Maria Anderson 

Maria Anderson is passionate about keeping her students’ plates full—and she does it all while having a full professional plate herself. She’s a Nutrition Coordinator for both the Roseville and Saint Anthony-New Brighton school districts in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area. For both districts, she’s responsible for menu development, marketing, farm-to-school planning and so much more.

With a 2-day notice in March of 2020, she and her teams pulled together a Covid meal strategy and never looked back. Even in facing an unprecedented situation, there were plenty of ways her districts were able to be a bright spot for their students.

Maria’s Tips

“During the summer, we did 7-day meal bundles (breakfast, lunch, super snack). We partnered with Every Meal in Roseville MN to offer non-perishable grocery items to kids that needed extra support.”

What Does the Future Look Like?

“One important effort is our MN Thursday menu which is focused on local farms. We lost a year, so we wanted to accelerate. We also want to help small local farms due to the negative COVID-19 impacts.”