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CLINTON—Food service will no longer be subsidized or provided directly by the school district in the Lenawee County community of Clinton. The Board of Education voted unanimously on July 20 to privatize lunchroom services starting this fall.
The food program, which has cost the district $90,000 in subsidies over the past eight years, will now be run by Aramark Corporation, which has a regional office in Monroe, Michigan. The company plans to produce savings for the district of as much as $50,000 per year. In the 1997-98 school year, the district took in $192,345 for lunches but brought in only $175,845 in sales and state funding, for a loss of about $16,500. All nine district employees were given opportunities to have job interviews with Aramark, according to the terms of the contract signed with the district.
Endorsing the district's planned privatization, the Daily Telegram in nearby Adrian said in a July 23 editorial, "The decision was made on sound principles: the move is designed to put more money toward education." The newspaper also noted that "privatizing food services does not guarantee success," pointing out that the Adrian schools switched back to in-house provision after privatization a few years ago did not produce the expected savings.
