Farm to School Month
It’s Farm to School Month! Farm to School is an important initiative that promotes building connections in the cafeteria and classroom to local producers and foods. Indiana has so much to offer our schools agriculturally, and we are proud to showcase that all month long! Celebrate farm to school month with Indiana Apple Crunch highlighting local apples or through Indiana Food Day, which is highlighting local proteins this year. With Farm to School, students win, farmers win, and the community wins! If you have questions about Farm to School, make sure to visit our Farm to School webpage or contact us at f2s@doe.in.gov.
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USDA Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) Final Rule Webinar
USDA will host a CEP final rule webinar for school food authorities on Thursday, October 5, at 2 p.m. ET. Please register for the webinar here.
National School Lunch Week (NSLW)
NSLW begins Monday, October 9, and runs through Friday, October 13. This year’s theme is Level Up with School Lunch. The School Nutrition Association has fun NSLW resources to help you celebrate!
IDOE will ask for photos for an Indiana scrapbook after the week is over, so don’t forget to take photos of your celebrations! Make sure if there are any identifiable pictures of students that you have received signed media releases from their families.
Now Available: Recorded Trainings
- Miss the Back to School Reminders webinar? IDOE's Back to School training session has been recorded and can be found at this link.
- The Direct Certification (DC) Basics and Processing Possible Matches training modules are now available on Moodle. Find these sessions under the Direct Certification tile.
Forecasting for the Future Webinar
The USDA Foods: Forecasting for the Future webinar experienced technical issues and participants were unable to attend. IDOE is in the process of preparing the recording and PowerPoint presentations for viewing. It should be available on the CNPweb Food Distribution Program Update and Message screen in the coming days.
Department of Defense (DoD) Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Live Webinar
IDOE will host a DoD Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Program live webinar on Wednesday, November 1, from 10 to 11 a.m. ET. This webinar will explain what DoD is, provide tips on determining allocations, eAuthetication and vendor information. Registration is not required for this webinar.
Introducing Food Distribution Program (FDP) 2.0
What is it? FDP 2.0 is new program that will replace FDP software in CNPweb.
Who will use it? Schools, warehouses, and IDOE will use for the 2024-2025 school year.
When? The first phase of FDP 2.0 will be rolled out in December 2023 for school sponsors to complete the annual pre-order (forecast) survey in early 2024.
Why? The current FDP system will be retired for a more user friendly and updated system.
There will be more information forthcoming on access, logins, training and rollout phases in future newsletters.
Farm to School 101
IDOE will host a webinar titled Farm to School 101: How to Get Started on Thursday, October 19, at 2 p.m. ET. Join Sophie Lindley, Farm to School Coordinator for IDOE, along with Brianna Goode, Farm to School Coordinator for the Indiana Department of Health, as they discuss what Farm to School means, how to get started, and what resources and support are available for schools. They also will have time to answer any Farm to School related questions. To register for the event, click here.
Questions? Contact f2s@doe.in.gov.
Verification Webinar Series
Processing Verification Information
This webinar will go over the steps for processing the information submitted by households as proof of income.
Traditional Verification Period Has Begun
The traditional verification period begins next week. Verification samples are based on the number of approved applications on file as of October 1 each year. Sponsors with a 20% or higher non-response rate in the previous year are required to conduct Standard (Error-Prone) verification. If you are unsure if you are required to do so, review the verification method spreadsheet and find your school. Sponsors that can choose any method can choose any of the three options including error-prone.
If you missed the webinars regarding verification last week, you can find the slides for the Verification Methods presentation here, the Verification Preparation webinar here, and the Direct Verification here.
For additional tools and resources, review the Verification webpage.
*Sponsors that operate CEP corporation-wide and Residential Child Care Institutions that do not have day students are exempt from verification.
Indiana School Nutrition Association (ISNA) Annual Conference
ISNA is excited to host the 2023 fall conference from Wednesday, November 8, through Friday, November 10, at the French Lick Resort in French Lick, IN. This year's conference will feature a great lineup of engaging speakers to equip you with the tools and knowledge to excel in school food service.
Registration is open for members and non-members. Find more information here.
Upcoming Dates |
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Thursday, October 5, at 2 p.m. ET
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CEP Final Rule webinar. Register here.
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Monday, October 9, through Friday, October 13
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National School Lunch Week
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Tuesday, October 10, at 3 p.m. ET
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Processing verification information webinar. Register here.
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Thursday, October 19, at 2 p.m. ET
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Farm to School 101 webinar. Register here.
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Monday, October 30
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August claims due
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Wednesday, November 8, through Friday, November 10
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ISNA Annual Conference in French Lick, IN.
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This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
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