School Nutrition Programs Newsletter from the Indiana Department of Education

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School Nutrition Programs

This weekly newsletter from the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) is dedicated to providing education, training, and technical assistance opportunities to school nutrition professionals, helping to ensure seamless operations for those participating in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Child Nutrition Programs. If you are the food service contact for your school or facility, please be certain that everyone on your team has access to this important information.


Tip of the Week

Thank you!

Thank you for all you and your staff do to feed Hoosier students! 

school lunch hero day

Important Updates

Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Comment Period Ends Wednesday, May 10

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is proposing updates to the school nutrition standards in a few key areas to give children the right balance of nutrients for healthy and appealing meals. A webinar for schools, focused on the proposed rule, was held in February. A recording of the webinar is available here. Additional information including a link to comment on the proposed changes is available here.

FNS will make the written comments publicly available here.


Proposed Rule Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) - Increasing Options for Schools, Public Comment Period Ends Monday, May 8

FNS has published a proposed rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Community Eligibility Provision – Increasing Options for Schools. The rule proposes to expand access to CEP by lowering the minimum identified student percentage (ISP) participation threshold from 40% to 25%.

The proposed rule was published Thursday, March 23, on the Federal Register. Click here for more information, including the Summary of Proposed Rule, which highlights changes the proposed rule would have on CEP.

Recording of the webinar, “Child Nutrition Programs: Community Eligibility Provision – Increasing Options for Schools Proposed Rule” and presentation slides are now available on the Food and Nutrition Service’s Website. Interested persons can submit written comments on the proposed rule through Monday, May 8. Comments may be submitted via the Federal eRulemaking Portal at Regulations.gov, which has online instructions for submitting comments.


2023 Summer Operations: Non-Congregate (NC) Meal Service in Rural Areas 

Agencies and organizations that meet the USDA designation for “rural” and participate as sponsors in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) or Seamless Summer Option (SSO) in Indiana, might be eligible to operate NC meal service this summer. If interested, please read Indiana SFSP Policy 2023-02. After reviewing this policy, contact your field specialist with any additional questions. 

USDA Foods

USDA Foods Surplus Still Available for Dilgard Warehouse Sponsors

If your school’s state assigned warehouse is Dilgard, there is still some surplus available. Dilgard sponsors are welcome to take advantage of this opportunity.


USDA Foods Allocations Ended Sunday, April 30

USDA Foods allocations into schools’ inventories ended as of Sunday, April 30, with the exception of outstanding 100256 strawberry cups for Stanz Foodservice sponsors still owed this product. Unprecedented rain and cold weather on the west coast have greatly impacted the strawberry harvest and caused this delay.


Direct Delivered USDA Foods and Department of Defense (DoD) Funds Will Be Lost After Friday, June 30 

Now is the time to remove USDA Foods from the state-assigned warehouses and processors, as well as spend USDA DoD Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Program funds before Friday, June 30. USDA Foods are intended to be utilized during the school year allocated. IDOE will sweep all Direct Delivered (Brown Box) USDA Foods from school inventories as of Friday, June 30. 


USDA Foods Invoices, Invoice Credits, and Program Fees

Confused about USDA Foods program fees? Take a look at the Invoices, Invoice Credits, and Program Fees video for information and clarification. The video provides an in-depth look at the fees and charges associated with the USDA Foods Distribution Program. To view the video, click here.


Training and Webinar Opportunities

Professional Development (PD) with IDOE Webinars

  • Wellness Policies Refresher - IDOE, alongside the Indiana Department of Health, will present a webinar on Wellness Policies. Learn about the triennial assessment due on Friday, June 30, as well as tips and tricks for taking the information gathered from your assessment and applying it to your school! 
    • Thursday, May 4, at 2 p.m. ET

    • Register here.

  • End of Year Updates and Reminders - The end of the school year is quickly approaching! Prepare to wrap up the school year with IDOE’s End of the Year Reminders Webinar. Tune in for important reminders and updates for closing out the end of the year and organizational tips for the summer and next school year.  

  • Tuesday, May 9, at 2 p.m. ET

Registration for all upcoming training, including Introduction to School Nutrition Leadership and Culinary Skills for A+ School Meals, can be found on IDOE’s Trainings webpage.


Indiana School Nutrition Association (ISNA) Industry Summit

Join ISNA for an exciting two days of all things school nutrition on Thursday, June 15, and Friday, June 16, in Bloomington. Don't miss this opportunity for tailored professional development and networking to benefit both school nutrition operators and industry partners!

For registration and meeting agenda, click here.

Reminders

IDOE Seeks Farm to School Coordinator

IDOE is seeking a farm to school coordinator as part of the USDA Farm to School State Formula Grant. The farm to school coordinator will work alongside IDOE staff members to implement initiatives for the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Program throughout the state. The Farm to School Coordinator is a full-time, three-year contract lasting until September 2026. Please contact Ashley Heller for additional details on roles and responsibilities. Interested candidates should email their resume and cover letter, including compensation rates, to Ashley Heller by Friday, May 5.


IDOE Farm to School Survey - Open to All Sponsors

IDOE is collecting data about Farm to School to develop the best resources and training opportunities for sponsors across the state. All sponsors are encouraged to complete the brief survey regardless of their participation in Farm to School programming. All responses are anonymous. Click here to complete the survey.


Pandemic EBT (PEBT) Announcement from the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA)

PEBT benefits issued on Friday, April 14, were provided to students who attended school in person AND had COVID-19-related absences during July to December 2022. If a parent is asking about the benefit, please do not encourage them to request a replacement PEBT card unless their child was eligible for a benefit for that time period and they no longer have their card. FSSA has already seen a sharp increase in replacement card requests, and the volume of requests will cause the process to be slowed. Many parents may mistakenly believe this issuance was like the “summer” issuance when all students eligible for free or reduced-price meals on the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) received a benefit.

Please feel free to share FSSA’s PEBT webpage widely. There is an FAQ for parents as well as one for schools to help all understand how PEBT works.

Updates from Our Partners

Friday, May 5, is School Lunch Hero Day!

Join the School Nutrition Association (SNA) and schools around the country to celebrate the school lunch heroes in your life. View School Lunch Hero Day ideas, resources, and materials here.


Youth Adolescent Physical Activity Grant Now Available

The Indiana Department of Health, Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity (IDOH, DNPA) has released the Youth Adolescent Physical Activity (YAPA) grant application. This one-year grant is focused on providing physical activity and physical education opportunities for youth and adolescents, six through 17 years of age (K-12) in the classroom, school, and before or after school program settings.

*Special consideration will be given to those focusing on health equity and incorporating trauma-informed approaches into their programming.

Please see the application for additional details. The application deadline is Friday, May 16. DNPA will host virtual office hours on Thursday, May 4, from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. ET for any questions. Click here to join! For more information, please contact Emma Smythe.


Upcoming Dates

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Thursday, May 4

Wellness Policies Refresher Webinar

Friday, May 5 

School Lunch Hero Day

Friday, May 5

IDOE Farm to School Coordinator Applications Due

Monday, May 8

CEP Proposed Rule Comment Period Ends

Tuesday, May 9

End of Year Updates and Reminders Webinar

Wednesday, May 10

Proposed Updates to the School Nutrition Standards Comment Period Ends

Friday, May 16

DNPA’s Youth Adolescent Physical Activity Grant Application Due

Thursday, June 15, through Friday, June 30

Introduction to School Nutrition Leadership (ISNL) Regional Training - Fishers

Friday, June 30

CEP Application Due for 2023-2024

 

Additional Resources

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