|
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently released several policy memos. The Keep Kids Fed Act extended key waivers to support meal access for summer 2022. All SFSP operations should continue to support the return to "normal" operations and support meal access to children in need. The intent of these waivers is to provide additional support for this transition.
Requests to use these waivers will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and only for the extent and duration necessary. A Meal Distribution Plan (MDP) must be completed for all waiver requests. If you would like to request any of these waivers, please email the summer meals team for a link to the current MDP.
-
COVID–19: Child Nutrition Response #114- Nationwide Waiver of the Summer Sponsor Application Deadline and to Allow Reimbursement for Meals Served Prior to Notification of Approval for Summer 2022 Operations
- Waives the requirement for SFSP sponsors to submit written applications for program participation by June 15.
- Written applications are still required for state agency approval of SFSP participation.
- All application requirements, including training requirements, must be met.
- Waives the regulations that reimbursements shall not be paid for meals served at a site before the sponsor has received written notification of approval from the state agency.
- Sponsors may only claim reimbursement for meals served retroactive to the date a complete and correct application was received at the state agency, including meals served prior to written approval to operate SFSP.
- This waiver is in effect through September 30, 2022.
Recently, USDA released additional policy memos, including:
A list of these waivers and a summary can be found on the COVID-19 Nutrition & Meals Guidance webpage.
Questions? Please email your program specialist or the Summer Meals Inbox.
 Post they survey flyer in a visible location during the week of July 25–29, 2022!
When you ordered your Promotions Kit through OSPI, you should have received a flyer to encourage families to let us know how they heard about summer meals sites.
Parents can scan the QR code with their phone or visit the URL listed on the flyer to answer a few questions and register for a chance to win a $50 gift card courtesy of United Way of King County!
Tools to Promote Your Sites
-
Promo Kit- If you ordered an SFSP Promo Kit this year, materials should already be delivered to the sponsoring organization—Make sure to distribute materials to your sites! Sites should post materials in locations that will attract attention to their sites, as well as high-traffic areas where potential participants may see the information.
-
Survey Flyer: This year CNS is going to be collecting information on how parents heard about summer meal sites. Post they survey flyer in a visible location during the week of July 25–29, 2022! Parents can scan the QR code with their phone or visit the URL listed on the flyer to answer a few questions and register for a chance to win a $50 gift card courtesy of United Way of King County.
-
Banner: Use this banner to promote your site throughout the summer months.
-
Stickers: Stickers can encourage participants to come to your site and try new foods!
-
Bookmarks: Learning does not stop during the summer months! Inspire participants to read and spread the word with these double-sided bookmarks.
- USDA Resources
- Families can call 1-866-3-HUNGRY (1-866-348-6479)
- For Spanish, families can call 1-877-8-HAMBRE (1-877-842-6273)
- Summer Meals Locator- Promote this tool in English or Spanish.
- USDA National Hunger Hotline- can be reached Monday–Friday
- No Kid Hungry Resources
- Texting Line - Families may text "Food" or "Comida" to 304-304 to find free summer meals near them.
- Meal Site Locator - Promote the NKH Meal Site Finder.
Need More Materials?
We encourage you to use a printer of your choice to have additional items produced. You can use the images and graphics on the SFSP Resources webpage at no charge to you.
Questions? Please email the Summer Meals Team.
P-EBT Summer and Children Under 6 Plans Approved!
Thanks to federal COVID-19 relief funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, many families in Washington state will start to receive Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits beginning late-July and through the end of the summer. These benefits will help buy groceries while children are home during the summer months.
Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) food benefits are available to families with young children who are eligible for Basic Food benefits as well as school-aged children who are eligible for free or reduced-price school meal programs. The Public Charge rule does not apply to P-EBT benefits and will not impact immigration status.
Encourage Families to Sign Up for Up-To-Date Information
We encourage you to share out that families can sign up for text message alerts about the status of their child’s P-EBT by going to textpebt.dshs.wa.gov. All they have to do is fill out a simple verification form to enroll.
Families Can Still Access Summer Meals
P-EBT benefits do not replace any food assistance program already offered, including free summer meals or meals provided in child care centers. Families are encouraged to continue participating in a summer meal program at their local schools and community locations, even if they receive P-EBT benefits.
P-EBT benefits can be used to shop at any grocery store, farmers market, or food retailer certified to accept SNAP/EBT.
P-EBT Plan Information
The Children Under 6 and Summer 2022 P-EBT programs will be available as follows:
-
P-EBT Children Under 6 program: Qualifying children under age 6 who live in a household that receives Basic Food benefits (the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or Washington state’s Food Assistance Program) may receive $43 for each month they received Basic Food assistance from September 2021 – June 2022.
-
Summer 2022 P-EBT program: Qualifying children under age 6 as well as school-aged children will receive a one-time lump sum of $391 per child to cover the summer period through July and August 2022. School-aged children enrolled in Washington state schools that operate the NSLP who are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals are eligible for Summer 2022 P-EBT benefits. Children under 6 will receive benefits under this plan as long as they receive Basic Food assistance during July and August.
- These benefits are separate from a P-EBT 2021-2022 School Year program, which has not been approved by USDA at this time.
To ensure children who may be newly eligible receive P-EBT benefits, schools should encourage families to complete the free and reduced-price meal program application by August 31, 2022. Families should contact their district for meal application information.
P-EBT Contact Center
For full details and additional questions about P-EBT benefits, families can visit dshs.wa.gov/PEBT or call the P-EBT Contact Center at 833-518-0282 between 8 am and 5 pm PT, Monday-Friday (except observed holidays).
Webpages and Documents Must Be Updated With The New Nondiscrimination Statement by August 3, 2022!
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released updated Civil Rights Division (CRD) policy memos.
Important Updates
These memos clarify prohibitions against discrimination based on sex in all USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) programs and related implementing regulations that prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation.
What this means: Child Nutrition Program operators and sponsors must not discriminate or deny access to programs based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
Next Steps
-
Effective Immediately: If not currently part of your organizational practices, update program discrimination complaint processing procedures to include complaints alleging sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination.
-
Effective Immediately: Process any complaints alleging sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination as complaints of prohibited sex discrimination. There will not be a grace period for accepting and processing discrimination complaints based on sexual orientation and gender identity in FNS programs.
-
Before August 3, 2022: Update webpages and documents with the updated USDA Child Nutrition Programs Nondiscrimination Statement.
- The nondiscrimination statement is required on all documents referring to program access, program approval, and widely distributed documents. Examples include: items distributed to the public, landing page of web pages, student handbooks, brochures, letters to families, or press releases.
- Child Nutrition Program operators and sponsors are required to take reasonable steps to ensure program access and benefits to individuals with Limited English Proficiency (LEP).
-
NEW! The USDA is currently working to translate the updated nondiscrimination statement into over 50 languages! Please do not translate the nondiscrimination statement at this time.
- OSPI CNS will update documents previously translated with the updated nondiscrimination statement. Please keep an eye out for future CNS Updates.
Additional Details
- OSPI CNS is ordering updated And Justice for All Posters and will be distributing them over the coming months. Until you receive the updated posters, please continue using the 2019 And Justice for All poster.
- We understand many program operators and sponsors are preparing materials for the upcoming program year.
- If your organization has already printed materials that include the previous nondiscrimination statement, you are not required to re-print documents.
- If your organization has not printed materials, please use the updated versions as they become available on the OSPI CNS webpages.
- OSPI CNS will be updating reference sheets, materials, and webpages in the coming weeks.
Questions? Please email the Child Nutrition inbox so we may assist.
 The Washington State Broadband Office and the Washington State Office of Equity are leading the Washington State Digital Equity Forum. Access to broadband services is essential and Washington residents are still struggling to get online. The state’s goal is to provide all residents access to high-speed broadband – 150 Megabits per second download and upload – by 2028.
Your Feedback is Crucial!
Your feedback will help the Washington State Digital Equity Forum make recommendations to the Washington State Legislature to improve internet access for all people in Washington.
We encourage you to complete the Digital Equity Forum Community Survey to help guide recommendations, as well as share out information with those you serve. All responses are anonymous. The survey is offered in several languages including, Arabic, Chinese, Khmer, Korean, Russian, Spanish, and more.
If you have any additional accessibility needs, please contact the Washington State Broadband Office at (360) 688-3473 or 711 (Washington Relay) or send an email with your accessibility request to the Digital Equity team.
Now that the application deadline has passed and some of you have started operating, there are some reminders we want to share!
-
Claiming
-
Sponsors have 60 days following the last day of the claim month to submit a claim or make an upward claim revision. June claims must be submitted without errors by August 29, 2022 to receive reimbursement for June meals. Please refer to our Claim Due Dates and Claims Reference Sheet for additional information.
- Keep an eye on your participation to make sure you can adjust your ADA in WINS prior to submitting your claim. Remember, sponsors who use a FSMC/Vendor must adjust ADAs before the claim goes into error status.
-
Meal Service
- Any changes to mealtimes and/or service days must be approved by OSPI. Maintaining continuous communication with site staff is essential to ensuring all changes are reported in a timely manner.
- Make sure each meal service takes place within the approved WINS mealtime.
- If any of your sites are going on a field trip, please be sure to submit a Field Trip Notification no later than the day before the field trip.
-
Food Safety is Everyone's Responsibility!
-
Staff Changes
- All site supervisors, staff and volunteers must be trained before they assist with SFSP operations. If you have a new staff supervisor or staff member who is not listed in WINS, please update your site application(s) as soon as possible!
- Staff must be trained on topics based on their role in the SFSP. OSPI CNS created several short, topic-based SFSP trainings available in Moodle that sponsors can incorporate into staff trainings. There are several different training topics such as Monitoring, Menu Planning, Offer Vs. Serve, Point of Service Meal Counting, and more!
Questions? Please email the Summer Meals team.
It's important to communicate with families as we transition back to normal SFSP operational requirements. We understand this may be challenging, as families have been able to grab meals and leave the past two summers. Two major changes from operations during the pandemic include:
- Requiring of all meals to be consumed on site.
- Parents or guardians no longer able to pick up meals for their children.
Best Practices
- If a child asks for additional meals for siblings/friends who are not present, remind them you must be able to see the child who is receiving the meal.
- Put up clear signage reminding participants meals must be eaten on site.
- Set up a visible perimeter, such as cones, and make a rule that meals cannot be taken past the established perimeter.
- Provide enrichment activities that entice participants to stay: bubble blowers, coloring sheets, books, other types of entertainment – get creative!
Resources
OSPI has the following resources to assist with this transition, which can be found on our SFSP Requirements and Materials page! We encourage sponsors to print up these resources and provide them to sites.
Questions? Please email the Summer Meals inbox.
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
- Please note that Nuts/Seeds may only comprise 50% of the M/MA component at lunch/supper.
- Nut/Seed Butters, such as almond butter, peanut butter, or sunflower butter
- Eggs
Important Note: Tofu is not creditable under the SFSP.
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 the Summer Meals inbox.
|
