After working in two other school districts in Minnesota, Amanda landed in Minneapolis Public Schools 7 years ago working her way up from Food Service Assistant to becoming the Menu Administrator in 2023. Her lifelong enthusiasm for cooking and feeding others lends itself well to this position. Learning as much as she can about leadership will enable me to share this passion with others.

Amy Stanley

Hi, I’m Heidi Jacobs. First and foremost a grandmother of 3 adorable grand daughters!! Next mother of 1 incredible son and 1 daughter that amazes me daily!! I started my school nutrition journey 20 years ago when me youngest started school as a way to be closer to my kids and also wanted to be involved in the school community! I had no idea where that journey would take me!! I’ve loved everything about my job! I love learning more and more everyday, child nutrition and diets have become close to my heart as two of my granddaughters are celiac (4yrs and 2 yrs old!) the things I knew before they were diagnosed came in so handy as we have navigated on this journey!

Hello, My name is Jessica McKinney. I’m the West End Area Manager for the Hamblen County School District, bringing seven years of experience in school nutrition to my role. Recently promoted, I’m a proud graduate of the TSNA Leadership Academy and TSNA Culinary Academy, class of 2024. I also serve on the TSNA Bylaw Committee. With a deep passion for my work, I’m enthusiastic about the future and the positive impact I can make in the field of school nutrition.

Mrs. Johnna Rembert Beard is a proud Samford alumni and has served as the Executive Director of Child Nutrition for Montgomery Public Schools for 6 years. She is the founder and owner of Inspire Nutrition Solutions, a consulting business that focuses on improving child nutrition programs through financial management, administrative review prep, and other areas in order to be successful. She is passionate about feeding children nutritious meal and believes it sets a positive foundation for good habits throughout their lives. When she isn’t advocating for Child Nutrition, she enjoys raising money for St. Jude’s Hospital, spending time with her family, traveling, and reading.

Juana Moore started her food service journey in 2004. She attended Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts and graduated with an AS in Occupational Science. She attended The Art Institute of Atlanta and graduated with a BA, Culinary Business Management. After working 12 years in the industry and its very chaotic schedule Juana looked to school nutrition. Juana started with Fulton County as a FSW in March 2016, by September 2016 she had advanced to the MIT program. She became a Manager in 2017-2022. In March of 2022 she was promoted to Area Supervisor. She hasn’t looked back since leaving the industry. Pride to be a part of the #LunchLadySquad. Always looking for the next level up and opportunity to be Great!

Karen has been in Child Nutrition for 30 years. She has worked at Carrollton Farmers Branch ISD within this school district for 23 years. Karen started out as a Cook and did this for 2 years, then began her training to be a school site Manager as a Manager trainee, doing this for 1 year. The following school year, she became the manager at one of the Elementary schools and held this position for 21 years. Karen left the school district for her current position as Child Nutrition Assistant with Harmony Public Schools, where she has been for 6 years. She still loves what she does and, over the years, maintains a strong passion for making things better for the students.

With over nine years in school nutrition, including six years as the School Nutrition Director at a private school, Mellanie is excited about her new role as the School Nutrition Projects Manager at Caroline County Public Schools. In this position, her primary focus will be to develop a robust Farm to School program. Building on Caroline County’s existing initiatives, she sees this as a unique opportunity to implement and expand upon the Farm to School principles in a district with a rich agricultural heritage. By leveraging and enhancing the work already underway, we can maximize the program’s results and create a sustainable, impactful model for school nutrition and local agriculture integration.

Nick Dramis is the Supervisor of Culinary Operations for the Marysville Joint Unified School District (MJUSD) in Marysville in California. His passion for food and people has led to nearly 20 years as a culinary professional. His experience spans from restaurant, catering and hotel cuisine to a decade at Whole Foods Market, where he held roles ranging from executive chef to prepared foods team leader.

When Nick decided to leave the conventional food service industry to pursue a career in school food service, it was a step taken with great excitement. The appeal of positively impacting the way children eat in school and the opportunity to be a part of the scratch cooking revolution was too strong to resist.

In his spare time, he enjoys cooking and working on his classic cars, and spending time with his family.

After working in restaurants and bakeries for 25 years, Randal came to West Contra Costa Unified District to improve scratch meals for 10,000 students each day. At the district’s central kitchen, Randal is part of a management crew that oversees a staff of 50 on-site employees and an additional 200 employees based in kitchens across the district.

Ryan is a Registered Dietitian with 9 years of experience in school nutrition. His educational background includes undergraduate degrees in culinary arts and culinary nutrition (Johnson & Wales University) and master’s degrees in education (North Park University) and nutrition (Arizona State University). He is a licensed Texas teacher in Science, Health Science Technology and Health and is certified as a School Nutrition Specialist (SNS) through the School Nutrition Association. Ryan is also a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer having served as a Health Volunteer in Niger from 2004-2006 working on nutrition, maternal and child health and food and water security development projects.