By Kristina Goetz
Memphis City Schools will bring in a former high-ranking U.S. Department of Agriculture official to oversee changes at the district’s Central Nutrition Center, which has been plagued by charges of waste and mismanagement.
The appointment of Shirley Watkins, who served as undersecretary of Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services at the USDA and previously directed nutrition services for the Memphis system, was announced late Friday by Supt. Kriner Cash in a written statement. She is expected to start work Aug. 18.
The superintendent also announced that as part of a “fresh start” process, all 18 administrative personnel with the CNC will have to reapply for their jobs.
“As superintendent, I will take a hands-on approach to the application review process as well as in the final selection of key leadership positions,” he said.
Watkins served as nutrition services director for the Memphis system for nearly two decades.
During her tenure, she made nutrition and healthy diets for city school children a priority and replaced soft drinks in school vending machines with fruit drinks.
In 1993, she was named to the federal post of deputy to the assistant secretary of food and consumer services and was promoted to undersecretary in 1997.
As undersecretary, Watkins was in charge of a $40 billion program overseeing food-stamp, commodities and school-lunch programs. During her tenure, which ended in 2001, the government strengthened nutrition rules for school-lunch programs and expanded after-school snack programs to include teenagers.
Watkins, who lives in Silver Spring, Md., could not be reached late Friday for comment.
The school district will begin a nationwide search Monday for a new director of the nutrition center, under public scrutiny since an audit released in December revealed more than $4 million in losses and violations of state and federal regulations.
Former nutrition services director James Jordan resigned last year amid allegations that his department made hundreds of improper purchases and allowed 243 tons of food to spoil.
Last week, the school district terminated retired FedEx vice president Karl Birkholz, brought in to clean up the nutrition center’s operations, after two days.
District officials said Birkholz, who was in charge of operations and control for the global shipping company for 20 years, was not a good fit for the operation.
“In recent weeks, it has become quite clear to me that I must immediately address the operational issues at the Central Nutrition Center,” Cash said. He said he wants citizens to know that the nutrition center is a priority for him and the entire district.
“I will not allow the concerns regarding this facility to continue,” he said.
– Kristina Goetz: 529-2380
Originally published by Kristina Goetz [email protected] .
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