Feeling Full vs Eating Healthy?

Currently, Schools battles controversy regarding nutritional school lunch with total calorie amount.
New school lunch regulations have parents concerned that students aren't getting enough calories to fill their stomachs.

School lunch regulations, in 2012, only required a minimum calorie count.  The new USDA school lunch regulations require that school lunch contain 550 to 850 calories, depending on their age, with no more than 30% of total calories come from fats.  In order for lunch to fall within guidelines, the portions have gotten smaller and junk food has either been eliminated, or substituted for a healthier version.  Schools have changed, even the cookies, to smaller, healthier versions, completely altering their flavor into something tasteless.

Image Credit: "20111019-FNS-RBN-1744 - Flickr - USDAgov" by U.S. Department of Agriculture - 20111019-FNS-RBN-1744. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20111019-FNS-RBN-1744_-_Flickr_-_USDAgov.jpg#mediaviewer/File:20111019-FNS-RBN-1744_-_Flickr_-_USDAgov.jpg

The Elkhart Truth discusses some of the parents concerns that the school nutrition regulations are resulting in hungry students.  Many students are throwing away their fruits and vegetables, sometimes even the junk food, resulting in calorie deficient, unsatisfied students.  Hungry students can become distracted, irritable, and uncooperative, all competing against their attempt to learn.

Are 850 calories enough for an average student?  For an active, growing teen?

 As an athlete in High School, I remember eating pizza, cookies and chips somedays, and chicken tenders with salad other days.  To this day, I remember, my favorite lunch was the spicy chicken tenders.  I enjoyed lunchtime because there was such a variety of choices.

A new movement in the midwest has added a salad bar to Elkhart County Schools attempting to encourage students to eat more vegetables.  A salad bar allows students to create their own variety of toppings, everyday, instead of pre made salads a couple days a week.

What were some of your favorite school lunches?  Do you think it is important to only serve healthy food?  Or should they incorporate more variety?  Share your thoughts here and take my poll to see how others feel about the subject.