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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) reimbursement rates for 2022.
Summer Food Service Program reimbursement rates are effective for the time period of January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022.
Seamless Summer Option Rates
Under Child Nutrition Response #86, meals and snacks served under the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) will be reimbursed at the SFSP high rate rather than the NSLP or SBP reimbursement rate. The waiver is effective July 1, 2021–June 30, 2022. The below rates are effective through January 1, 2022–June 30, 2022
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Meal
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Rate
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SSO Breakfast
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$2.6050
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SSO Lunch/ Supper
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$4.5625
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SSO Snack
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$1.0775
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Seamless Summer Option reimbursement rates have been updated in WINS and will be reflected starting on the January claim.
For more information, review the rates on the CNS Claims and Fiscal webpage.
Questions? Please contact your program specialist.
OSPI Child Nutrition Services has developed a new guide to feeding students who are in quarantine due to possible COVID-19 exposure or illness.
We encourage you to continue providing access to meals, as many students rely on school meals for nutritional support. Providing meals to quarantined students is a local level decision. Though there is no USDA requirement to provide or deliver meals during school or classroom closures, we encourage district leaders to consider all options available to support students
Register for the Feeding Students in Quarantine Guide Webinar
Date: Thursday, January 20
Time: 1:30–2:30 pm PT
Questions? Please email the OSPI Child Nutrition team.
The School Meals Price Report will not be posted this year.
Due to the flexibilities allowed since the COVID-19 pandemic began, many School Meal Program sponsors are not collecting meal payments from students.
Questions? Please contact your OSPI School Meals Program Specialist.
Participation in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) school meal programs requires program operators to meet certain annual requirements. These include:
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Annual Civil Rights Training- You must train all organization staff who help administer the nutrition program. Training must include your organization’s requirements and procedures as well as meet the training requirements outlined in this presentation.
Completed forms are not required to be submitted, however, you must keep them on file for Administrative Reviews.
The Washington Department of Health (DOH) recently released updated guidance on DOH K-12 Guidance After January 7, 2022 Changes and Supplemental Considerations to Mitigate COVID-19 Transmission in K-12 Schools.
Updates in this version reflect recently released Center for Disease Control's (CDC) recommendations for schools and seek to achieve two primary goals:
- Minimize transmission of COVID-19 among students and staff in K–12 schools and to their families and broader community.
- Maximize in-person instruction.
Resources
Verification is the process of confirming free and reduced-price meal eligibility based on an application. The verification process begins each year on October 1 and concludes November 15. Results of the verification process are reported in the Verification Summary Report (VSR).
Public school districts, private schools, and residential child care institutions that determine eligibility for meals using meal applications must conduct verification. Please review the 9/27 Verification article for resources and details about completing the verification process.
Important Details
- All sponsors who collected meal applications for SY 21–22 are required to submit the Verification Summary Report.
- The VSR must be completed and submitted in WINS by February 15, 2022.
- Sponsors will not be able to submit their January Claim until their VSR is error free and submitted in WINS.
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On the "Application Results" tab, enter results carefully. The edit and delete buttons on the "Application Results" tab are not functioning. WINS may run slower than usual, do not use the "back" button or click "save a row" more than once. This may result in duplicates that cannot be deleted. If this happens, please contact your program specialist.
Resources
Questions about the verification process? Please contact your School Meals Program Specialist.
Local Education Agencies (LEAs) returning from holiday break have reported a high number of new students matched for both direct certification free and direct certification free/reduced Medicaid.
Cautionary measures were taken and the system was closed while Child Nutrition Services investigated reports. The system is now re-opened and LEAs may proceed using the system to directly certify students for free and reduced-price meals.
A recent matching logic update to the system was implemented. This issue was preventing a higher number of matches than previously estimated. The system is working as expected and all matches are eligible for direct certification.
Questions? Please contact your School Meals Program Specialist.
Meal Distribution Plans (MDPs) approved for school year 21–22 expired on December 31, 2021.
We continue to hear of the ongoing challenges around school closures, food order cancelations, delays, and shortages.
The approved waivers submitted with renewal application MDPs expired on December 31, 2021. To streamline the process for current waiver extensions, sponsors who have approved MDPs on file received an e-mail on December 31, 2021, asking if you would like to extend your approved waiver requests through June 30, 2022, or your last operating day, whichever comes first.
Steps to Take
To continue to utilize your approved flexibilities and waivers through the end of the program year, sponsors must request a waiver extension through email instructions prior to January 31, 2022.
To request additional waivers, change your waiver request or to apply for new waivers due to school closures or supply chain disruptions, please update your SY 21–22 Meal Distribution Plan.
View our 12/20 CNS Update for more information.
Questions? Please contact your School Meals Program Specialist.
Meal Access Grant (Form Package 383) closes January 18!
Formerly known as the Breakfast Meals for Kids Grant, this grant is available to public school districts, tribal compact schools and charter schools.
Previous Grant Projects Awarded:
This grant focuses on starting a new meal program, increasing participation in an existing program, improving program meal quality, and improving the equipment and facilities used in an existing program.
Some examples of previous grant awards are located on the History of Meal Access Grant Awardees document.
Interested in Applying?
View the recorded webinar for an overview of the application, important changes from previous year's applications, tips for your application, and grant timelines.
View the Meal Access Grant Interest Webinar
How to Apply
Applicants may apply for a single school or multiple schools, including central kitchens. Applications are completed in iGrants (form package 383) and are due before 4 pm PT, Tuesday, January 18, 2022.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to review the Evaluation Document, located on the Profile Page of iGrants, before starting the application.
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NSLP Equipment Assistance Grant (Form Package 472) closes February 10!
Public school districts, private schools, tribal schools, charter schools and residential childcare institutions are eligible to apply National School Lunch Program (NSLP) Equipment Assistance Grant.
This funding can be used for:
- Replace aging equipment or update equipment
- Adopt lunchroom changes that provide more convenience and appeal to students
- Make meaningful impacts on student nutrition and quality of meals.
Interested in Applying?
View the recorded webinar for an overview of the application, important changes from previous year's applications, tips for your application, and grant timelines.
View the NSLP Equipment Assistance Grant Interest Webinar Recording
How to Apply
Applicants may apply for a single school or multiple schools, including central kitchens. Applications are completed in iGrants (form package 472) and are due before 4 pm PT, Thursday, February 10, 2022.
Questions? Please email the CNS Grants team.
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The Washington State legislature appropriated over 11 million in funds to support Child Nutrition Programs in WA during 2021–22. These funds support a variety of programs and grants.
All Public school districts, Charter schools and Tribal compact schools operating the NSLP or Seamless Summer Option (SSO) in SY 21–22 will be provided funds to support meal access and distribution. A portion of these funds will be distributed at the end of January 2022.
Payments will be calculated based on the total number of Breakfast and Lunch meals served for either NSLP or SSO, as reported on the October 2021 claim, multiplied $0.50.
Questions? Please email Hydie Kidd, Fiscal Supervisor.
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.
COVID-19 Resources
The Institute of Child Nutrition has created a webpage of best practices and information on proper handwashing and properly cleaning and disinfecting as guided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Resources include:
Visit the ICN COVID-19 Resources webpage for more tools and resources.
Complete Your Interest Survey by January 24
The School Year (SY) 2022–23 USDA Foods Interest Survey allows you to express interest in which USDA direct products to add to our Washington State product list.
Complete the SY 2022-23 USDA Foods Interest Survey by January 24. Responses received after this date may not be considered.
Items with the highest interest will be included in the 2022–23 Pre-Order survey. Please note: the Interest Survey does not include all available items for school year 2022–23.
Interest Survey vs Pre-Order Survey
Interest Survey: Lets OSPI Child Nutrition Services know which USDA Direct products you are interested in and if we should add items to our product list. If enough interest is expressed and we can order in the proper quantities, products will become available on the Pre-Order Survey.
Pre-Order Survey: After you let us know the items you are interested in, you must commit to ordering. The Pre-Order Survey is your commitment to how much and which items you plan on ordering in the upcoming school year.
Questions about the survey? Please email the Food Distribution Inbox
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