Boulder’s ‘Renegade Lunch Lady’ Wants To Teach Other Schools ‘Scratch Cooking’

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Photo: Boulder Valley School District
Chef Ann cooking made-from-scratch tomato sauce in the production kitchen at Boulder Valley School District.

You won't find pre-packaged lunches in Ann Cooper's school cafeterias. Cooper tells Colorado Matters that despite uncertainty about how the Trump administration's policies will impact school food programs she thinks many school districts around the country are committed to serving healthier food to their students.

Cooper, known as the "Renegade Lunch Lady," is a classically trained chef and the director of food services for Boulder Valley School District. This month, she'll start offering online courses for school food professionals through her School Food Institute. A $520,000 grant from the Colorado Health Foundation allows all Colorado school food service workers to enroll in the classes free of charge.

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