, school, social

media

• Implementation of new ideas & processes

suggested by SN staff


Employees “Caught!”

doing something great

Employees recognized for

going “Above & Beyond”

Employees featured

on social media



• Implement student ideas

• Bistro cart – items, placement

• Customization of Menus – Bars

• Peer to Peer Influence

• Empowering H.S. students

• Educate

• Visiting schools in District

• Student Athlete Social Marketing Posters


Rewarding CCS Students as

School Nutrition Leaders



ACTION PLANNING

PAIRS

ACTIVITY

Handout


PAIRS ACTIVITY:

YOUR TOP 2

• Return to the top 2 areas that YOU would most

like to improve upon this year

• Write them on your leadership handout

• Select the trait you want to focus on this year

• Partner with someone you don’t know!


1. Brainstorm ideas with your partner for improving

your leadership on your selected trait

2. Write down the steps you will take to improve

your leadership in the selected area

3. Note the timeframe for achieving each step

4. Measure: How will you know you succeeded?

PAIRS ACTIVITY:

YOUR TOP 2


1. Audience identified their most important and

improvement leadership traits

2. Reviewed SN leadership survey results

3. Explored SN leadership examples from CCS

4. Completed action plans for 1 leadership trait

on which you want to improve

SUMMARY


TAKE NEW ROADS….

Please make image fills up the entire PPT white space.

Leave top bar visible.

Strategic Thinking

Entrepreneur/Innovator

NEXT LEFT

Motivational/Inspirational

Rewards/Incentives

NEXT RIGHT

THANK YOU!

Documents

The Road to Becoming A Successful School Nutrition Leader · Title: Affiliation or Financial Disclosure Author: Toni Vega Aiken Created Date: 7/5/2017 3:24:08 PM