Food Service Director Andrea Murray is the January 2023 Staff Member of the Month

Food service at McHenry Community High School isn’t like your parents’ school cafeteria experience. And that is just the way Food Service Director Andrea Murray likes it.

Since taking over with the start of the 2021-2022 school year, Murray is credited with bringing new ideas to traditional school fare and encouraging students to eat healthy and fresh food. Her work earned her Staff Member of the Month for January.

“She has made a lot of great changes to our school lunches,” said Food Service Manager Connie Reuter in her nomination. “She is a great addition to our district.”

For Murray, overseeing the district’s food service operation, which includes cafeterias at Freshman Campus and Upper Campus, as well as catering for special events, is a natural progression in her career.

“Food service is my whole life,” she said. “It’s a lot of fun.”

A Wheeling native, Murray got an associate’s degree in culinary arts from College of DuPage and a certificate in baking. She went to work at Northbrook Hilton and several other restaurants and bakeries preparing food before having children and making birthday cakes out of her home. Then she went to McHenry County College to teach baking and pastry while finishing up her bachelor’s degree in nutrition and dietetics from Kansas State University. 

She taught for eight years at MCC and oversaw the student-operated bakery. She was also able to finish her associate’s degree in pastry arts.

Murray brought that training and education to McHenry where she is working to break the stigma that often goes with school cafeteria food. She’s encouraged her staff to come up with new ideas for menus, and that has included adding lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, salad choices, tortilla pinwheel sandwiches and much more. 

Food preparation has also included experimenting with flavors and spices. Murray said she’s happy that students seem to approve. “I like to feed people,” she said.

To see the video celebrating Murray’s accomplishments, please click here.

The Staff Member of the Month program recognizes MCHS staff members who go above and beyond for the benefit of students. Thanks to the support from Meat and Potato Eatery and Brunch Cafe, each monthly winner receives a gift certificate as well as a plaque.

To learn more about the program, click here.