Dive Brief:
- David Binkle, the head of Los Angeles Unified School District’s food services who overhauled how the district delivers school lunch, stepped down on Monday following an investigation that found financial waste and mismanagement.
- Binkle was removed from his position last winter, when the investigation began, but continued to receive his six-figure salary.
- He has denied that the investigation found any wrongdoing on his part, but said that he didn’t want to continue to spend taxpayers' dollars doing no work. District officials contend he was fired.
Dive Insight:
Unlike the debacle that was Los Angeles' iPad program, Binkle’s transformation of the district’s food services seems to have achieved some positive outcomes despite the financial and ethical mismanagement. Amid the indictments of wasteful spending on travel, inflated inventories, and questionable (and sizable) payments to philanthropies, auditors found a few nuggets to praise: More people participated in school meals, and food services was both more flexible and more innovative.
Binkle spearheaded a marketing campaign to promote healthful eating and turned the district’s meals program on its head. According to the Los Angeles Times, he introduced meals with lower sodium and fat content, and expanded food service to breakfast and dinner.
His work was praised by First Lady Michelle Obama, who has been pushing for healthier school lunches and more physical activity in schools nationwide. It’s not clear what effect his firing will have on the changes or on districts contemplating similar overhauls.
