Alternatives to the admin breakfast at the start of pre-service?

[Anonymous]

Does anyone’s school replace it with something else? Or is this a sacrosanct tradition that can never be re-evaluated?

[Anonymous]

Is there a problem with it?

[Anonymous]

It isn’t well executed at my school. The coffee station is not set up on time and the hot water for tea runs out in 10 cups. There isn’t enough time to get everyone through the line and eat between 7:45 when the food is ready and 8:15 when the first meeting starts. The Media specialist won’t allow food in the library so most people who got their plates at 8 am end up dumping their breakfast so they can be on time. That’s about half of the line. Their food is wasted and people are so hungry in the morning meetings that they are crabby and find it hard to focus. The people who did get food first usually are shoveling it in quickly so the idea that this is a convivial time to bond with coworkers is inaccurate.

I suggested last year that they order everything as boxed or bagged breakfasts from DD. This is what DH’s team does when they travel for competitions. Everyone has their food in 5 min. My principal says that would be too expensive.

[Anonymous]

I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

[Anonymous]

Set up two lines of similar "scope" of items, not just one line. That way, people have a chance at one plate of food, then if there is time, they can wander over to the line they didn't go through and see if there's anything they missed.

Like, it's fine if one line has blueberry muffins and one line has poppyseed muffins; the point is, you can make a plate of protein/carbs/fruit/sweet treat out of either line. Not picky-picky prince or princess time, just time to make a plate and keep it moving.

I think there are quite a few places where you can pick up one of those big cardboard containers of coffee, decaf, tea, hot water, etc. Just get one or two of those filled with hot water, and that solves the tea problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

It doesn't take a big budget. It takes a Sign-Up Genius. Everything, from the Chick-fil-A breakfast trays to the fruit to the cookies to the bagels, were provided by individual families via the Sign-Up Genius. It takes organization and delegation, not money. Even the coffee carts were brought in as donations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

It doesn't take a big budget. It takes a Sign-Up Genius. Everything, from the Chick-fil-A breakfast trays to the fruit to the cookies to the bagels, were provided by individual families via the Sign-Up Genius. It takes organization and delegation, not money. Even the coffee carts were brought in as donations.

So you think families who can't afford to pay for their own kids' lunches should sign up to pay for a Chick fil A breakfast tray for the staff of their child's school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

It doesn't take a big budget. It takes a Sign-Up Genius. Everything, from the Chick-fil-A breakfast trays to the fruit to the cookies to the bagels, were provided by individual families via the Sign-Up Genius. It takes organization and delegation, not money. Even the coffee carts were brought in as donations.

Yes but at a high FARMS families may not be able to afford coffee for all the teachers or donuts for all the teachers. Or they might not have enough parents willing to get involved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

It doesn't take a big budget. It takes a Sign-Up Genius. Everything, from the Chick-fil-A breakfast trays to the fruit to the cookies to the bagels, were provided by individual families via the Sign-Up Genius. It takes organization and delegation, not money. Even the coffee carts were brought in as donations.

Yes but at a high FARMS families may not be able to afford coffee for all the teachers or donuts for all the teachers. Or they might not have enough parents willing to get involved.

Well then, to be honest...what do you expect? You expect one principal with maybe 2-3 other volunteers are going to be able to pull this off really well? A very few people are making a big effort for a huge group of people. So it's not perfect; it's a gesture.

It's a gesture, not a guarantee that each and every belly will be perfectly full of perfect food at a perfect time.

Smart people can read a room and make the best of it; the next year, with lived experience under they belt, they make a plan. Eat a little something at home, bring your own coffee in a travel mug, and have a granola bar and a cheese stick in your purse. That way, you get to participate and appreciate the gesture, but you'll be caffenated and don't run the risk of going hungry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

Our school doesn't have a PTA so the only people buying us lunch or breakfast all year is our admin team. They do it maybe 4-5 times each year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

It doesn't take a big budget. It takes a Sign-Up Genius. Everything, from the Chick-fil-A breakfast trays to the fruit to the cookies to the bagels, were provided by individual families via the Sign-Up Genius. It takes organization and delegation, not money. Even the coffee carts were brought in as donations.

Yes but at a high FARMS families may not be able to afford coffee for all the teachers or donuts for all the teachers. Or they might not have enough parents willing to get involved.

Well then, to be honest...what do you expect? You expect one principal with maybe 2-3 other volunteers are going to be able to pull this off really well? A very few people are making a big effort for a huge group of people. So it's not perfect; it's a gesture.

It's a gesture, not a guarantee that each and every belly will be perfectly full of perfect food at a perfect time.

Smart people can read a room and make the best of it; the next year, with lived experience under they belt, they make a plan. Eat a little something at home, bring your own coffee in a travel mug, and have a granola bar and a cheese stick in your purse. That way, you get to participate and appreciate the gesture, but you'll be caffenated and don't run the risk of going hungry.

I'm saying that I don't appreciate the gesture. Mostly because it's completely self-serving of the principal because her number one priority is to impress central office staff, not to show appreciation to the staff. The staff are just the pawns in the game. Sure, some people actually like the food but most just give polite compliments. As someone with food allergies, I'm used to not being able to eat the food provided, and of course I plan ahead and do that every year. I also don't appreciate having hours of precious set up/planning time taken up by this self-serving event. I'd be a lot happier if it was optional, or if it was strictly for catching up with co workers. But sitting in silence on cafeteria benches listening to endless speeches doesn't start the year off on a good note for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

We have a very small PTA with a very small budget. I work at a high FARMS school. Not all schools have involved PTAs with big budgets.

It doesn't take a big budget. It takes a Sign-Up Genius. Everything, from the Chick-fil-A breakfast trays to the fruit to the cookies to the bagels, were provided by individual families via the Sign-Up Genius. It takes organization and delegation, not money. Even the coffee carts were brought in as donations.

Yes but at a high FARMS families may not be able to afford coffee for all the teachers or donuts for all the teachers. Or they might not have enough parents willing to get involved.

Well then, to be honest...what do you expect? You expect one principal with maybe 2-3 other volunteers are going to be able to pull this off really well? A very few people are making a big effort for a huge group of people. So it's not perfect; it's a gesture.

It's a gesture, not a guarantee that each and every belly will be perfectly full of perfect food at a perfect time.

Smart people can read a room and make the best of it; the next year, with lived experience under they belt, they make a plan. Eat a little something at home, bring your own coffee in a travel mug, and have a granola bar and a cheese stick in your purse. That way, you get to participate and appreciate the gesture, but you'll be caffenated and don't run the risk of going hungry.

I'm saying that I don't appreciate the gesture. Mostly because it's completely self-serving of the principal because her number one priority is to impress central office staff, not to show appreciation to the staff. The staff are just the pawns in the game. Sure, some people actually like the food but most just give polite compliments. As someone with food allergies, I'm used to not being able to eat the food provided, and of course I plan ahead and do that every year. I also don't appreciate having hours of precious set up/planning time taken up by this self-serving event. I'd be a lot happier if it was optional, or if it was strictly for catching up with co workers. But sitting in silence on cafeteria benches listening to endless speeches doesn't start the year off on a good note for me.

What suggestions have you offered to the admin team, and how were those suggestions received? (Or is this thread your first step toward garnering ideas and making some suggestions?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it. Ours is a dog and pony show because our principal invites central office bigwigs to attend and they all stand up and give corny speeches and profusely thank our principal for inviting them. There is a lot of food, but I can't eat any of it due to having food allergies (nor would I want to--everything is prepared by the principal and their family and the prep is questionable). Then our principal taps out after the "show" because they're exhausted from cooking all weekend and getting to school extra early to set it all up, and we have to hear about it all week. We're also expected to thank the principal profusely for their generosity. We have to sit for hours on the backless cafeteria table benches and twist our necks to see the person who is speaking up front. We can't talk to each other because we have to listen to endless speeches from central office wonks about the excitement of a new school year.

All we want is to be left alone in our rooms to start setting up. The last thing I want to do is sit in the hot cafeteria for hours watching the time go by.

Where is your PTA in all of this?! I'm a member of the PTA, and last week we pulled off the breakfast. Of course the principal shouldn't be making/buying/bringing this herself! I am shocked that this isn't a PTA affair.

Our school doesn't have a PTA so the only people buying us lunch or breakfast all year is our admin team. They do it maybe 4-5 times each year.

That's nice of them. That's the same for my workplace; no one buys my team food except for our main leadership, a few times a year.