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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released two policy memos relating to School Meal Programs.
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SP 16-2021, CACFP 14-2021: Previously Issued Questions and Answers Relating to Operation of the Child Nutrition Programs: Updated for School Year 2021–2022
- This memo includes clarifying questions and answers for state agencies and program sponsors as they operate the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), Seamless Summer Option (SSO), and Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) during SY 21–22. This guidance also updates Q&As previously released in 2020.
- Questions 1–2 & 45–46 apply to both School Meal Programs & CACFP sponsors.
- Questions 3–23 apply specifically to the School Meal Programs (NSLP, SBP, and SSO).
- Questions 47–52 pertain to Civil Rights Requirements
- As detailed in question 49- Due to COVID-19, if printed "And Justice For All" (AJFA) posters are not available for display, paper copies may be substituted as necessary, including use of the 2015 AJFA poster, if new (2019) posters have not been received.
- OSPI CNS will announce distribution of new AJFA posters in a future CNS Update.
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SP 17-2021, CACFP 15-2021, SFSP 09-2021: COVID-19 Waiver Requests Submitted Prior to December 31, 2020
- This memo provides clarification that any state agency waiver requests submitted between the beginning of the COVID-19 public health emergency and December 31, 2020 that have not received responses are now denied.
- Washington state previously submitted a waiver request for the potable water requirement in the School Meal Programs. The denial of the waiver request was previously communicated to sponsors. No other waiver requests for the School Meal Programs are impacted by this guidance.
Questions? Email your OSPI CNS Program Specialist.
Payments for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Emergency Operational Costs (EOC) Reimbursement Program are planned to be issued in August. See OSPI Bulletin B036-21 for program details.
Program eligibility is limited to Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) sponsors that have maintained their Child Nutrition Program participation by filling valid claims for any of the months of September 2020 through December 2020.
Please review if you reported lost revenue for one or more CNS programs as ESSER 1 funds. Districts cannot claim two different sources of federal COVID relief funds for the same purpose. If necessary, you can decline EOC funds by contacting Hydie Kidd by July 30, 2021.
USDA has provided the following guidance regarding use of EOC funds:
"Funds provided to program operators under this authority represent reimbursement for excess costs incurred during defined reimbursement period. The formula nature of the awards serves as a proxy for these costs. The funds may be used to reimburse any local source of funds used to supplement the Nonprofit Food Service account during the reimbursement period to offset the impact of pandemic operations on that account. If this approach is taken, the program operator must maintain documentation supporting these reimbursements for future audit or oversight purposes. Any remaining funds must be deposited in the Nonprofit Food Service account and be used in accordance with normal program requirements."
Questions? Please email Hydie Kidd, CNS Fiscal Supervisor.
The Direct Certification system is open for school year 2021–22.
Students on the district list, confirmed near matches, and students found using the Student Search function are free and reduced-price meal eligible beginning school year 2021–22.
Direct Certification is the process of matching Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) information with student enrollment in the Comprehensive Education Data and Research System (CEDARS). This helps Local Education Agencies (LEAs) identify students eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Students that are directly certified are not required to submit a meal application to their district.
Direct Certification is required by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and must be conducted monthly under Washington state law. RCW 28A.235.280(3)
Students are directly certified for free or reduced-price meals because of participation in the following programs:
- Basic Food
- Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
- Foster Children
- Medicaid Programs (Only some Medicaid programs)
- Migrant Students
The direct certification list is in OSPI’s Education Data System (EDS). Locate the User Manual and other resources on the CNS webpages.
Potentially Enrolled and Definitely Enrolled Students
At the beginning of each year, each school district will not have students identified as definitely enrolled and the definitely enrolled list will be blank. Once the district data manager for EDS uploads CEDARS enrollment, usually around October 1, the definitely enrolled list will show.
In the meantime, local education agencies will use the potentially enrolled list to identify directly certified students. Potentially enrolled means the student may be enrolled in the school district for the 21-22 school year but until district enrollment is submitted in CEDARS, it cannot be confirmed. Potentially enrolled students are directly certified for free and reduced-price meals.
For more details, please review the Direct Certification User Manual.
Exact Match, Near Match, and Unmatched Lists
Directly Certified students will appear in three ways in the system. OSPI uses a matching software system and establishes parameters for exact and near matches. All students that do not fit into the parameters are considered unmatched and are available in the student search function.
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Exact Match
The student meets matching parameters as an exact match and student is shown on the direct certification list.
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Near Match
The student is not an exact match, but enough information potentially matches a student in the district. LEAs must use district information to “confirm” the DSHS information matches enrollment information. The parameters for near matches are set to allow for only some students to show up on this list.
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Unmatched List
The unmatched list contains all students that cannot be matched with the software. Use the Student Search to find students in the Direct Certification system.
CNS encourages LEAs to use the Student Search often as a way to ensure all eligible children receive meal benefits.
Contact Information
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For EDS access, passwords, and to have Direct Certification added to your application list within the EDS system – public school districts should contact their district data security manager. Private schools should email Liz Beechler, School Meals Program Supervisor.
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For Direct Certification system questions – Email OSPI Customer Support
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For eligibility and program questions – Contact your School Meals Program Specialist.
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For questions regarding your meal counting system – Contact your software vendor.
Are you planning to operate the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) next school year? Are you unfamiliar with the program’s requirements?
Join us for the "Launch into the Seamless Summer Option" training! This training is designed to provide program directors and managers with a launching point for next school year. Agenda items include:
- USDA Waivers
- Site Eligibility
- Meal Pattern Requirements
- Counting & Claiming
- Operations & General Areas
- Other Federal Programs
- Application Process
Attendees will earn 3 hours of Professional Standards training credits.
Register Here!
Date: Thursday, August 19
Time: 1–4 pm PT
Don't Forget!
OSPI CNS will also be hosting the "School Meal Programs Annual Training" webinar. Join us as we discuss the upcoming year, things to expect, and updates.
Register Here!
Date: Wednesday, August 11
Time: 1:30–3:00 pm PT
It has come to our attention that some companies have informed Child Nutrition Program sponsors in some locations across the nation that “due to labor shortages and warehouse capacity,” the companies are unable to serve sponsors in the upcoming program year. We are not aware of widespread challenges across the state of Washington.
As a reminder sponsors may use the authority found in federal procurement regulation 2 CFR 200.320(c)(3). This regulation allows sponsors to use the emergency noncompetitive procurement method to negotiate a new one-year contract for the 2021–22 program year. The situation described above is an appropriate time to use this provision as it is always available to sponsors if they determine that current emergency circumstances exist.
Questions? Please email the CNS Procurement inbox.
This session is great for food service directors, managers, and school business officials! Feel free to share information about this training with others in your district.
This Virtual Instructor-Led session provides participants instruction on the relationship of program cost and revenue, standard security practices to protect the financial integrity, budget management, increasing productivity and decreasing waste, and staff responsibility for sound financial management practices.
This 6-hour training will be held from 9:00 am–3:30 pm PT, with a half hour lunch and additional breaks scheduled. Please register for one of these dates:
Registration Information
- Participants must register for the training using the pdEnroller platform.
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Each participant must have their own pdEnroller account to sign up for the training if you do not have one currently. You may use this link to create an account, if needed.
- Keep your confirmation email!
- This email is your portal to the training session and additional handouts for the training.
- Pro Tip: You can add events to your calendar via the event page, this way your Zoom access link is available from your calendar.
- Can't Attend?
- Log into your account.
- Select your name in the upper right hand corner.
- Click on 'My Events'.
- Upcoming events appear at the top of your screen, you should see the class and a 'Cancel Registration' button.
- You can cancel your registration at any time using pdEnroller.
- Waitlist Participants:
- PdEnroller notifies CNS of the number of interested participants and automatically creates a waitlist when the session is filled.
- If someone cancels their attendance, pdEnroller automatically notifies the next person on the waitlist and gives them an opportunity to register - keep an eye out in your emails.
Have Questions? Please email Samantha Brueske, Training and Communications Specialist.
The Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) is the only federally funded national center dedicated to applied research, education and training, and technical assistance for child nutrition programs.
1. Back to School: Completing Food Production Records S.T.A.R. Webinar
This webinar will provide an overview of what a production record is and why it is used to document the food you plan, prepare, and serve. Join this webinar to hear good practices for completing production records and common errors to avoid when documenting.
Register Here
Date: Thursday, July 29
Time: 12–1 pm PT
Participants will receive 1 hour of Professional Standards Credits.
2. Fresh Ideas for Preparing Fall Fruits and Vegetables Webinar
Now is the time to think about incorporating late summer and fall fruits and vegetables in your menus, including special celebrations for National Farm to School Month in October.
During the "Farm to School: Fresh Ideas for Preparing Fall Fruits and Vegetables" webinar, you will hear from a panel of school nutrition program operators to learn about their unique approaches to using local fruits and vegetables.
Register Here
Date: Thursday, August 5
Time: 12–1 pm PT
Webinar participants will receive 1 hour of Professional Standards Credits.
The Port Townsend School District Farm to School Program will collaborate with Washington State University Small Farms Program to improve edible school gardens across the district and develop an agriculture curriculum for Pre-K–9th grade students.
Foundation of District 304 will collaborate with Sedro-Woolley School District to develop school gardens throughout the district, provide garden-based training to teachers, adapt STEM curricula for students, and implement Harvest of the Month programs at all schools.
Learn more about their projects and see a full list of grantees in USDA’s FY21 Farm to School Grantees announcement.
As vendors and processors continue to have challenges with production capacity and transportation, we are experiencing delays and shortages with various products. Please see our product availability updates below.
Estimated September Availability
W287 - Breakfast Sandwich
W869 - Diced Pears
W870 - Mixed Fruit
100364 - Vegetarian Beans (Delay in Western Washington Orders Only)
100365 - Pinto Beans (Delay in Western Washington Orders Only)
100370 - Red Kidney Beans (Delay in Western Washington Orders Only)
Estimated October Availability
110361 - Applesauce Cups
110242 - Blueberries
111100 - Cereal Bowls
Estimated November Delivery
110911 - Turkey Ham
Estimated January 2022 Availability:
W281 – Whole French toast IW
W288 – Cheese Tortilla Wrapped Omelet IW
USDA Unable to Provide During for the 21-22 SY
111230 - Mixed Vegetables
110851 - Pollock Fish Sticks
111230 - Mixed Vegetables
Please continue to utilize surplus for substitutions
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The DoD Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), in cooperation with USDA, contracts with a prime vendor to deliver produce in Washington state. For more information about our new prime vendor, Charlies Produce, please view the DOD Vendor Update webinar.
View the DOD Vendor Update webinar here
Password: USDADoDFresh2021
Note: This webinar is password protected and will require the password listed to watch.
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July 30
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May Claim 60-day Deadline - if you haven't already, submit your claim
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August 4–11
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September USDA Foods Order Period Open in CNP Web.
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August 11
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SY21–22 School Meal Programs Annual Updates Webinar - Register Here
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August 15
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July Claim Due in WINS!
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August 19
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SSO "Launching Point" Training - Register Here
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