Quick, Hide The Frosting, It's The Cupcake Police

I'll bet if there were more frosted cupcakes in the Glen Ridge council chambers, things would go better.

Please get the facts straight about Brookdale School in Bloomfield. The kids are celebrating birthdays in school. They are given a gift from the home and school, have their birthday on a large calendar in the front hall and have their special day announced as part of the daily morning announcements. Additionally, the principal and office staff give a token gift to the kids when they see them and the teachers acknowledge the child with a card signed by their classes and through singing Happy Birthday. The kids are not complaining!!!

I find it unbelievable that parents can find time to complain about something that is simple common sense and good for children when there are so many pressing issues in education today. I also find it ironic that the parents complaining are not ones who participate or attend meetings or have the courage to speak directly to those who made the decision.

The change to the birthday parties at Brookdale was wholeheartedly supported by a very active home and school association and voted on at our May 2006 meeting. If those parents attended, they would not have been surprised.

I would happy to discuss this with any parent who is spending their time complaining. My contact information is available through Brookdale School. Thanks. And in the future, get your facts straight before posting such inane things.

Nicolette Salerno
President, Brookdale HSA Inc.

I don't know if I agree with that policy. BTW...I think Ms. Cherence is/was a fabulous teacher and will make a great principal, but I can see how this would irk the Brookdale parents.

What my daughter's 5th grade teacher has done is to designate 1 day (in March) to celebrate EVERYONE's birthday. I think that is a great idea, although much easier to understand at a 5th grade level vs a kindergarten/first grade level.

She has also broken the class parties down to a bare minimum - October is Harvest Party, December is Winter Party, February is V-Day and June there is the end of year party.

Each family contributes the same amount so that no one has to be responsible for footing the entire party.

Works for me!

Brookdale is not alone--although it sounds a little draconian. As of last year, Watchung School strongly discouraged if not forbade cupcakes on birthdays, and there was a directive that classroom snacks be only fruit and yogurt--no cookies, doughnuts, etc. I think it might have loosened a bit over the school year, but that was certainly the way it started. And I heard from an Edgemont parent that their bake sale this year can't have baked goodies--only healthy stuff like fruit! (So I'm not sure how it's a bake sale...--but maybe that was just a rumor.)

I think there's a place for sweets in the classroom--but I've also been at class parties where the amount of sugary junk was overwhelming, so moderation is the key.

I like what Anne's daughter's teacher has proposed, with the once-a-moth parties rather than a celebration for each individual child.

And I take issue with the misconception that a dessert once in awhile will take years off your life or damage your health. It's your daily approach to nutrition and exercise that has a bearing on your overall health, not a cupcake or ice cream cone now and then.

I like what Anne's daughter's teacher has proposed, with the once-a-moth parties rather than a celebration for each individual child.

And I take issue with the misconception that a dessert once in awhile will take years off your life or damage your health. It's your daily approach to nutrition and exercise that has a bearing on your overall health, not a cupcake or ice cream cone now and then.

This is definitely going overboard. Are we going to remove all the fun from being a child? Yes, children should consume less sugar but is a birthday treat the time to make a point of it? Seems to be a case of get your priorities into some kind of rational order.

Aren't there more important things in the Bloomfield School District to discuss than if our kids can have cupcakes on their birthday at school? If there are so many irate parents, where were they at the Home and School meetings at Brookdale. I didn't hear any nay sayers at the meeting.
The kids at Brookdale are having their birthdays recognized and I don't think the kids are as freaked out about no snacks as some of their parents are!
There are still five parties the kids have throughout the year and they are not "sans cake" as someone previously stated. But don't you think a more important issue to discuss is Bloomfield's current school ranking in the state of NJ (for those who don't know, we're not even in the top 25) or the fact that the HS stadium is falling apart and we should be discussing ways to raise money to build a new one. We should be focusing our energies on positive changes that we as a town can make to improve our school system rather than worrying about cupcakes!

Those Bloomfield parents who are interested in all things school related should attend the meet and greet for the new superintendent. He is hosting his first forum on Wednesday, October 4th at 7pm at the Administration Building. This is your chance to come and meet Mr. DiGesere as he shares his plans for the Bloomfield school district. The flyer I received also states that there will be a Q&A period as well.

The meeting is open to everyone.

Instead of berating the parents for complaing about the lack of cupcakes while more important issues are at hand, wouldn't it make more sense that the HSA/Principal work to get playground equipment or that the Board Of Ed fix the other problems?

No, cupcakes are not THAT big of a deal, but its one more piece of childhood that's slipping away to political correctness.

Let kids be kids!

I recently looked at the list of most obese states and then reviewed IRI data on food purchases. The one item that they consumed in greater quantity -- nearly 2 1/2 times the national average in one state -- was flour. Of course, it is used in baked goods (cup cakes, cakes and pies) but also dumplings, and fried chicken which is popular in many of those obese Southern states:
Mississippi
Alabama
West Virginia
Louisiana
Kentucky
Tennessee
Arkansas
Indiana
South Carolina
Texas

"We should be focusing our energies on positive changes that we as a town can make to improve our school system rather than worrying about cupcakes!"

Exactly, so why did the PTA or whatever it is called spend any time on this issue to begin with? Why not focus that time and energy on ways to improve the school system?

So how many parents were involved in deciding what everyone else's kids could eat?

That's interesting, LetThem. I would bet the house that it's REFINED flour, too.

Please everyone get a life! With drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, etc..is this really an issue?!?!? What about the skinny kids who could stand to gain a couple of pounds like my kids? Too much time on your hands Ms. Cherence and your followers. Let these kids be kids! Let them eat cake then go and play outside with them this weekend!

As a pediatrician, I think it is beneficial to cut down the sugar and fat intake of our children. Cupcakes 25 times per schoolyear in addition to all the other junk foods that our kids eat at other parties and school lunches (chips, sodas, pizza (once every week in Montclair elementary schools!), chicken nuggets) are not promoting healthy eating habits. Diabetes and childhood obesity are rising to epidemic proportions in this country. Unhealthy eating habits and lack of exercise are the cause for it. Banning cupcakes in school is definitely a step in the right direction from the medical standpoint.

"Exactly, so why did the PTA or whatever it is called spend any time on this issue to begin with? "

Because that is the part of Bloomfield where the parents are bitter that they are stuck living there so they waste their time trying to make themselves seem cool by being "pc" rather than actually do anything to improve the district.

NYC (I guess this can't be posted on the Watercooler) is trying to ban trans fat
in all restaurants!
I don't get it.You pay for your food. If you want to eat fries along with that steak- Hey you're an adult!
Before you know it, they'll be the Wine Police ( WHAT! red wine with that), the Bagel POlice(watch that schmear of cream cheese!) The Eating Out Police (Hold! Cutting all those portions before you put it in your mouth!
No Elbows on the table!)

I am all for the trans fat ban.

People are not going to stop eating fast food and/or junk food so why not just make them a mite healthier by removing the bad fats and replacing them with not-so-bad fats? Don't see a problem with that, especially since obesity and diabetes are at epidemic proportions.

As far as I know, having attended a home and school meeting recently, the cupcakes have not been banned at all, we were simply asked to cut down the big candy/cookie/sugar parties and if bringing in cupcakes, we were required to bring the ingredient list off the box so they could check for food allergy items before handing them out. No ingredient list meant no cupcakes. I have no problem with that.

Also on a side note, the Demarest HSA raised about $6,000.00 for new playground equipment that will be installed soon pending the BOE's help with installation along with supervision from the playground equipment company.

People pay for what they want to eat. You can't force them to eat healthier. You can print
all the analysts you want.
You can make suggestions for "healthier" eating.
This has low salt or
This has no sugar etc
But forcing them? lol lol
roflmao!
NOW that's phat

I don't see that as "forcing," Cupcake. If I make my boyfriend lasagna and use lowfat cheeses instead of artery-clogging whole cheeses, who does that hurt? He has absolutely no idea I do this. But you know what? His plate is always empty and he asks for seconds!

Maybe I could find this issue silly if childhood obesity wasn't on the rise, as well as adult obesity. But I watch what my friends feed their kids at home- all process chicken nuggets, frozen pizza, ready to go this and that. I have one friend whose kid only eats pickles as a veggie. Maybe the schools need to be rigid to create a balance.

I would be so pissed if I were a kid today and am SO glad I went to elementary school in the pro-cupcake and birthday days of the 80s. I'm all for school lunches being made with healthy quality ingredients low in sugar, chemicals, processed foods etc. But I am also in favor of that being coupled with treats for special occaisions. I'm also a firm believer that whatever you don't allow children they will crave and covet and that moderation is generally the best policy.

And sharing my birthday with the whole class? NO THANKS! What's the point, if you don't get to feel extra special for a day?

btw- when the smoking bans went into effect didn't anyone else see the banning of trans fat as the next step? It's very simple - if you have an issue - "promoting healthy habits" - you start with the easy one to pass. Smoking....everyone hates smoking. Well, the slippery slope was greased, the laws were passed, and down we go....

while I'm happy that my child won't be eating all that fat and sugar, I do think a compromise is in order. I like the once a month birthday celebration. The reason for the ban has NOTHING to do with health, and everything to do with the teachers complaining about spending too much teaching time serving cupcakes, etc....
And yes, HSA, let's put in a playground. This way the kids can burn off more calories and get some much needed exercise.

If we're all so worried about child obesity on the rise than a better issue to discuss would be the issue of only having gym class once a week for 30 minutes. Exercise would greatly help obesity in school age children.

Meghan "I'm also a firm believer that whatever you don't allow children they will crave and covet and that moderation is generally the best policy"
I agree 110%
and to Ms Phat
Lo fat? no problem.
as far as smoking compaed to eating trans fats goes.
What? Someone who craves
meats - say a really good steak - are they going to be carded? "No steak & taters for you tonight! This is the 4th high fat dinner on you've had this month."

I am Class of 86 and I don't recall having goodies in class to celebrate birthdays in any grade.

I'm all for the single monthly celebration of Birthdays and whatever other acknowledgement suggested above.

If looking around at the average person on the street doesn't tell you that we in the USA have food issues then you're not paying attention.

Fruit salad, yummy yummy!

Hi, Demarest Mom. I'm a "former" Demarest mom, with kids in BHS/college now. I'm glad to see the Dem H&S has continued to enhance the playground! The first set of equipment was purchased when my oldest was in kindergarten (the wooden stuff) and the plastic stuff and additional basketball hoops came about maybe 5 or 6 years after that.

Demarest mom is right about the lack of phys ed at the elementary schools (as I recall it, anyway) but even more pathetic is what has passed for physical education at the high school for the past 4 years!

One more reason why we're becoming a joke to the rest of the world .....

Actually, Dolly, in many European countries, it's against the law to put additives, preservatives or trans fats in the food. That's why a lot of Europeans do food shopping daily. We Americans think of that as an inconvenience but I see it as having access to fresh, whole foods at every meal.

Brookdale Mom write - "I do think a compromise is in order. I like the once a month birthday celebration."

Please let me clarify that it is not a "once a month" birthday celebration at my daughter's school but rather all birthdays will be celebrated 1 day in March no matter what month you were born in.

> all birthdays will be celebrated 1 day in March no matter what month you were born in.

That's just plain dumb. Either skip these parties altogether, or make them specific enough to count (party for each kid, no junk food).

Another option is to make kids eat 10+ cupcakes each and every schoolday and convert the auditoriums to vomitoriums and lipo lounges.

Chris - why is it dumb? That way the kids whose birthdays are in July or August and who never get to have a class party (when they were doing them on a monthly basis) is not left out. I think it's a great idea.

To Hiding in Baristaville,

You have a lot to say, and obviously know little about the people who live in "that part of Bloomfield". I love people who hide behind fake names and have such extreme opinions. Own your own and I'd have a lot more respect. And get to know what you are talking about before you spend so much time critizing. Bloomfield is a good place, and has good schools, and we don't feel bitter that we have to live here. We choose to live here. The parents who participated in this decision were reflecting soon to be implemented state legislation and gave a lot of thought to the impact it would have on our kids.

Oh, and by the way, Brookdale kids get a lot of exercise on our playground - equipment or not. You stop by any morning and you would be amazed at the creativity of children and the fun that they have.

Have a great day!

Given that I grew up in a poor neighborhood in the early 70's, we didn't have class birthday celebrations at all. Cupcakes, treats and parties? Guess they can't stop that now that the kids are spoiled and expect all of that attention.

"Actually, Dolly, in many European countries, it's against the law to put additives, preservatives or trans fats in the food. That's why a lot of Europeans do food shopping daily. We Americans think of that as an inconvenience but I see it as having access to fresh, whole foods at every meal. "

It's not about cupcakes, it's about PC mentality run amok. I just feel sorry for the kids.

Brookdale kids are creative. The girls play hop scotch and jump rope, while the boys hit balls against a wall (which end up hitting babies in strollers). Reminds me of the old days......the parents are creative too...organizing play groups at the park (on early dismissal days) where the kids can enjoy the great play equipment.

Yes, I chose to live in Brookdale. In fact, I used to live in Montclair, but got sick of high taxes and low services.

We recently moved from Montclair to southern California and our district has a brand new wellness policy which prohibits sweets for birthday celebrations -- they suggest the donation of a book or game for the classroom to commemorate a birthday and have initiated other ways to make the child "feel special on their birthday". They also have overhauled the vending machines at the middle school and high school, and have reduced trans fats and sugar in school lunches and snacks. (The plan phases in further restrictions by September 2007 -- at which time there will be no trans fats in school lunches, all ice creams sold as fundraisers after school will have to be low fat, etc.) I chuckled to myself at what the reaction would have been in Montclair, where our principal stopped the sale of flavored milk on a daily basis and got a ton of grief.

is that where the refineries are?

Nope, no refineries in the area.

Meghan: I agree whole (fat) heartedly! :)

hrhppg: My 7 yr old eats ketchup as a veggie! :(

I chuckled too at what the montclair blowhards would have done! We moved to LA and our kids' school is great. Unfortunatley the sig alerts made it impossible for my kids to get to school on time, and when they got there the rolling brownouts forced the school to close early. My kids ended up selling fruit on the 405 and the smog gave them respiratory problems. They figured they'd make more money selling drugs so they joined the crips and last night they robbed me.

"That way the kids whose birthdays are in July or August and who never get to have a class party (when they were doing them on a monthly basis) is not left out."

This comment brough back funny memories. One year, griped to my mother that she never let me have a pool party on my birthday. "All my friends have pool parties!" I said. "Martta, your birthday is in November," she answered.

LOL. Looking back now, I realized how much that sucked as a kid. Too cold for a pool party and not cold enough for an ice skating party!

To sunny_los_angeles --
I'll be sure to bear that in mind should I move to LA! So far,no brown outs, sig alerts, smog or gang issues where we are. FYI, generalizing life in southern California is about as accurate as generalizing life in NJ. ;)

school is school...not chuckecheese.....keep the parties at home.

Yowza, Miss W!

Ya know miss W, ITA! Although that would mean they would have to get rid of the FIVE parties they say the H&S gives each of the classes during the year (my kids school has two or three and I thought that was a lot.) I bet that would free up much of the lost teaching time the teachers are complaining about.

So, how are there grades?

there = their; sorry.

Cupcakes suck, have a slice of pizza instead.

Interesting. Out of my 20 students, none of them are obese and, come to think of it, none of them would be considered overweight either. We celebrate birthdays, even with 3 students with food allergies in the room. The parents are aware and accomodating. These "parties" take 10 minutes, make students feel special, and give them all a little well-needed "down time".

Last year, not only did I have a student with a nut allergy, I also had a student who was diabetic. Again, everyone was accomodating, friendly, happy, and of a normal weight.

Not coincidentally, my students run around, jump on and off of tire swings, hang from monkey bars, and play kickball every recess. Their parents pack nutritious meals, and appropriately so. Why is it that schools need to micromanage this issue as well now? I understand dealing with students who regularly come to school hungry/with a lousy lunch, but to make a blanket policy? Not so sure I agree with that. If you don't want your child to have a cupcake, then send some apple slices in whenever there's a party.

Bottom line: Chill out, everyone. They're kids and they're much more resilient than we tend to recognize. My parents gave me Total cereal while my cousins ate Lucky Charms. Was I jealous? Yes. Did I survive (with fewer dental issues)? You bet. But it was their decision as parents, and I know that on principle, they would have been resentful if someone else's ideas of parenting were imposed on them.

I think it's a GREAT move by that courageous principal, and I absolutely think surrounding communities, such as Montclair, should take heed. I let my kids eat sugar; some people say too much, some say not enough. I wouldn't mind the cupcake thing if there'd be a birthday calendar that went home to parents so we could be forewarned, and plan our kids' menus accordingly. (For instance, by not giving them a cookie in their lunchboxes, etc.) I have a huge sweet tooth, but I KNOW in my bones, sugar is NOT a good thing...And no matter what the studies say, I SEE how it affects my kids...

re: "btw- when the smoking bans went into effect didn't anyone else see the banning of trans fat as the next step? It's very simple - if you have an issue - "promoting healthy habits" - you start with the easy one to pass. Smoking....everyone hates smoking. Well, the slippery slope was greased, the laws were passed, and down we go...."

It's not that they want to ban fries, etc. -- just change the kind of oil that they're fried in.

Also, as an elementary school child in the 60's, it was unheard of to celebrate a birthday in school. We had classroom parties for halloween, Christmas holidays, Valentine's day and possibly end-of-year. No one felt deprived.

A great philosophy to live by is "All things in moderation, including moderation", exemplified by Miss Martta's voice of sanity re: "It's your daily approach to nutrition and exercise that has a bearing on your overall health, not a cupcake or ice cream cone now and then."

And besides, it'll end up being like the high school dress code -- too rigid to be effectively enforced.

If you don't want your kid to have cupcakes, tell them and the teacher that they cannot have them! Why spread your acerbic parenting around? Jeez, this is the same kind of over-nannied crap that keeps my kids from enjoying the safe, supervised use of fireworks. PITA busybodies... grumble...

My husband just mentioned that he remembered hearing something about a state-wide ban on junk food in the schools. So I just did a quick google search and came up with this tidbit from the July 2005 issue of "The Nation's Restaurant News":
" Last month New Jersey lawmakers passed one of the nation's most sweeping laws banning the sale of candy, soda and fatty, sugary foods in schools statewide.

Sponsored by Richard J. Codey, New Jersey's acting governor, the legislation will be fully operational by Sept. 1, 2007. It mandates that any food item with sugar as its first or primary ingredient will not be permitted for sale at any school cafeteria in the state."

So Brookdale's principal has been inspired, I guess, to go from anticipating an enforcement of the letter of the law to an early embracing the spirit of the law
.

That law has an easy work-around. Just like Purina One dog food, which advertises meat as its "primary ingredient", even though it's primarily grain products (like all kibble-style dog food). Purina does it by using multiple grains, each one less in percentage than the percentage of meat (for example, if it's 28%% meat but there are three non-meat ingredients at 24% each, you get to say it's primarily meat.

So all drinks get by because they are primarily water. Anything else can split the sweetness between sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Pretty much the only thing that the law will prevent is the sale of candy bars in the cafeteria (and even then, some will make it through).

I was an elementary school kid in the 60's and we had cupcakes and parties in school for birthdays. The teachers always had at least one group party day for the summer birthdays (like mine), which was nice. Like I said, if you want to deprive your kid of cupcakes, go right ahead. -- but don't ruin it for everyone else!

The "law" says nothing about parents sending in cupcakes. The idea is for the school cafesteria to serve healthy lunches and get rid of candy and soda vending machines.

Where & when did the idea that it was a good thing to have birthday parties in class get started?

I grew up in a middle class area in the Midwest in the 1950s. We didn't have birthday parties in school, we had them in our homes with our friends. Doing them at school strikes me as a bizarre notion.

I am a Brookdale mom and class mom this year. We WILL be allowed to have "cupcakes" or other treats for our parties,in moderation and we will be asking the parents if any kids have food allergies.Also this is only 5 per year, there are 26 kids in the class. just think of all those parties!I am very careful of what I feed my family, but a also believe they are kids and a treat or sweet is not the end of the world,MODERATION is the key!I send my daughter with a healthy lunch every day ( whole grains , no transfats, high fructose suger,etc.) The school lunches need the most revamping-Did anyone see SUpersize me??? Our school is on the right track to promoting a healthy lifestyle for our kids!

By the time they get to middle school, the kids don't want you or your cupcakes around--enjoy it while you can!

By the time they get to middle school, your kids won't want you or your cupcakes around--enjoy them enjoying themselves while you can!

(sorry for the double post)

I like Anne Prince's daughter's teacher's compromise idea. To her point, kids with summer birthdays never have "their" birthday in school. And when I was a kid, I have absolutely NO remembrance of EVER having kids bringing in cupcakes on their birthday. I think there was some kind of acknowledgement of bithdays but back in "my day" you didn't spend class time eating junk food. We did have recess and ran around like fools for half an hour. I support the idea of more playground equipment, more time to exercise and less eating of snacks during class. The only time I remember having snacks at all was in kindergarten and we got a graham cracker and juice or milk and then lay down on matts for our nap! (Yes, I'm old).

I meant to add, that where I work (a large corporation) people used to bring in all kinds of goodies for other people's birthdays - that is, if it was your birthday, all your colleagues brought in cake, cookies, all kinds of junk food and it was outside your cube on a file cabinet all day. Since this is a big company it got ridiculous so a number of years ago they changed it so that on the first of every month there is a birthday celebration of all of that month's birthdays and the cafeteria provides the cake, cookies and coffee. Much better, less distracting for the b'day person (who had to say "thanks" all day to everyone who stopped by to cadge a piece of cake and wish them a happy birthday) and less fattening!

Wherever would we be without the policies of big government or big corporations to save us from ourselves?

Here's the thing no one else has brought up - in some schools, where kids are having out of school parties at "party places" or big "at home" parties with entertainers, the only level playing field was the birthday party in class. For some kids that might have been their only chance to celebrate with class chums.

It's smoke and mirrors. They should just come out and say that it's taking away too much class time instead of pretending that it's a student health issue. It was pointed out before that the school lunches are far from healthy - chicken nuggets and fries, cheeseburger and fries, and pizza make their way onto the menu every single week - and if you take a gander at what the brown baggers are carrying in, it's not much better. Lunchables, multiple bags of chips, prepackaged high sodium and fat snacks, and flavored corn syrup drinks. A cupcake here and there barely registers on the nutritional badness meter. There are always moms that send in good stuff for parties, and the kids with allergies know what not to touch, so that's a non-issue as well. Saying that these are the reasons for a sweets ban just strains the credulity of the administration. Be honest instead, it'll lead to a lot less argument.

Hey Alison - how is life treating you down the shore? Nice to see your post! We are still "fighting the good fight" here in Bloomfield (some things just never change - LOL!).

Alison - I hope all is well with you... was thinking of you since back-to-school days are here!

ALL - whatever they ban, I know my Chocolate Pudding Pies will always be allowed!!!!

Ask the faculty & staff at Watsessing, I have a growing list of requests, each year! And they always sell out at the Bake Sales!

I have worked as a para in schools for 14 years and seen plenty of lunches. Yes, I agree, that over the years the bagged lunches have even gotten worse with many parents opting to send in instant noodles or lunchables with their kids instead of something with actual nutritional value. People moan that they just don't have time...but I am a busy working mom and if one makes it a priority, a healthy lunch is do able.

Personally I have never seen the birthday treats as the problem, but in this case I think they are the scapegoat. Food is way overemphasised in schools. You don't have just the birthday treats, but treats used as rewards, hot lunches, bake sales, ice cream sales, popcorn sales, special days, class parties, etc. It can grow to ridiculous proportions.

Birthdays? Sounds to me like the kids already get recognized-gifts and public acknowledgement? Do they really need a cupcake too?