I read John Metallo's commentary ("Denying kids junk food isn't the answer," Feb. 8) with increasing disbelief. By the time I finished, my eyebrows were up to my hairline.
His four decades in education and his tenure as principal of Albany High School lend a great deal of gravitas to his opinion about matters that weigh heavily upon our school system, but I was appalled by his assertion that he doesn't "care what your kids eat. I don't care how much they weigh. I don't care if they develop lousy eating habits that will negatively affect them in future life."
He maintains that it is the parents' job to raise their children and that caring families need to provide breakfast at home. I notice that Mr. Metallo lives in Slingerlands — hardly an outpost of deprivation. Surely he realizes that all children do not come from privileged backgrounds.
I've taught in the Schenectady City School District for almost a quarter-century. My respect for our new superintendent, Laurence Spring, shot to the stratosphere when he emailed us before a recent storm that he was reluctant to make an early closing call because he was worried that our students would go hungry should classes be cancelled.
While the elimination of junk food and tweaking school menus to make them more healthful might seem to be of minimal importance in the grand scheme of things, anyone with a lick of sense or an ounce of compassion has to realize that teaching hungry or ill-nourished students is an exercise in futility.
LORI MCILWAINE HAMMOND
Niskayuna
