“When you think about school lunch, oftentimes a woman with a hairnet and scooper is what people imagine,” Janelle Peterson, Manager of Student Nutrition for Rapid City Area Schools (RCAS). “That’s just the connotation—but we’re not your mother’s school lunch.”

Peterson and her team had established their tagline — ensuring a successful tomorrow through extraordinary moments today, reflecting her team’s commitment and sense of duty to providing a complete and thoughtful dining experience for students. The question was — what next?

THE STORY

While Rapid City’s program had a head start on redefining its brand, they weren’t sure of the logical next steps. ProTeam stepped in to evaluate current efforts, define goals and establish priorities, and round out a marketing plan that was equal parts bold and pragmatic.

PRIMARY CHALLENGES

Branding. “We have 23 schools and I did not want 23 separate silos,” explains Peterson. “I wanted a global service.” That meant creating a cohesive dining experience for students, from kindergarten all the way up to the 12th grade.

Change aversion. Some staff were concerned about the loss of school identity. If dining services didn’t feature their mascot and colors, for example, wouldn’t this undermine the school’s unique attributes?

Satellite schools. Because RCAS has 15 sites without kitchens, two high schools shared the responsibility of food preparation. While this worked well for food distribution, there were concerns about the consistency of the food product going out.

Summertime. Students benefited from the RCAS feeding program if they lived close to the sites. For those who lived faraway, however, food access remained an issue. RCAS considered food trucks as a possible solution.

OUR SOLUTIONS

Credibility Through Data. Backed by ProTeam’s branding plan, Peterson was able to advocate for proposed changes backed by data and assuage concerns.

Full Brand Asset Kit. With the expert advice of ProTeam's branding strategists, Rapid City branded its “Fresh Choice Café,” which carries its own logo, signage, and signature offerings. We built out a comprehensive kit comprised of versatile assets the program can rely on for marketing efforts to prioritize consistency across schools while remaining flexible to each sites’ individual needs.

Consolidate and automate. To help both operational efficiency and branding efforts toward consistency, ProTeam advised consolidating meal preparation to one school and purchasing a machine to overwrap meals (which had previously been done by hand). As a result, one school was freed up to focus on signature line items, and greater efficiency and food consistency were achieved.

Leveraging good ideas. Summer food trucks were an innovative solution, and ProTeam encouraged taking it a step further. They advised RCAS to capture the open campus students, which RCAS did by adding a six-week program in the fall. “Students are just blown away,” shares Peterson. “It makes them feel really special.”