Nutrition Assistant II (Canyon Springs)

Summary

Performs food preparation, packaging, service, and clean up at a central food production facility and/or various school service kitchens.

Distinguishing Characteristics

The Nutrition Assistant II is the second level in a service-oriented career ladder. Assignments will be at a central production facility or remote site that serves food items. Advancement to Team Leader I requires fully competent performance at Level II (2), and the ability to perform all of the requirements of Level II (2), including the ability to establish and maintain pace while working on a food processing/packing assembly line, independently operate all aspects of a school site kitchen, and perform basic record keeping and data entry. Requires a current (as required by the Agency) food service Safety/Sanitation Certificate authorizing incumbent to work in Nutrition programs at a school site of equivalent property and in contact with students.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The following duties are examples of assignments performed by incumbents in this classification. It is not a comprehensive list of duties, nor is it restrictive regarding job assignments. The Nutrition Assistant II can perform work at a central food production facility or satellite kitchen, and will often be assigned to either function:

Remote Site

• Arranges individually packaged food items along a service line so that students can make easy selection.

• Serves food items according to specified quantities and from established menus.

• Prepares and serves substitute food items to accommodate variances in student counts.

• Restocks food items in appropriate storage to ensure ability to re-serve.

• Prepares certain food items such as slicing meats, breads, and salad bar foods.

• Cuts fruits and vegetables and prepares serving trays.

• Operates miscellaneous kitchen equipment such as a slicing machine, mixer, and warming oven.

• Maintains HACCP food production records, inventory, and ordering documents.

• Maintains product and supplies in storage and service areas.

• Records food temperatures at regular intervals during heating of food items.

• Serves as a cashier, accepting and counting money and meal cards, maintaining point of sale meal count system, and assisting in compilation of daily receipts and counts.

• Arranges and sells food items and accounts for cash, checks, student meal cards, and meal counts.

• Enters student information to databases used for school food service, entering data to established data entry screens.

• Participates in nutrition education, merchandising, and promotion activities that include decorating food service areas, bulletin boards, contests, etc.

• Washes, sanitizes, and cleans kitchen equipment, surfaces, and serving areas; sweeps floors.

• May launder linens and other materials requiring special cleaning and handling.

• Attends monthly Nutrition Assistant II meetings.

• Oversees and participates in on-site catering. Prepares and arranges themes, food items, and utensils.

Central Food Production Facility

• Receives and cleans, slices, cuts, or otherwise portions food items such as, but not limited to fruits, vegetables, frozen and cooked items, used for packaging and ingredients.

• Assists with cooking and baking of meat and bread products, learning and operating specialized equipment.

• Participates with others in preparing food production and processing machines.

• Cleans, sanitizes, and arranges machine components.

• Participates with assembly and adjustment of machines to match processing instructions.

• Attends a food production station(s), assembling, sealing, and stacking standardized portions of food items onto transferable food carriers.

• Sets and maintains pace with acceptable units of production.

• Assembles, counts, and may assist with delivering meals to remote school sites.

Other Duties:

• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Demonstrated knowledge of:

• Institutional quantity food preparation, methods, procedures, and service.

• Food storage and sanitation procedures.

• Kitchen safety and safe work procedures.

• Food production line processes.

• Computer use and a variety of software and web-based applications.

• Arithmetic skills to compute weights, measures, counts, and portions.

• Reading skills to interpret menus, ingredient lists, and preparation instructions.

• Human relations skills to exhibit positive customer service and work as a productive member of a team.

Ability to:

• Perform the essential duties of the position.

• Sequence food preparation activity in order to serve a variety of food items at the same time.

• Understand and follow policies, procedures, rules and regulations.

• Follow oral and written instructions.

• Add and subtract, using decimals and fractions.

• Perform cashier duties and track student status on a computerized point of sales system.

• Interpret menus and ingredient lists.

• Operate commercial kitchen equipment.

• Orient and train staff.

• Work varying shifts and locations.

Education and Experience

Education:

• The position requires completion of a high school diploma or its equivalent.

• Additional experience may substitute for education.

Experience:

• One year of experience in large quantity food preparation, food packaging, and serving.

License and Certificates

• Current certificate of completion of a food safety and sanitation manager course.

Working Environment

• Work is performed indoors and outdoors where significant health and safety considerations exist from physical labor and handling of sharp objects, equipment, and materials in conditions that vary in temperature and stability.

Hazards

• Heat from ovens.

• Cold from refrigerators and freezers.

• Exposure to very hot foods, equipment, and metal objects.

• Working around knives, slicers or other sharp objects.

• Exposure to cleaning chemicals and fumes.

Physical Requirements

The Physical Abilities and Other Conditions of Continued Employment and the Associated Tasks listed on this job description are representative of, but are not intended to provide an exhaustive list of Physical Abilities and Other Conditions of Continued Employment and Associated Tasks which may be required of positions in this class. The Santa Clarita Valley Food Services Agency encourages persons with disabilities who are interested in employment in this class and need reasonable accommodation of those disabilities to contact the Human Resources Department for further information.