Vending Machines in Schools

Within our small alternative private school, we have two vending machines: drinks & snacks. Discussions arise periodically regarding the nutritional value of the items available for student purchase. At the end of last school year, we collaborated with the vendor and agreed that the drink machine would include: bottled water, Gatorade, Snapple, various juices, Sprite, and Diet Pepsi. The snack machine was to include gum, Life Savers, a few healthier lunch options (the travel tuna & chicken salad packs & beef jerky), baked chip varieties including Sun Chips, snack and breakfast bars, Smartfood popcorn, and Chex mix. By October, sales in the machines plummeted and the vendor worked privately with a counselor, who had received negative feedback from parents, regarding "nothing good" available in the machines. NOW, the machines are packed with Mountain Dew, Pepsi & Diet Pepsi, and juice drinks; chips, processed danish, candy bars, and Ramen Noodles.

Aren't we encouraging kids to lead unhealthy lifestyles by providing nothing but junk food? How do we get the administration to see that these high-sugar, high-calorie choices are not only unneccessary but they have a negative effect on classroom behavior as well? Why is the bottom dollar of a vending machine more important than the health and well-being of our students?