High School Student Perceptions Associated with Their Participation in the National School Lunch Program

Abstract

Perceptions were obtained from 812 11 th-grade students from six low-participation schools and 482 students from high-participation schools. Items were related to food quality and appearance, variety in food choices, dining environment and crowding, service time, staff service, sanitation practices, menu dietary practices, menu dietary information, marketing and promotion, meal price, and influence of others in deciding whether or not to participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). Weighted school mean scores of student satisfaction/dissatisfaction (5 items) and agreement/ disagreement (34 items) reflected generally neutral ratings (2.75-3.24 on a 5-point scale) in both low- and high-participation schools. Independent t-tests indicated significant differences between the two groups for 13 of the 39 items. However, similarity of student perceptions in both low- and high-participation schools indicate that participation in the NSLP may not be a good indicator of student satisfaction. Step-wise logistic regression analysis showed that convenience and having no other choice were the two independent variables that contributed the most to explaining differences in levels of participation in both low- and high-participation schools. Researchers also made on-site observations. They rated items related to crowding, service time, temperature of hot food, taste of foods, and meal price higher than did students. Approximately 25% of students indicated that more variety in food choices and improvement in food quality would encourage them to eat the reimbursable lunch more often. These suggestions were consistent with mean ratings of ⩽2.76 for quality and variety of foods offered and should be viewed as an opportunity to increase participation.