Dr. Carla Scott
The Detroit Board of Education is set for a May 8 historic vote involving food giant Aramark. The vote will determine whether the Philadelphia based company, which has managed the food service operation of the Detroit Public Schools for more than five years, will continue to do so or not. Aramark officials in a recent editorial meeting said the company has an excellent track record of meeting the food service needs of its clients.

In 2005, the company received the District of Excellence in Child Nutrition award from the School Nutrition Association for its work in DPS. The company said it has been the subject of the “unions’ corporate/industry campaign” to gain membership. Aramark maintained that contrary to allegations, its contract with DPS is valid and complies with all of the applicable rules and regulations governing the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. This year, Detroit Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Connie Calloway mounted an investigation in the food service management on the District, coming on the heels of a community-wide campaign by union officials and other Aramark critics who said the company is failing in meeting its contractual obligations.

Following is what board members of the District are saying about the anticipated vote on Thursday at the Detroit International Academy, 9026 Woodward Ave.

Dr. Carla Scott: “I’m voting for them to get a termination letter July 1. The superintendent has done her homework and she believes we need a change in our food service and how our food service is being run, and I support that decision. I know that the employees would like for it to be moved in-house and I know she will take that into consideration.

“I believe that our employees should be given the opportunity to do this provided there is no interruption in the food delivery to the children and that there is no financial loss.”

Otis Mathis: “I’m voting in favor of their termination. It seems like before I came on, all the negative feedback, animosity, fighting between Aramark and the employees, I actually had opportunity to look at new information, data as a new board member. This first (vote) thing has to happen and then an RFP (request for proposal) would be out for vendors looking into the contract.

“As a new board member that’s the experience for me. Aramark also has the right to bid. But I’m voting for their termination to open up the bidding.
 
Sometimes you have to have a fresh area to start. Aramark could be a part of that too. I asked them (Aramark) at the informational meeting, they said they would be bidding, which makes sense.”

Annie Carter: “I want to vote for transition to in-house without a consulting service like Sodexho. I think we could transition in-house without Sodexho because a lot of our people there at the schools had to train Aramark’s people. That is why at this point I want to give a non-renewal to Aramark. Aramark has to go.”

Terry Catchings: “I’m voting against the Aramark contract. I don’t think Aramark fulfilled their contractual obligation to the District. A lot of things happened internally that I can’t divulge. I don’t think they fulfill their contractual obligation.”

Ida Short: “Aramark has got to go. One of the main reasons for me is that last summer I went into their kitchen to look at how they were preparing their summer lunches. I saw baloney sandwiches with other ingredients in it. The quality of the food is not as good as I heard. Part of my life was being raised in the South so I have good understanding of what fresh food is.

“There is a direct correlation between good nutrition and academic excellence. I don’t want our children eating frozen food that has been on the shelve for months. The quality of food is so poor that I believe that the perception in the community is that Aramark does not care about our community. I support moving in-house because we have a better opportunity for excellent food service. This is not about providing a multi-million dollar contract to any individual. Nutrition is critical.

David Murray: “I don’t know exactly how I’m going to vote. But I tell you Aramark is not going to survive this one. People and the board members have expressed dissatisfaction with Aramark. I don’t want to say who I’m voting for at this point because I’m going to get the written recommendation of the superintendent and then I will make the decision from there. But we’ve got a superintendent and we’ve got to at respect her recommendation.”

Tyrone Winfrey: “I have not made a decision yet. My goal is to see the recommendation of the superintendent, look at what is the best quality of food for your young people because I have heard about that in a couple of schools. And also I want to look at what is the best cost-saving for the District. Before, I was concerned about Aramark because they had various additional fees in their contract, including management fee and professional development fee. I’m concerned about that.”

Jimmy Womack: “Whatever the recommendation is, it needs to be one that the superintendent (Dr. Connie Calloway) either supports or can work with. She has made it clear that issues of operation fall under her domain. What I approve needs to something that she recommended or can work with. And I certainly hope we can expeditiously move food service management in- house. She’s got to manage it. She’s been really clear about that.”

Marvis Coffield: “I’m supporting the superintendent’s recommendation. That means the recommendation that was voted out of the committee to issue a termination letter to Aramark in July. I’m going to vote to issue the termination letter.”

Joyce Hayes-Giles: “Until I get some data or some analysis that has been done to show that food service should either remain with Aramark or come in house, I cannot make that decision because we’ve been given no information to make an informed decision. My concern is that we are at the end of the school year. It takes at least nine months if we are going to do a transition.

“We have no plans as to how that will happen, and I have a real concern we cannot start the school year and have no food service. In addition to that, my view is that the superintendent’s first priority is to focus on academics, and I want to see her focus on that. I don’t have any information to say that the current food service is the biggest priority other than the political issues around that. If I were to instruct the superintendent on priorities, the focus right now would be to get the turnaround schools in place. There is no burning bed that says we have to change food service right now.”

Marie Thornton: “I have never voted for Aramark to have a contract with the board. So I’m going to stay consistent.”