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The Steamboat Springs School District has hired a new director of nutritional services.

Shelly Knupp of Dayton, Ohio, will replace director Darcy Trask, who announced her resignation because of family issues in March.

Anne Muhme, assistant to superintendent Donna Howell, said Knupp has earned a bachelor's degree in nutrition from the University of Dayton; a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Colorado State University in Fort Collins; associate degrees in applied science and dietetic technology from Sinclair Community College in Dayton; and a certification in dietary management, also from Sinclair.

Muhme said Knupp is finishing an internship at Bastyr University in Kenmore, Wash., after which she will be eligible to become a registered dietician.

Trask will continue working through the end of the school year.

"It has been a wonderful experience," she said about her time on the job. "We've had a very tragic loss in our family, and that is why I'm leaving -- to spend more time with my family."

Knupp will have big shoes to fill.

Members of the Steamboat Springs School Board have praised Trask in recent months for her thorough and informative reports about food services and nutrition guidelines in district schools. Last week, salad bars were installed in cafeterias at Soda Creek Elementary School and Strawberry Park Elementary School, as part of a "5 A Day the Color Way" nutrition program designed to encourage kids to eat fruits and vegetables, Trask said.

"At the elementary level, kids really like the canned fruit -- amazingly, they also like fresh salad," Trask said. "We have lots of kids who will eat broccoli and cauliflower."

The "kid-size" salad bars give young students choices, Trask said, using an "offer versus serve" mentality that reduces waste and improves health.

"A lot less fruits and vegetables are going into the trash, and a lot more are going into the kids," Trask said.

Last year, the school district served about 2,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables each month, Trask said. Kids ate about 700 of those pounds -- the rest was waste. This year, school cafeterias serve about 1,100 pounds a month, and kids eat about 900 pounds.

According to statistics kept by her staff, Trask said, kids at Soda Creek put away the majority of those 900 pounds.

"What the kids eat at the two elementary schools is very different," she said. "Our consumption of fruits and vegetables is much higher at Soda Creek than Strawberry Park. We can't figure it out."

Students at Steamboat Springs High School have access to a new salad bar on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Trask said about 25 students use the salad bar, which costs $3.99 per pound.

"Most of the high school kids are getting a good-sized salad for one or two dollars," she said. "The people who are using it love it, but it's very expensive for us to maintain -- we'll continue to evaluate it early next year and make some decisions on whether or not we can keep it."

Although she is resigning, Trask will be involved in that decision in the fall.

"I'll be coming back in the fall to help (Knupp) get going, and help her get her feet under her," Trask said. "From what I've heard, I think she'll be fantastic."