With the new USDA waiver release, we are transitioning our webinars to focus on schools and community organizations that will start the year with the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).
Districts offering the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) are encouraged to join as well.
Register Here
Date: Wednesdays through November 4, 2020
Time: 2 - 3 pm PT
Please hold a space on your calendar on Wednesdays from 2 - 3 pm PT. Reminder emails with your link to log into the session are sent 1 hour before the session starts.
Weekly follow up emails with a copy of the slides are sent to everyone registered for the session, even if they did not attend. We will not be posting recordings to the CNS webpages due to rapidly changing information .
Please keep an eye out in your inbox for these emails, if you do not see them in your inbox please check your SPAM box.
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Last week, we shared the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announcement to extend several Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) waivers. These waiver extensions allow SFSP operations to continue through December 31, 2020.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #48 - Nationwide Waiver to Allow Area Eligibility for Closed Enrolled Sites in the SFSP and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) Seamless Summer Option (SSO) - Extension
- This waives the requirement for closed enrolled sites operating under the SFSP or SSO to collect income eligibility applications.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #49 - Nationwide Waiver to Waive First Week Site Visits in the SFSP - Extension
- This waives the requirement to visit each SFSP site during the first week of operation.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #50 - Nationwide Waiver of Meal Service Time Restrictions in the SFSP and NSLP Seamless Summer Option - Extension
- This waives the required minimum time between meal service times and allow sponsors to serve more than one meal at a time.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #51 - Nationwide Waiver to Allow Offer Vs Serve Flexibilities in the SFSP - Extension
- Washington State will be participating in this waiver. Please join us for the weekly call for more details. Register Here.
- This waiver allows Offer vs Serve in SFSP operations.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #52 - Nationwide Waiver to Extend Area Eligibility Waivers - EXTENSION 2
- This waiver applies to the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) and the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).
- This waiver allows SFSP and SSO sponsors in good standing to operate open sites in areas consistent with the State plan, but not located in “Areas in which poor economic conditions exist”.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- FNS reserves the right to withdraw this approval subject to availability of funding
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #53 - Nationwide Waiver to Allow Meal Pattern Flexibility in the SFSP and NSLP Seamless Summer Option - EXTENSION 7
- This waiver allows sponsors to serve meals that do not meet the meal pattern requirements.
- Sponsors are approved on a case-by-case basis. If your organization is unable to locate a particular item, contact your program specialist.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
- As a reminder, Federal procurement regulations at 2 CFR 200.320(f) allow procurement by noncompetitive proposals when there is a public emergency.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #54 - Nationwide Waiver to Allow Non-Congregate Feeding in the Summer Food Service Program and NSLP Seamless Summer Option – EXTENSION 4
- This extended waiver allows meals to be served in a non-congregate meal setting.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #55 - Nationwide Waiver to Allow Parents and Guardians to Pick Up Meals for Children - EXTENSION 4
- This waiver allows parents and guardians to pick up meals for their children.
- Program operators must maintain program integrity and ensure duplicate meals are not distributed.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
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COVID-19: Child Nutrition Response #56 - Nationwide Waiver to Allow Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Option Operations through December 2020
- This allows program sponsors to operate the SFSP and Seamless Summer Option through December 31, 2020 for new and returning sponsors.
- Allowing these programs facilitates the safe provision of meals by eliminating the need to collect meal payments, including cash payments, at meal sites, which speeds up service of meals, thereby reducing contact and potential exposure to COVID–19.
- This waiver is in effect until December 31, 2020.
- Washington State will participate in this waiver.
Please read the linked policy memos for more details.
Many sponsors have been asking about training requirements to operate the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) during the extension of SFSP through December 2020.
October 1, 2020, marks a new program year. Training is required for all sponsors who wish to operate SFSP this fall. Sponsor administrators must watch the recorded trainings and then train all sponsor staff.
We are utilizing trainings previously recorded. Some recordings listed below may reference a certification to get credit. Please note that OSPI CNS has updated this procedure so sponsors will now certify participation in trainings when submitting the Online Application Checklist. This checklist will be released in the coming weeks.
New SFSP Sponsors
Returning SFSP Sponsors
September 11, 2020, is the last date to apply for Pandemic EBT (P-EBT).
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Department of Social and Health Services have teamed up to create a new program called Pandemic EBT, or P-EBT, for short. These benefits will help families most impacted by the COVID-19 crisis to continue to have access to nutritious meals.
P-EBT is available for students, including children of immigrant households, who were enrolled in a K-12 school that offered a school lunch program during the 2019-20 school year AND were eligible for free or reduced-price school meals; or attended a school where meals were free for all students.
There are two ways to apply:
- Online: www.WashingtonConnection.org (on the application, choose ‘Pandemic EBT — Emergency School Meals Program’ box in the Food Assistance section); or,
- Call: 877–501–2233 (DSHS Customer Service Contact Center — interpreter services are available)
Please use your social media to get the word out to the families you serve!
Additional information and translated documents are available on the OSPI Pandemic EBT Guidance for Schools webpage.
The second section of the SFSP Records requested were due August 7. If you have not sent them in, please make sure to do so.
Under Child Nutrition Response #31, Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Administrative Reviews will be conducted as a Desk Audit. This new process allows us to conduct your review while maintaining public health guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In order to help sponsors transition to the desk audit process, we recorded a webinar detailing the what you need to prepare for the desk review, required documentation, the timeline of the review process, and how to submit your review documents.
View the Recorded Training here | Print a copy of the slides
IMPORTANT UPDATE!
Please notify the summer meals inbox once all documents have been uploaded into WINS. Originally we asked you to send your notification to a different inbox, please ensure to send this notification to the summer meals inbox. Thank you for all of your work to complete the reviews off-site.
Have questions regarding your SFSP review? Please email summermeals@k12.wa.us.
The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) provides healthy meals to all children ages 18 & under, and students ages 21 and under enrolled in a Washington school district.
SFSP sponsors must promote meal access to all children. This includes providing accommodations for children with disabilities who have special dietary needs.
Often times accommodations can be made within the meal pattern requirements. If this is the case, a medical statement is not required. Examples of this may include modifying the texture of meals (pureed, chopped, etc.) and substituting food items from the same component.
Potential Substitutions
Gluten Free Grains
- Corn Products, such as tortillas, tortilla chips, popcorn, corn-based cereals
- Rice Products, such as rice crackers, enriched white or brown rice, rice cereals
- Oat Products, such as gluten-free oatmeal or oat-based granola bars
Milk Alternatives*
- Lactose-free milk
- Lactose-reduced milk
*Please note that approved milk substitutes are not creditable in SFSP without a note signed by a state-recognized medical authority.
Meat Alternates
- Yogurt, flavored or unflavored and nonfat, low-fat, or whole
- Cheese, such as cheddar, mozzarella, American, or Swiss
- Beans or Peas, such as black beans, refried beans, chickpeas, or hummus
- Nuts/Seeds*, such as almonds, cashews, or sunflower seeds
- Nut/Seed Butters, such as almond butter, peanut butter, or sunflower butter
- Eggs
*Please note that Nuts/Seeds may only comprise 50% of the M/MA component at lunch/supper.
Substitutions Outside the Meal Pattern
If an accommodation cannot be made within the meal pattern requirements, a statement signed by a state-recognized medical authority would need to be submitted. The statement must detail:
- Food(s) to be avoided
- How the food impacts the participant
- Food(s) to be substituted
OSPI has developed the Special Dietary Accommodations Form, available in both English & Spanish, as a resource. When supported by a signature from a state-recognized medical authority, meal modifications that do not meet meal pattern requirements can be claimed for reimbursement.
Resources on Special Dietary Accommodations
Questions? Please email summermeals@k12.wa.us.
The ICN’s September STAR webinar will be done in conjunction with the USDA Office of Food Safety in celebration of National Food Safety month. The webinar will highlight a bird’s eye view of your food safety plan from beginning to end, as we aim to mitigate risks throughout the flow of food from purchasing to serving to transporting and traceability.
Register Here
Date: Thursday, September 17, 2020
Time: 12 - 1 pm PT
Learning Objectives
- Identify foodborne pathogens commonly associated with retail foodservice operations
- Describe three critical food safety practices used throughout the flow of food to mitigate foodborne disease
- Identify safe transporting methods and documentation procedures
- Apply recommended traceability systems necessary to conduct a product recall
- And explain answers to frequently asked questions from previous USDA Office of Food Safety webinars.
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September 9
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SY20-21 Food Service Operations for NSLP and SFSP Sponsors Weekly Webinar - Register Here
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September 15
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August Claims Due in WINS
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