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City Studies

Lunchroom Digest

Amid the clatter of the school cafeteria few stop to think “Who decided I should eat this?” but in recent years the contents of school lunches have been a hotly contested subject. Who decides what to put on plates in school cafeterias across New York City?

A group of students in Aisling Roche’s film studies class at the Academy of Urban Planning (AUP) worked with the Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) and CUP teaching artist Lindsay C. Harris to find out who makes decisions about school food at the school, city, state, and federal levels.

Students interviewed each other, school staff, family members, and professionals working in food justice and the Department of Education. Based on their responses, students designed school meals visualizing the factors considered at each level. The meals became the faces of a set of 4 postcards, while the back features a food pyramid explaining each level in depth.