When a parent sends their child to school, they expect that the school staff will have their son or daughter's best interest at heart.

However, what the school or some of its employees may consider acceptable doesn't always align with what the parents want for their kids.

This week, the families of kids attending the Nebraska's Potter-Dix Public Schools learned that the hard way.

In a letter sent out to the parents and students, superintendent Mike Williams revealed that a head cook named Kevin Frei served kangaroo meat to the students earlier this month.

Williams apologized on behalf of the school district for "the anxiety and any harm" the cook may have caused by mixing the exotic meat with beef in the chili that the students ate for lunch on October 10.

Frei came clean about using the meat and explained to Williams that he only did it because it's a lean meat with good "nutritional value."

Following a discussion with Frei and the program specialist at the Nutrition Services Office of the Nebraksa Department of Education, Williams came to a conclusion that the meat wasn't "unhealthy or dangerous," as it "has to meet USDA standards in order for companies to sell it."

However, he outlined some rules that the schools will abide by to avoid incidents like this from happening again.

"If a family wants to eat exotic foods, they can do so on their own time "” not at school," Williams wrote. "If, we were to have food or ingredients that are out of the ordinary, they should be listed on the menu so that the students and families are aware of what they would be being served."

He added, "We will no way be serving food of this nature again. Period."

Williams reassured parents that "this a matter I'm taking very seriously," because he understands that kangaroo meat is "without a doubt not a normal staple of our diet and will not, nor will an other non-staple foods, be part of the Potter-Dix meal program."

"We will make sure that something like this never occurs again," he concluded the open letter.

The letter was shared on the district's Facebook page a few days ago, but people were advised to refrain commenting under the post. Instead, they were asked to direct any questions or concerns to the school.

As for Frei, KSID radio reported that he has since been fired.

Do you think the school made the right decision by firing the cook?