Meet Caroline
Seeing 2,500 evacuees lined up outside your school cafeteria is not something K-12
foodservice professionals are trained to handle. But in 2017, that’s exactly the challenge
Hurricane Irma presented to Caroline Trinder. At the time, it was considered the most powerful
hurricane on record in the open Atlantic and the most intense hurricane to strike the continental
United States since Hurricane Katrina. In her role as Sarasota County Schools' area supervisor
of food and nutrition services, Caroline and just four other staff members did everything they
could to ensure her school’s facility (1 of 13 open in the area) was open to feed the community.
Caroline has since moved back to her home state of Maine to be closer to family and serve as
the director of food and nutrition services for Regional School Unit 23 in Old Orchard Beach.
When nominating Caroline, her colleague, Whitney Thornton, called out Caroline's commitment
to her students, “Caroline is a #trayblazer! With her fresh and innovative ideas, new salads,
nutrition education in the classroom and so much more, she's a registered dietician who leads
by example.”
When speaking with Caroline, it’s easy to agree. The way she talks about food, you quickly
understand that she holds everything to a higher standard. She says, “I am so concerned about
the quality of our food. I often say, ‘If you wouldn't feed this to the superintendent, we won’t
serve it.’” Caroline's commitment to quality comes to life in her approach to how she manages
her cafeteria, choosing to prepare food in batches rather than all at once, which helps optimize
freshness. They’re able to create beautiful entrees and salads that everyone appreciates. She
says, “I’m blown away by how many third and fourth graders pick salads!”
With only a few hundred students and just three buildings, being a part of a smaller school
system has its distinct advantages. Caroline makes a point to visit each of her locations daily. “I
love the small district because I feel like I have the capability to make real change. I know half of
the kids' names, and my daughter goes here.” However, there are also challenges.
Like many smaller school districts, Caroline has to find ways to stretch dollars, achieve more
competitive prices and enhance their buying power. She is the chair of the local prime vendor
committee, the group that works with their food distributer and participates in bidding. Caroline
has been elected as the next president of the 25-school co-op. It has been an extremely
educational experience for her. She says, “It’s unbelievable how much I have learned. It’s taught
me that you just have to be aware of the world around you, and we need to advocate for school
programs.”
Caroline recently visited Washington D.C. to meet with Maine's two senators, two
congresspeople as well as five other Maine school nutrition directors. They discussed the
impact school meal programs have on students’ lives along with the importance of meal
waivers.
Caroline’s Tips
One lesson Caroline practices is to take everything in stride. “I used to get worried about
everything, but now I know that as long as the kids get fed, everything is good.”
Caroline fosters mutual respect among her employees by always pitching in and doing whatever
needs to be done. On any given day you can find her working in the kitchen, mopping floors and
even cleaning trays or pots and pans. “I want my staff to see me as the kind of leader who’s
willing to sweat alongside them, that I’m not above any task.”
She sees school meals as an opportunity to teach kids about food and wants to move away
from the antiquated “lunch lady” mindset. Caroline takes the approach of treating her programs
like a restaurant that just happens to feed a little over 450 children daily. She wants lunch to be
the highlight of their day! There are plenty of learnings from that strategy, like how the older kids
love Asian food while the smaller ones still love the basics like pizza — but she always pairs
them with fruits and veggies. Classics like Cheerios™, Cinnamon Toast Crunch™, Pillsbury™
Mini Cinnis, Mini Pancakes, Mini Waffles and Blueberry Muffin Tops are also a hit across the
ages.
Be sure to follow along as Caroline leads RSU 23 to a delicious future!