
Prince
William
County
Public
School's
Adam
Russo,
director
of
school
food
and
nutrition
services,
will
serve
on
the
newly
formed
Task
Force
on
Culturally
Inclusive
School
Meals
and
Calendars.
This
statewide
task
force
formed
by
Governor
Ralph
Northam
will
focus
on
identifying
best
practices
for
implementing
culturally
and
religiously
inclusive
school
calendars
and
serving
school
meals
that
accommodate
more
dietary
restrictions.
"When
our
school
environments
reflect
the
history,
values,
cultures,
and
traditions
of
the
communities
they
serve,
our
students
are
better
positioned
to
learn
and
thrive,"
said
Governor
Northam.
The
task
force
is
comprised
of
a
wide
variety
of
stakeholders
from
across
the
state
and
will
be
divided
into
two
subcommittees.
Russo
will
serve
on
the
subcommittee
that
will
focus
on
developing
recommendations
on
how
to
offer
additional
school
meal
options
to
accommodate
the
increasingly
more
diverse
population
in
the
state.
Northam
has
asked
the
task
force
to
"explore
how
school
nutrition
programs
can
ensure
students
have
access
to
meals
that
suit
their
dietary
constraints
to
honor
their
cultural
practices."
When
asked
about
his
role
on
the
task
force,
Russo
stated,
"PWCS
is
one
of
the
most
diverse
school
divisions
in
the
country
and
to
respect
that
diversity
through
food
is
something
that
is
incredibly
close
to
my
heart.
I
am
hopeful
that
the
aspirational
recommendations
we
make
to
the
Governor
will
make
impactful
policy
changes
throughout
the
Commonwealth
to
support
this
important
work."
The
second
subcommittee
will
be
responsible
for
exploring
best
practices
in
the
implementation
of
culturally
inclusive
school
calendars.
Atif
Qarni,
secretary
of
education,
chaired
the
first
meeting
of
the
task
force
in
late
May.
Qarni
said,
"This
Task
Force
will
provide
recommendations
to
school
divisions
and
higher
education
institutions
that
are
seeking
to
expand
meal
offerings
and
recognize
important
religious
and
cultural
holidays
such
as
Eid
al-Fitr,
Ash
Wednesday,
Lunar
New
Year,
Yom
Kippur,
Diwali,
and
other
days
that
may
not
be
acknowledged
on
school
calendars
but
bear
significant
cultural
importance
to
many
students
in
our
classrooms."
The
task
force
will
meet
regularly
through
June
and
July
to
identify
best
practices
and
form
recommendations
and
will
present
their
recommendations
to
stakeholders
in
August
2021.