Father claims his daughter was turned away at cafeteria line

With the beginning of the school year comes new schedules, piles of homework and the expense of new uniforms — the last thing a parent wants to worry about is if their child is getting a decent meal at school.

At H.E. Charles Middle School, a student’s father is outraged after he claims his daughter was turned away at the cafeteria line.

On Wednesday, his daughter claimed cafeteria employees told her they ran out of food.

“It’s just ridiculous that they are going to school and can’t eat,” said the man, who did not want to be identified.

He said he has talked to other parents whose children were also told the same thing.

The principal at Charles Middle School, Michael Mendoza, has been there for nearly 20 years and said the school has never run out food.

Mendoza said the school may have run out of a certain item, but not the entire menu.

“We try and plan for everything but sometimes the kids change their mind during the day and one item may be more popular than the others,” said Mendoza.

More than 700 students eat inside the cafeteria everyday, and each student has up to five choices for lunch.

The father of the middle-schooler claims his daughter did not have any options.

“If they had a sandwich, she would have had a sandwich, she would’ve ate something,” said the man.

Charles Middle School has three different lunch periods to accommodate all students.

“We try and portion off the foods so we have enough for sixth, seventh and eighth graders,” said Mendoza.

Mendoza assured that the cafeteria will always be stocked with food.

The daily menu is posted on the El Paso Independent School District’s website two weeks at a time.

It also includes the different options students have for the day.