District Dietitian

Primary Purpose:

The District Dietitian for Child Nutrition is responsible for leading the development and execution of nutritious, high-quality, and appealing meals for students while ensuring full compliance. This role assists in creating and overseeing menu planning, recipe standardization, food production, and culinary innovation. Additionally, the role provides training and guidance to campus kitchen staff on culinary techniques, food safety, and standardized procedures to ensure compliance, efficiency, and high levels of customer satisfaction. Assists the Director in managing the School Nutrition program for compliance of federal and state regulations pertaining to the School Breakfast Program, National School Lunch Program, ASCP, CACFP and all other federal or state student meal programs utilized within the District.

Minimum Qualifications

Education/Certification:

• Bachelor's degree in Nutrition or related field is required. Registered dietitians are preferred. Culinary training preferred Valid ServSafe Certificate (mandatory)
• Clear and valid Texas driver's license required.
• Candidates must have a satisfactory outcome of a fingerprinting background check. Non-refundable fee (approximately $50.00) paid by the employee.

Required Experience:

• Two years related Food Service experience in a school, hospital or industrial food service operation.

Knowledge/Skills:

• Ability to write appealing and compliant menus.
• Ability to scale menus and recipes into consistent, repeatable production processes.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred.
• Basic computer software skills for record-keeping and point-of-sale (POS) systems.
• Strong mentorship and leadership capabilities for staff training.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills with kitchen managers, campus and operational leadership.
• Ability to balance menu writing with compliance, cost control, and operational realities.
• Knowledge of large-scale K-12 menu planning, scratch cooking, and standardized recipe development.
• Knowledge of commodity utilization, inventory management, cost control and waste reduction practices.

Major Responsibilities and Duties:

• Ensures the direction of the School Nutrition Program follows all local, state, and federal guidelines.
• Manages exempt and hourly staff in the School Nutrition Department.
• Establishes and maintains excellent relationships with district administrative and campus staff to ensure expectations are being met.
• Maintains records of School Nutrition bids, quality assurance, and shipping.
• Assists with updating and recording all food specifications.
• Is responsible for USDA commodities to include: ordering, administration, coordinating, receiving and storage.
• Maintains computer technology as applicable to School Nutrition menu planning procedures and inventory accountability.
• Develops cycle menus and production records in accordance with all state regulations.
• Maintains control over and performs nutritional analysis of all menus using computer technology software.
• Continually strives to develop School Nutrition staff in all areas of managerial and professional development.
• Creates and implements training material to support district training.
• Engages students by assisting in executing a variety of student-based nutrition education programs.
• Completes required daily/weekly/monthly reports such as inventory, production records, payroll/timekeeping, metrics tracking, etc. in a timely manner.
• Assists in replying to parent, student, teacher, and administrator's questions and complaints.
• Assists in staff development (training) and the planning and execution of catered functions.
• Assists with marketing and promotional procedures to assure high participation at breakfast and lunch. Assists with ongoing development of policy and procedure in Managers' handbook. Leads program innovation efforts to ensure academic success through feeding more students.
• Performs other duties as assigned

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Assist the Director in the overall supervision of employees in the School Nutrition Department.
• Planning a compliant menu incorporating commodity items, ensuring participation and financial goals.
• Carry out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the District's policies and applicable laws.
• Ability to oversee interviewing, hiring and training employees.
• Ability to plan, assign, and direct work, appraising performance.
• Rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems .

Equipment:

• Personal computer, printer, calculator, multi-line telephone, copier, fax machine, postage machine, answering machine, scanner, shredder, kitchen equipment, peripherals, and other equipment related to the position
• Must have reliable mode of transportation and utilize district vehicle

Working Conditions

Mental Demands/Physical Demands/Environmental Factors:

• Posture: Prolonged sitting; occasional bending/stooping, pushing/pulling, and twisting
• Motion: Repetitive hand motions including frequent keyboarding and use of mouse; occasional reaching
• Lifting: Occasional light lifting and carrying (40 lbs. or less)
• Environment: May work prolonged or irregular hours; frequent districtwide travel; occasionally exposed to wet and/or humid conditions, moving mechanical parts, extreme cold, extreme heat, and risk of electrical shock. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

The foregoing statements describe the general purpose and responsibilities assigned to this job and are not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and duties that may be assigned or skills that may be required.