Forty kids from several upper West Side schools know how to eat right—and write about it too.

Ten students from each participating school—I.S. 44, the Computer School, the Anderson School and West Prep Academy—were selected to be honored for their essays on healthy eating and living. The students were all in 6th, 7th and 8th grade.

The group will be awarded for their insightful take on one of education’s big topics—health in the cafeteria—on the morning of May 21 in an event hosted by the American Museum of Natural History. As part of the Columbus Avenue Business Improvement District’s 2010 culinary fundraising series, New Taste of the Upper West Side, proceeds will go to Wellness in the Schools, a non-profit organization founded in 2005 to improve school lunches.

The award-winning students in front of the Museum of Natural History.

The plan, approved by a 7-1 margin at a Nov. 19 meeting, is intended to alleviate crowding in the district, particularly at P.S. 199 on West 70th Street. The Center School middle school will move from P.S. 199’s building to the P.S. 9 building on West 84th Street. And The Anderson School will move from P.S. 9 into the building on West 77th Street shared by M.S. 44 and The Computer School. The exact timeframe for the schools moving over the summer remains unclear, the department says.

During the public comment section of the Nov. 19 meeting, P.S. 199 parents praised the proposal, while Center School parents continued their staunch opposition. Meanwhile, a few parents from The Computer School expressed concern that The Anderson School, a gifted school, would take precedence in their building. These parents, along with Center School parents and other diversity advocates, had staged a rally before the meeting. According to the group’s press release, they were protesting “a proposal that primarily benefits the district’s wealthiest school at the expense of several other schools with much greater racial, social and economic diversity.”

State Sen. Tom Duane made an emotional speech at the meeting as well, saying the conflict had been “wrenching” and that he hoped the various parties could come together.

Another group of parents upset by the changes were residents of three buildings at the bottom of Riverside Boulevard, which were zoned out of P.S. 199 and into the P.S. 191 building in the final draft of the proposal. Many residents of those buildings spoke at the meeting. Jennifer Freeman, the point person for the rezoning issue on the Community Education Council, said it was technically impossible to amend the proposal at the meeting, but urged these parents to appeal the specific zoning lines within 10 days of the vote, in accordance with the Chancellor’s regulations.

As for whether P.S. 199’s building will be ready to for the influx of students, “We’re confident the school will be able to accommodate all the students without any facilities work being done,” said Will Havemann, a department spokesperson.