South Florida districts raised the curtain on a new school year Monday.
And that meant showing off two new programs in Miami-Dade schools: a new food truck and the iTech magnet program at Thomas A. Edison Educational Center, which was formerly Little Haiti's Edison Middle.
Miami-Dade is finishing a billion-dollar renovation of schools, and the food truck will serve meals at campuses when the cafeterias are closed.
Miami-Dade superintendent Alberto Carvalho served up lunches from the truck, which he said will serve two purposes.
“Number one, because it is a good motivator for kids,” he said. “Secondly, we know that we will disrupt the normal operations in some cafeterias across the district.
“For whatever reason people get excited. It’s like a fish taco out of a food truck is better.”
Monday, the truck served roasted pork sandwiches with vegetables or chicken tacos with a salad, a pouch of juice and a cookie.
Susan Rothstein, director of food and menu management for the district, said those were the two most popular menu items last year. The truck will rotate among schools daily, except when the it is needed to stand in for a cafeteria under renovation.
“Throughout the school year we’re going to try some new items and some new recipes.” Rothstein said. “It’s one more way to get students to come out and eat a healthy and nutritious meal.”
Monday also was the opening of iTech, a new career-focused magnet school at the Thomas A. Edison Educational Center.
iTech is focusing on courses related to human resources management, mapping and geospatial technology and computers.
Ninth grader Reynold St. Juste said choosing iTech is the first step toward becoming a CEO and high-tech mogul.
“Kinda like Bill Gates, but, you know, a little bit better,” St. Juste said. “So I can, you know, go into the world, people look at me and be like ‘Eh, it’s the guy! This guy made holographic technology! Now, because of him, we have holographic tables, holographic phones – might even get holographic jet packs for all we know.”
