June 16, 2022

This is an official communication between ODE CNP and Sponsors of NSLP

Inside This Issue

• Important Dates (updated)
• Memos (repeat)
• SNP Updates (updated)
• From Our Staff to Yours: A few Words of Appreciation for a Job Well Done! (new)
• Civil Rights Memo - Common Questions and Answers (new)
• Paid Lunch Equity Requirement (new)
• Preparing for Carryover for School Year 2023 (repeat)
• Preparing for Fueling Students for Success Initiatives Implementation (repeat)
• Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) Virtual Training Sessions (repeat)
• Chef Ann Foundation: Scratch Cooking Assessment & Learning Evaluation (SCALE) (new)
• USDA Foods Update (repeat)
• Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program Update (new)
  
• Upcoming Newsletter Dates
• SNP Contacts

Important Dates

• June 29, 2022: April 2022 Claim due
• June 30, 2022: State Match Funds transfer due
• June 30, 2022: NSLP/SBP/SSO waivers for School Year 2022 expire
• June 30, 2022: Local School Wellness Policy Triennial Assessment Due (Oregon has received a waiver extending this due date, however, sponsors are encouraged to complete this by the listed due date)
• September 16, 2022: SNP renewal due

ODE Memo: SY 2022-2023 SNP Renewal for State Agency - Sponsor Permanent Agreement ODE Memo: SY 2022-2023 SMP Renewal for State Agency - Sponsor Permanent Agreement

SNP Updates                                                            Renewal 2022-2023 Renewal 2022-2023 is now open in CNPweb.  Instructions are provided on the School Nutrition Programs Renewal webpage. Reconnecting with Summer Meals Communications Toolkit As promised a “Reconnecting with Summer Meals” Communication Toolkit is now available to help your staff communicate upcoming summer meal changes to families. This toolkit includes talking points, social media posts, signage and more. Coming Soon - Back to School Tool Kit  The back to school tool kit is designed to help sponsors put their outreach plans into motion. The kit will contain template letters to families regarding the importance of applying for school meals as well as posters, talking points, and additional social media sample posts. More to come in the near future!

From Our Staff to Yours: A few Words of Appreciation for a Job Well Done!

I have been so impressed by your continued resiliency. You have been hit by seemingly endless challenges and yet you get up each day and meet the needs of your students. I hope you’re able to find time this summer to reflect on your accomplishments, rest and recover. – Dustin 

Congratulations to you! Your work on behalf of your students throughout the 2021-2022 school year has shown boundless energy, unwavering support, and true dedication. I continue to be awed by your adaptability and problem solving skills. May your summer give you the time to fully recharge! - Damasita 

Kudos to Oregon’s School Nutrition employees for successfully providing meals to your students during supply chain and continued pandemic challenges. Your work is deeply appreciated! -Jennifer Parenteau, RD, SNS

This was another challenging year, but your hard work, your commitment and your will overcame challenges to deliver and provide nutritious food to our students, thank you! – Bernardo Tuma

Thank you to all the nutrition staff for the work you have done in regard to feeding students. It’s been another challenging year, but because of your hard work, students have been getting the nutritious food they need ensuring they could be focused on learning. Well done! Have a wonderful summer. – Karen 

Recognizing how terribly difficult the past two years have been, I want to say thank you and job well done! I would also like to extend my appreciation to programs on my caseload who have been gracious to me this year as I learn the ins and outs of the school nutrition program. Thank you for the patience and support you have provided me as I learn how to support and assist you. -Tami 

Thank you for your dedication and perseverance through a time in which students needed you the most. The last two years have disrupted so many including the students you serve. Because of the school nutrition professionals, students across Oregon got the nutrition they needed to stay engaged in their educational learning. I hope that you have a moment this summer to reflect on all the mountains you and your team moved. – Chris 

Thank you for all your hard work and dedication to feeding students! The work you do every day is amazing. Thank you for making a difference.  - Michelle

Civil Rights Memo - Common Questions and Answers

On May 5, 2022, USDA's Civil Rights Division released the Bostock Memo which updated the complaint processing policy to include protection against discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation.  This will result in changes to the And Justice for All poster and the long form of the Non-Discrimination Statement. Here are some common questions that the Oregon Department of Education Child Nutrition Programs (ODE CNP) has received.

Question 1: Can I order the new And Justice For All Posters?

Answer: Not yet. USDA has not sent out the new posters to ODE yet.  Once it becomes available, ODE CNP will notify Sponsors and will provide instructions on how to order copies.

Question 2: What should I do with the old And Justice for All Posters?

Answer: Keep displaying the old posters until you receive copies of the new ones.  If you need additional And Justice For All Posters, you can order additional copies of the old posters by contacting your assigned Child Nutrition Specialist.

Question 3: What else do I need to do to stay in compliance with Civil Rights?

Answer: Here are some steps that Sponsors must take right now:

• Sponsors must train all staff on how to process civil rights complaints on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation within 90 days of the memo issuance. 
• Sponsors must update all websites using the Non-Discrimination Statement (NDS) long version to the new revised version from the USDA Civil Rights webpage within 90 days of memo issuance.  
• All already-printed materials with the previous NDS language must be updated when current supply on hand is exhausted or by September 30, 2023.  

Question 4: When will translated versions of the new Non-Discrimination Statement be available?

Answer: The long version of the Non-Discrimination Statement is being translated by USDA but are not currently available.  It will be posted on the USDA Non-Discrimination Page when it becomes available.

Please reach out to your assigned specialist if you have additional questions.

Paid Lunch Equity Requirement ODE School Nutrition Program wants to thank you for your patience as we worked to get clarification from USDA FNS regarding the PLE requirement. Oregon School Nutrition Program has been approved to offer all Sponsors a waiver from the PLE requirement. For School Year 2022-23 SFAs will have two options: complete the PLE process or opt-in to the PLE waiver.   Option 1: Complete the PLE requirement process: School Food Authorities (SFAs) will use the SY 2022-2023 PLE tool for the Contiguous States to evaluate their PLE. To access the tool please visit the Paid Lunch Equity section of the ODE SNP Financial Management webpage. SFAs should use the price they last charged students (for many SFAs this will be SY 2019-20 prices) as the basis for their SY 2022-23 PLE calculation. As a reminder, many SFAs are not required to follow the PLE requirement in SY 2022-23. The FNS statement below outlines when an SFA is not required to follow the PLE pricing requirement in SY 2022-23. Sponsors meeting this criteria should use Option 2. On April 4, 2022, FNS issued SP 08-2022, CACFP 07-2022, SFSP03-2022 - Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022: Effect on Child Nutrition Programs notifying States that as required by the 2022 Appropriations Act, any SFA with a positive or zero balance in its nonprofit school food service account as of December 31, 2021, is exempt from PLE pricing requirements found at 7 CFR 210.14(e) for school year (SY) 2022-23. Option 2: Opt in to use the Oregon Waiver #25: Paid Lunch Equity (NSLP): For those Sponsors who opt in to Waiver #25, this will waive the entire PLE section under 7 CFR 210.14(e). More specifically, Waiver 25: Paid Lunch Equity (NSLP) waives the requirement for sponsors to assess their paid lunch equity compliance and the requirement for a price increase or transfer of non-federal funds. To opt in to this waiver, Sponsors will complete the electronic 2022-23 Oregon Waivers form. Once approved, Sponsors will receive an email approval from ODE to keep on file. Sponsors must complete one of the options listed above to meet the SY 2022-23 PLE requirement. As a reminder, for those receiving an Administrative Review in SY 2022-23, documentation of either option listed above will be required.

Preparing for Carryover for School Year 2023

As mentioned in the May 17, 2022 SNP newsletter, Oregon applied for a waiver opportunity regarding the carryover eligibility period for the beginning for School Year 2022-23. USDA notified ODE CNP on May 24, 2022, that this waiver has been approved.

This flexibility waives the requirement that carry over eligibility is based on determinations made during the preceding year. It allows sponsors the flexibility to use the most recent application or Direct Certification information for each student to establish carry over eligibility for School Year 2023.

In preparation for this potential waiver approval, ODE CNP is encouraging sponsors to communicate this information with current eligibility software providers to explore how previously expired eligibility may be activated for the 30 day carryover.

As a reminder, If your school or school district did not download direct certification files in SY 2020, 2021 and/or 2022 they must do so. 

Under this waiver, for example, if a student was directly certified this year, then that information must be used for carry over in School Year 2023. However, if the most recent information that a school has for a child is from School Year 2020 or 2021, then the school can use that eligibility determination for that child for carry over into School Year 2023.

Should you have additional questions pertaining to this waiver, please contact your assigned Nutrition Specialist. Full waiver details can be found on the Oregon Child Nutrition Programs COVID-19 Response Webpage. 

Preparing for Fueling Students for Success Initiatives Implementation

Oregon Department Education School Nutrition Program expects full implementation of the Student Success Act on July 1^st of this year.

ODE has developed several resources to assist sponsors in the successfully implementing the Fueling Students for Success school nutrition initiatives.

The Introduction to the Student Success Act in School Nutrition Programs training, provides an overview of the Student Success Act School Nutrition Program provisions including the Community Eligibility Provision Incentive Reimbursement Program, the Expanded Income Group Eligibility Reimbursement Program and Breakfast after the Bell is available.

The ODE SNP Student Success Act webpage  also has several new resources available including:

CEPI at A Glance

Oregon Expanded Income Guidelines Chart 2022-23

Oregon EIG At A Glance

Oregon EIG Application Tip Sheet

Oregon Breakfast after the Bell At a Glance

SSA CEP Incentive Q&A

SSA Breakfast After the Bell Q&A

SSA Expanded Income Eligibility Guidelines Reimbursement Program Q&A

SSA Provision 2 EIG Q&A

Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) Virtual Training Sessions The Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) is offering virtual training sessions during the summer of 2022. There are topics available for school nutrition professionals and Child and Adult Food Care Program (CACFP) operators. Many topics are scheduled for new child nutrition directors and lessons from Introduction to School Nutrition Leadership (ISNL). These sessions will fill quickly, so don't wait! Register Here

Chef Ann Foundation: Scratch Cooking Assessment & Learning Evaluation (SCALE)

The Chef Ann Foundation is launching a new resource for school districts that are looking for ways to increase scratch cooking in their school meal programs. The new digital platform, Scratch Cooking Assessment & Learning Evaluation (SCALE) is free for schools nationwide.

Food service directors input their program data and specifics, and SCALE generates a customized assessment to help increase scratch cooking, including linked resources, section scores, recommendations, and supporting research.

Users can take the assessment at their own pace and will have immediate access to the generated report. The assessment can be taken annually and will allow users to compare progress to previous years. As SCALE evolves, users will also receive recommendations of peer/mentor districts based on scores and proximity.

To learn more about SCALE go to The Lunch Box: Tools for school food change website.

You will find training resources and instructions on how to create a free account.

Direct Certification Corner Great news! Updates have been made to the membership upload feature. The gender field will now accept an “X” in addition to “M” or “F”. Go to our Direct Certification webpage for step-by-step instructions to download weekly Direct Certification files, Free and Reduced applications, or to upload your Membership Enrollment. We are proud to offer this enhancement supporting systemic equity and aligning with local guidelines.

USDA Foods Updates Value of Commodities Received (VCR) Reporting Every June ODE’s USDA Foods team publishes a memo on how to gather all reports to compile VCR reports.  Pay close attention as reports from multiple sites may be required.  As usual, ODE will provide a summary report on the USDA Foods Distribution Program website at the beginning of July.  It will detail each agency’s spending by program.  Prior year reports are available now. USDA DoD Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program end of school year instructions The final week to place orders in FFAVORS for SY2022 is the week of June 20th. Last delivery day is Thursday, June 30th, or ealier according to your assigned delivery day. By June 30th, end of fiscal year, all orders must be received and receipted in FFAVORS.  NSLP Orders receipted after June 30th will count towards SY2023 spending. USDA DoD Fresh for SFSP is available as soon as the school year ends in each location.  Banks have been loaded in FFAVORS for USDA Foods SFSP agencies that opted in.  Remember to select the SFSP or Summer Feeding toggle in FFAVORS to access that budget when placing an order.

For assistance with placing orders, accessing funds or processing receipts, please consult the FFAVORS Customer User Manual.

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) Update

Applications for FFVP SY 2022-2023 can be found on the FFVP webpage. These funds will cover any FFVP costs your participating schools incur between October 1, 2022 and September 30, 2023.

If you currently have a school that participated in SY 2021-2022 and it is still over 50% free and reduced, no action is necessary for those particular schools, as they will automatically be re-enrolled.

Some helpful points to remember if you are interested in applying for the FFVP grant:

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) administers the FFVP at the Federal level.
• The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) administers the FFVP at the State level.
• FFVP sub-grants are awarded to schools, not school districts.
• Only elementary schools (defined as K-8) are eligible.
• Awards are granted to those schools representing the highest percentage of students certified for free & reduced price benefits.
• Only schools participating in the NSLP are eligible.

We will be accepting applications for SY 2022-2023 until September 1, 2022.

Applications will be reviewed and turned around quickly after this date. An application does not guarantee an award, as we will prioritize schools with the highest need based on F&R%. If you would like a list of free and reduced percentages for schools in your district that are not currently enrolled in the FFVP please let us know.

Applications and questions about FFVP can be sent to: FarmtoCNP@ode.oregon.gov.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it.  Newsletters will be distributed during the following weeks. (During the summer, newsletters will be distributed once a month)  We encourage you to access previous newsletters on the School Nutrition Memos Page:

• Beginning of July 2022
• Mid-July 2022

School Nutrition Program Contacts

Civil Rights