Weekly School Nutrition Newsletter

Indiana Department of Education sent this bulletin at 06/13/2019 02:51 PM EDT

06/13/2019

Dear Food Service Contact,

This email provides news for schools concerning the Child Nutrition Programs from the USDA and the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE). 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.

Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) Breakfast Grant

  • FRAC is providing grants to eligible sponsors to increase breakfast participation by implementing breakfast in the classroom, “grab and go” breakfast, and/or second chance breakfast in one or more of their schools.
  • Schools can use funds for items such as equipment and supplies, staff support and training, marketing materials, and incentives for participation.
  • To apply for this grant, schools must agree to offer breakfast to all students at no charge.
  • Grants up to $8,000 can be awarded.
  • Grants are on a first come, first serve basis. Schools should submit their application by the end of June.
  • For more information about the grant, click here.
  • Questions? Contact Diane Girouard at dgirouard@frac.org.

Annual Financial Report (AFR) 2019

  • Beginning July 1, SFAs will be able to start entering their AFR in the CNPweb under Program Year 2019.
  • This report must reflect school financial records for the Non-profit School Food Service Account for program year 2018-2019.
  • Not the person that completes the AFR online? Make sure to forward this information to the person who will be completing it.
  • IDOE will be conducting webinars to review the AFR completion process and common AFR errors from 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. on the following dates:
  • Questions? Contact SCNFinance@doe.in.gov.

30 Operating Day Carryover

  • Eligibility benefits from the previous school year should carryover for the first 30 operating days into the new school year.
  • Reminder! If a household submits a new application or is matched through Direct Certification (DC) within the 30 day carryover, schools must immediately apply the new eligibility, even if the new eligibility is lower than the previous school year (i.e. free to reduced, free to paid, or reduced to paid).
  • The 30 day carryover applies to:
    • Children with approved applications or DC status from the previous school year.
    • Newly enrolled children who reside in a household where another child has an approved application or DC status from the previous year.
    • Children transferring from one Local Educational Agency (LEA) to another, as long as the new LEA can obtain documentation that states the student was receiving benefits the previous school year.
    • Children moving from LEAs that participated in a special Provision (i.e. Provision 1, 2, or 3 or CEP) to a non-provision school. Check out the Transferring Eligibility Fact Sheet for more information about this.
  • While not required, schools are highly recommended to contact any households that have not reapplied for free and reduced (f/r) benefits before the 30 day carryover ends.
    • This is a way to prevent a lapse in benefits or excess meal charging.
  • On the 31st operating day, households that have not reapplied for f/r benefits must be changed to paid status.
  • Click here for the 30 Day Carryover Fact Sheet.
  • Questions? Contact your Field Specialist.

Effective Date Waiver

  • When an application is submitted by a household, the SFA has 10 operating days to process the application and notify the household of their free, reduced, or paid eligibility status. Only after the application is processed can that eligibility determination be applied.
  • If an SFA is approved for the Effective Date Waiver, then they can retroactively apply the free or reduced eligibility on the date the application was first submitted to the school.
  • Direct Certification eligibility can also be applied sooner with the Effective Date Waiver.  
  • For more information, check out new Effective Date Waiver resources posted here. On this page access:
    • memos from USDA on Effective Date eligibility;
    • a fact sheet detailing the application and DC process using the waiver;
    • and the waiver request form.
  • An Effective Date Waiver coffee break webinar will be posted soon on inTEAM.
  • Questions about the Effective Date Waiver? Contact Allie Caito-Sipe at acaito@doe.in.gov.

Disclosure Reminders

  • Don't forget! SFAs are required to maintain strict confidentiality with f/r applications and eligibility information.
  • SFAs must ensure that data systems, records, and other means of accessing a student's eligibility status are limited to officials directly connected with administering the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).
    • Teachers, principals, counselors and any other individuals not directly connected to processing f/r applications, conducting verification, and/or administering appeals, do not have the right to access eligibility information.
    • Only the household member that signed the application can have access to that application or notification of eligibility.
  • SFAs are permitted to share eligibility information with other schools/organizations that operate a Child Nutrition Program (CNP), like the NSLP, Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), and After School Snack Program (ASSP).
  • Schools must take every step to prevent overt identification. Think about:
    • Registration - Do you have a special room or table where people line up to submit their f/r application? Is the application processed in front of the household (and potentially others waiting in line)? If so, you will need to adjust this process to ensure households can discreetly submit an application and receive notification of eligibility confidentially.
    • School Software/POS - Make sure the software does not publicly label student eligibility to teachers, staff, and/or other students.
    • Testing - Schools are allowed to share f/r eligibility for National or State testing (like ILEARN). However, only those who are "need to know" should have access to this information. The f/r eligibility should not be posted visibly for anyone who is not considered "need to know."
  • To determine what kind of disclosure process you must follow, consult USDA's Disclosure Chart on page 86 in the Eligibility Guidance Manual and Indiana's Disclosure Chart (recently updated). Both resources are available on IDOE's disclosure webpage.
  • Additional steps for disclosing information include:
    • Entering into an agreement or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with all involved parties.
    • Sending households information about disclosure (if no permission is required) or a request for disclosure (if permission is required).
    • To find templates of agreements and parent letters, click here.
  • For more information on disclosure requirements:
  • Questions about disclosure? Contact Allie Caito-Sipe at acaito@doe.in.gov.

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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, or contact Ashley Heller at aheller@doe.in.gov, call (317) 232-0544, or toll-free at 1-800-537-1142 ext. 20544.