March 7, 2023—Yesterday, High School East’s cafeteria reopened to the delight of students and staff.

The school’s cafeteria and its kitchen had been closed since March 2022, as the spaces had been marked for significant improvement as part of the Rebuilding Our Schools Initiative and the associated referendum. The kitchen, in fact, was completed gutted.

The job was so extensive that the cafeteria and kitchen were scheduled to be closed until mid-August of this year. The referendum work, however, under the watch of Assistant Superintendent Jim Ricotta, was completed months ahead of schedule.

For the past year, the Food Services Department—which is housed at HSE—had been serving sandwiches and salads out of the school’s vending room.

But that all changed yesterday.

“Hot lunch is back at High School East!” boasted Assistant Food Services Director Maryellen Kennedy.

And while hot lunch returned, a new feature debuted: a grab and go cooler (right). One of its first customers, appropriately, was Mr. Ricotta, who opted for the Caesar salad (left). Healthy choice.