Crescent City Schools is kicking off 2026 with a fresh approach to staff wellness through a new partnership with Ochsner’s nonprofit initiative Eat Fit, bringing chef-crafted meals that align with Eat Fit standards to school cafeterias across the network every Thursday of the school year.
Eat Fit is a program developed by Ochsner Health that certifies dishes meeting specific nutritional standards—meals that are lower in calories, sodium, and saturated fat while being rich in nutrients. Now, thanks to a collaboration between CCS’s food services team and the Eat Fit program, those same health-conscious options are available to hundreds of staff members at CCS schools across the board.
The program, spearheaded by Amanda Hollman, Managing Director of Human Capital, grew out of a natural synergy between CCS’s in-house food service and its employee wellness initiatives. Staff were already raving about the quality of the cafeteria food and lining up for weekly staff specials. Hollman, who also runs CCS’s wellness program, wanted to make sure that the weekly staff specials were nutritionally balanced as well as delicious.
“I really love the idea of giving our staff clear, easy-to-spot options when they want something healthier,” Hollman said. “We’re trying to have meals similar to the ones we already have, just tweak one or two things, and now it’s Eat Fit approved!”
The initiative addresses a real need for many CCS employees. “We have heard some staff express that they wish it were easier to access healthy takeaway food options during the school day, and a lot of our schools are in food deserts,” Hollman explained. “I think having those options right in the school will meet that desire.”
After a successful pilot last fall featuring exciting pop-up tastings and demonstrations prepared by Tom Beckmann, CCS Director of Food Services, Eat Fit Thursdays officially launched earlier this month. This month’s Eat Fit menu featured dishes including beef bulgogi bowls with rice and crunchy vegetables, grilled chicken with lo-mein, chicken tikka masala, chana masala, and more.
To encourage participation in Eat Fit, CCS has tied the program into its Orbit wellness rewards program. Staff who snap a photo of themselves trying the Eat Fit meal can upload it to the HealthCheck360 app and earn 100 points—equivalent to one dollar redeemable toward gift cards. Employees can earn rewards nearly every week throughout the school year, making healthy choices a little easier on the wallet too.
The connection between good nutrition and job performance isn’t lost on Hollman. “Teaching is demanding,” she noted. “[Our teachers] are getting to school early and they’re on all day long. Eat Fit dishes can provide them with sustained energy.”
While the current Thursday offering is just the beginning, Hollman and Beckmann have bigger aspirations for the program at CCS—including the possibility of daily Eat Fit options or a grab-and-go cooler with salads. “The more often we can have a healthy choice for our staff in our cafeterias, the better it is for everyone. Our staff are going to be healthier and feel more energized, which also means that they can serve scholars better.”
