Preparing breakfast and lunch every day for 1700 students is a demanding job. To tackle this, there are currently 17 cafeteria workers who prepare the meals and serve them. Despite the effort the cafeteria ladies put into their job, students usually only encounter them during nutrition and lunch, and don’t know the work they do on a daily basis to keep students fed or who they are.
Megan Leiva has been serving lunch on campus for two years. She lives in Pomona, and wakes up at 5:00 a.m. to get to school by 6:00 to prepare breakfast and meals at nutrition. Working in the cafeteria gives her the experience to be a registered dietitian, which is her ideal career path. Leiva currently takes classes at Cal Poly Pomona to earn her bachelor’s degree. She wants to be a registered dietitian to work closely with sick patients and help shape their dietary choices.
“So once I get into the field, I have that under my belt, and, you know, be able to help patients with diabetes and, you know, other sorts of diseases,” said Leiva.
In order to serve proper meals, Leiva and her co-workers ensure that the cafeteria is clean in the morning. Once this is done, they prepare meals listed on the monthly menu, which shows what is going to be served for the day.
As an aspiring dietitian, Leiva often feels concern for students who don’t pick out a fruit or a vegetable with their meal. Each student is required to choose one with each meal; however, these foods often end up being thrown away, which upsets her because she knows students who make that choice miss out on vital nutrients.
“We want to emphasize the importance of, you know, students eating their fruits and vegetables,” said Leiva.
While working in the cafeteria may seem simple, there are a variety of different roles each cafeteria lady takes on. Leiva is one of these women who works on preparing the meals rather than serving them. Once she finishes preparing the food for breakfast, she heads off to school.
Unlike Suzanna Gutierrez, who works all day preparing lunch and breakfast, certain cafeteria ladies work in the prepping area while others serve the food and interact with the students.
“The that interact with the students, see them every day, get to know them by name and everything,” said Gutierrez.
Leiva feels recognized by the community due to the impact of her work, feeding students every day.
“You know, we’re trying to make sure every kid is fed. So we want to make sure, you know, kids aren’t in class starving. We want to make sure they’re, you know, got their full bellies. And we’re emphasizing fresh meals,” said Leiva.
The daily tasks of the cafeteria ladies on campus are not easy; however, it’s an important job that all schools require. With each of the cafeteria ladies pursuing their goals in the lunchroom and in their own lives, they continue to provide students with meals.
(Valeria Aguilar)
