2 Investigators: More Failed Food Inspections At Schools
(CBS) -- Most Chicago parents expect their children's school kitchens to be clean and safe. Instead, the 2 Investigators found just the opposite.
Eleven percent of CPS schools that CBS 2 sampled failed the mandated health inspection last year. Two years ago, it was worse, as CBS 2 found the failure rate to be 30 percent. Even though there is improvement, some schools are still not making the grade.
At Pullman Elementary School in Chicago, there were two failed inspections in 2014 due to rodent infestation and live cock roaches. They were found in the prep room dining area and a storage office -- findings that shocked one students mother.
"Wow, wow," Chatika Covington says. "They're going to have to do something about it. If they found that stuff inside the school they have to for the kids safety."
"I'm very mad," says Ameisha Jackson, the mother of another student. "They didn't tell nobody that."
At Prosser Career Academy, health inspectors found more than 150 rodent droppings in their kitchen, and ironically, even in the kitchen where culinary arts students learn how to be chefs.
"At the end of the day, our student's safety is our most important task and so we don't want to see this at all," says Leslie Fowler, Executive Director of Nutrition Support Services at Chicago Public Schools.
But pests are not the only problem for CPS schools. Fifty pounds of milk was thrown out at Metcalfe Elementary Community Academy last year because it was not kept cold enough to be safe to drink.
Harriet E. Sayre Elementary Language Academy had a similar problem. The city health department sent inspectors to Sayre after receiving reports last April that 20 students who had eaten chicken nuggets had gotten sick. The inspectors found the school had cooked eggs, chicken nuggets, cheeses, egg salad sandwiches and hamburgers all stored at unsafe temperatures. A stand-up cooler was not maintaining proper temperatures.
"Hot food hot, cold food cold is important, because you want to stay out of the danger zone," says Fowler, referring to conditions in which bacteria grows. "Bacteria growing can make people sick."
Fowler said the health department's investigation of the food poisoning case at Sayre was "inconclusive" as to whether anything at the school caused the kids to get sick because none of them were tested or treated by a doctor.
Fowler noted that the number of failed inspections had been cut by more than 50 percent since CBS 2's last investigation two years ago, when she was first put in charge of all kitchen operations. Still, she says: "Having safe, healthy environments for our kids, being able to serve a nutritious meal, it's my highest priority and as a result anything that would prevent us from doing that has to be remedied as soon as possible."
All of the schools passed subsequent inspections.
The 2 Investigators also looked at 74 random suburban schools where even more health violations were found. Of those, 10 had potentially dangerous conditions.
At Oak Park and River Forest High School, health inspectors found deli meat that was stored at unsafe temperatures. In addition, there were rodent droppings in the cafeteria.
Kelli Stanley, a parent of one of the students, is not surprised. She recalled a meeting in which parents were invited to shadow their children around classes. During lunch they all went to the cafeteria to have lunch with the kids and "literally mice were running across the floor," she says.
At William Hatch Elementary School in Oak Park, the school had to throw out spoiled milk, and in addition there were ants in the kitchen.
Similarly, at Miner School in Arlington Heights, there was cooked chicken stored at unsafe temperatures and mice droppings were also present.
And at Daniel Webster Middle School in Waukegan, there were rodent droppings found at the last five health inspections.
"I think that's disgusting. I think something needs to be done about it," another parent said.
All of the problems that CBS 2 found were corrected in subsequent health inspections.
Health reports for CPS schools are available online at the city of Chicago website.
CBS 2 analyzed inspection reports from 74 random suburban schools. The following 10 schools had inspection violations in 2014 for either pest/rodent issues and/or unsafe food temperature issues (the school did not necessarily failed the inspection in question):
-- Oak Park River Forest High School, Oak Park
-- Longfellow School, Oak Park
-- Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School, Oak Park
-- Hatch School, Oak Park
-- Daniel Webster Middle School, Waukegan
-- Thomas Jefferson Middle School, Waukegan
-- York High School -- Elmhurst
-- Hersey High School -- Arlington Heights
-- Miner School -- Arlington Heights
-- Nazareth Academy -- Lagrange Park