An Avon, Indiana school’s appalling display of negligence left a young boy who forgot his lunch money with a moldy peanut butter sandwich as a replacement meal, sparking public outrage on social media and raising serious concerns about the care provided to students.
Amy Whittaker Anders, like most parents, knows that children can be incredibly forgetful. When her son Jake forgot his lunch money at home, she assumed she’d be billed for the meal he received or perhaps receive a note reminding her of her responsibility to send her child with enough money. What she didn’t expect was that the school would handle the situation so poorly, proving that they could be just as careless as her young son.
Public schools must provide food to students regardless of their ability to pay, but there isn’t a clear guideline on what constitutes an acceptable meal. Unfortunately, this loophole led to a disturbing experience for young Jake.
Upon returning home from school, Anders discovered that her son had been given a subpar meal, which he refused to eat for a shocking reason. According to WISH-TV, after Jake informed the school official that he’d forgotten his lunch money, his tray was confiscated and replaced with a peanut butter sandwich that was covered in dark green mold.
“Jake forgot his lunch money today. They took his lunch away and he was given this moldy peanut butter sandwich. I sure feel sorry for the kids without actual money who get this each day,” Amy Whittaker Anders wrote on Facebook.
Anders also highlighted that this wasn’t an isolated case, as a similar occurrence happened to another child just weeks prior.
“My question is, how could the cafeteria not see this mold. They also took his milk away. His friend also got one a couple of weeks ago week covered in mold,” Amy Whittaker Anders wrote.
After showing the moldy sandwich to the cafeteria official, Jake was given another sandwich, presumably from the same stash, but he was too apprehensive to eat it.
“I got a message that he did not feel good and had forgot his lunch money and this was his lunch,” she replied. “He did take it back to get one without mold, but was afraid to eat it. He took a pic last week of his friend’s moldy sandwich when his lunch was taken away. Jake said he got to the register and they took his tray.”
The school’s inadequate response to the issue sparked a firestorm on social media, with many expressing outrage and disgust at the thought of a child being denied a decent meal.
One person wrote, “I was a lunch lady a few years ago in Plainfield, we almost ALWAYS had extra, that got thrown in the trash! Soooo UNACCEPTABLE! I would be going to the school to have a talk with the principal & call health department, filing a grievance or whatever.”
“That is stupid!! So than what did they do with the food on the tray, throw it away?!?” another wrote.
Following the uproar, Avon Community School Corporation issued a statement claiming it was an “unacceptable human error” and promising to investigate the matter. “We are grateful to be made aware of the situation and have reached out to the parents and apologized. This is an unacceptable human error and we are looking into it to ensure that this never happens again.”
However, for Anders, this response fell short. While she agrees that mistakes happen, she points back to the fact that this has repeatedly occurred, concluding that she finds the incident to be an issue of neglect and apathy rather than simply “human error.” “I have no idea how someone could not see this was bad when handing it out!” she replied.
Now, Anders ensures her son receives a proper lunch every day, recognizing that the public school system cannot be relied upon to provide it. While parents certainly bear the responsibility of ensuring their children are properly fed, it’s disconcerting that the educators and staff entrusted with the well-being of these students would overlook something so crucial and evident.
While the school has apologized and promised to address the issue, the fact remains that this has happened on more than one occasion. It’s crucial that the school takes decisive action to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future, ensuring that all students receive not only an acceptable meal but also the care and attention they deserve.
In the wake of this incident, the school should consider revising its policies and procedures, as well as implementing stricter guidelines on what constitutes an acceptable meal. Moreover, staff should be trained to recognize and address any issues that may arise in the cafeteria, ensuring that no child is left hungry or subjected to a subpar meal.