littlejoe
10-12-2007, 08:47 PM
Bergen County parents are floored by a new school lunch policy. Their children were forced to eat their lunch on the floor.
Mahwah School Superintendent Charles Montesano won't let CBS 2 HD in his high school, specifically anywhere near the floors inside. Yet, that's exactly where students have been eating their lunch.
That's right. Nearly 1,000 students attend classes at Mahwah High School daily, and at lunchtime, a good majority of them are on the floor, as seen in pictures obtained exclusively by CBS 2 HD.
The cafeteria holds around 300, some outside picnic tables are provided, and seniors can leave for lunch. But parents and some students were quick to speak out to school leadership against hundreds left to floor dining -- and got nowhere.
"Kids should not be eating on the floor," one mother said. "Nobody should be eating on the floor. Animals eat on the floor."
Added a student named "Samantha": "It's dirty. It's disgusting."
CBS 2 HD was able to obtain and analyze three floor swabs. The findings found "very high" bacteria counts, suggesting a combination of "dirty" surfaces.
And more than that, the findings suggest students are eating on dangerous surfaces.
Renowned microbiologist Dr. Philip Tierno warns 80 percent of all infectious diseases are spread through contact. So when a child touches the floor to sit, then touches a sandwich, whatever is on the floor can then be ingested.
"I would categorize it as stupid," Tierno said. "I would characterize it as primitive, and the scourge of third world countries.
"You may be stepping on the fecal matter, sputum, blood, urine."
Even the local health department decries eating on the floor. In a letter they sent to the school, they call the practice, "very unsanitary." Yet in order for Mahwah High School to lengthen its teaching time, they opted to push all 1,000 students through a single, 43-minute lunch period.
"This allows teachers to go into greater depth in their discussions," Superintendent Montesano said.
The school would not release their own specific results from bacterial swab tests, but a parent forwarded those results sent home Wednesday, confirming the presence of dangerous pathogens like E. coli and enterococcus found in feces.
Since our interview, the school says it forbids the floor dining, opting instead for gym bleachers and other seating.
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Mahwah School Superintendent Charles Montesano won't let CBS 2 HD in his high school, specifically anywhere near the floors inside. Yet, that's exactly where students have been eating their lunch.
That's right. Nearly 1,000 students attend classes at Mahwah High School daily, and at lunchtime, a good majority of them are on the floor, as seen in pictures obtained exclusively by CBS 2 HD.
The cafeteria holds around 300, some outside picnic tables are provided, and seniors can leave for lunch. But parents and some students were quick to speak out to school leadership against hundreds left to floor dining -- and got nowhere.
"Kids should not be eating on the floor," one mother said. "Nobody should be eating on the floor. Animals eat on the floor."
Added a student named "Samantha": "It's dirty. It's disgusting."
CBS 2 HD was able to obtain and analyze three floor swabs. The findings found "very high" bacteria counts, suggesting a combination of "dirty" surfaces.
And more than that, the findings suggest students are eating on dangerous surfaces.
Renowned microbiologist Dr. Philip Tierno warns 80 percent of all infectious diseases are spread through contact. So when a child touches the floor to sit, then touches a sandwich, whatever is on the floor can then be ingested.
"I would categorize it as stupid," Tierno said. "I would characterize it as primitive, and the scourge of third world countries.
"You may be stepping on the fecal matter, sputum, blood, urine."
Even the local health department decries eating on the floor. In a letter they sent to the school, they call the practice, "very unsanitary." Yet in order for Mahwah High School to lengthen its teaching time, they opted to push all 1,000 students through a single, 43-minute lunch period.
"This allows teachers to go into greater depth in their discussions," Superintendent Montesano said.
The school would not release their own specific results from bacterial swab tests, but a parent forwarded those results sent home Wednesday, confirming the presence of dangerous pathogens like E. coli and enterococcus found in feces.
Since our interview, the school says it forbids the floor dining, opting instead for gym bleachers and other seating.
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