Weekly School Nutrition Newsletter

10/31/2018

Dear Food Service Contact,

This email provides news for schools concerning the Child Nutrition Programs from USDA and the state. If you are the food service contact for your school or corporation, it is your responsibility to relay important information provided to you about the Child Nutrition Programs to other staff members.


Common Textbook Questions and Answers

  • Does School Food Service need to have a disclosure agreement with those that process textbook benefits?
    • If the textbook processors are employed outside of school food service, then you will need to ensure that they know they can only use free and reduced information for textbook reimbursement purposes and cannot release that information for any other purposes. A disclosure agreement can be found here.
  • The person who processes textbook benefits logged into our student database and reviewed all free/reduced information, is this allowable?
    • While the textbook processor is considered “need to know” in order to process textbook benefits, SFAs should only release free/reduced information from those households that signed the box stating they want textbook benefits. Any household that did not sign this box on the application or any direct certified household that opted out of textbook benefits cannot be disclosed to the textbook processor.
  • A household was pulled for verification and could not provide documentation to support their free status. They changed to paid. Does this mean they also are responsible for their textbook fees?
    • If a student no longer qualifies for assistance, the school would prorate the amount of textbook costs due. Under IC 20-33-5-6, after a determination of ineligibility, the school may bill the parent for the student’s fees. 
  • A household declined Direct Certification benefits at the beginning of the year, now that they received their textbook bill they want to re-instate their free status. Can we do that?
    • It is up to the school as to whether or not free/reduced lunch status is reinstated. Schools should have a consistent policy to address this issue.
  • Questions about textbook benefits? Email DOETextBooks@doe.in.gov.   

Verification Reminders

  • Don’t forget! The verification process should be completed by Thursday, November 15.
  • The Verification Summary Report becomes available after the October claim for reimbursement has been filed. The report is due Saturday, December 15.
  • If a household notifies you that they will not be providing verification documentation and they want to decline benefits, document your conversation and send a notification letter that states in 10 calendar days their benefits will change to paid. This is considered a response and you will mark it as “responded changed to paid” on the Verification Summary Report.  
  • If you requested additional verification documentation from a household by a certain date and the household did not comply, document this situation and send a notification letter that states in 10 calendar days their benefits will change to paid. This is considered a non-response and you will mark it as "did not respond changed to paid" on the Verification Summary Report.
  • If a student was found on the direct certification match list or in a direct certification look-up after you pulled applications for verification (after October 1), you can continue to count that application for verification. If the application was direct certified before October 1, then you cannot count that application for verification and you need to replace it with another one.
  • Questions about verification or the Verification Summary Report? Contact Allie Caito-Sipe at acaito@doe.in.gov or 317-232-0849.

*Reminder* 2018 National School Lunch Equipment Grant

  • IDOE has been awarded a new Equipment Grant for 2018.
  • 30 to 35 individual school grants will be awarded.
  • Per USDA mandates, preference will be given to:
    • Those with a higher free and reduced percentage.
    • Schools and corporations that have not previously received equipment grants.
  • The maximum individual grant will be $30,000.
  • Food Service Operating Balances will be reviewed for excess funds (defined as over three months average operating expenses) that could fund the new equipment.
  • Equipment should promote the goals of encouraging the consumption of healthy meals, the approved meal pattern, safely storing and preparing food, and energy efficiency.
  • Applications will be accepted until Friday, November 16. Award recipients will be announced Friday, February 1, 2019.
  • Schools that have submitted grants in the past, but have not been awarded funds, should consider reapplying.
  • To access the financial webpage, click here.
    • Click here for more information. 
    • Click here for the equipment grant template. 
    • Click here for the equipment grant application.
  • Questions? Contact Joe Olivadoti at JOlivadoti1@doe.in.gov.

*Reminder* Indiana School Nutrition Association (ISNA) Annual Conference

  • Don't forget! ISNA's 65th Annual Conference is coming up next week, November 8-10. 
  • The theme this year is "In the Moment: Interact, Connect, Grow." 
  • ISNA is also hosting a pre-conference event, "Nutriton 101: A Taste of Food and Fitness, Fourth Edition," starting at 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 7.
    • This eight-hour course qualifies for SNA core course certification level 1.
    • This training provides a basic overview of nutrition with an emphasis on the importance of balance in daily food choices and the inclusion of physical activity as a key component to good health. The training incorporates a variety of learning activities including short physical activity boosters.
    • The $75 fee includes training, materials and lunch.
  • Click here for more details and registration information. 
    • Registration closes Thursday, November 1 at 5:00 p.m., so don't delay in signing up!

Missed a Weekly School Nutrition Newsletter? Click here to access previous newsletters!

Please do not reply directly to this email. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this email, please contact Allie Caito-Sipe at acaito@doe.in.gov, call (317) 232-0849, or toll-free at 1-800-537-1142 ext. 20849. You can also contact Sarah Kenworthy at skenworthy@doe.in.gov, call (317) 232-0857, or toll-free at 1-800-537-1142 ext. 20857.