School Meals and Food Distribution Programs Updates for the Week of 10/31

• Update: Input October Building Data Information with Your October Claim
• Update: Plant Based School Meals Grant Now Opens This Week!
• Update: SCA Funds Webinar Next Week!
• Update: Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreements
• Reminder: SY 22–23 School Meal Programs Annual Requirements
• Reminder: Report SEFA to State Auditors by 11/30!
• FYI: Updated Whole Grain Resource for School Meal Programs
• FYI: Successful Implementation of Culturally Inclusive School Meals Webinar
• Highlight: Moses Lake Celebrates Local Farms for Taste WA Day!
• FDP Corner: Returning Shipping Pallets
• Update: USDA Foods Database Release
• Important Dates to Remember

Update: Input October Building Data Information with Your October Claim

Federal regulations require Child Nutrition Services to gather enrollment data representative of the last operating day in October, documenting the number of children eligible for free, reduced-price, and paid meals.

Enrollment, for the purposes of the October Building Data (OBD) report, means children enrolled in the Local Education Agency (LEA) with access to meals in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), and/or Special Milk Program (SMP).

Data is reported by site in the Washington Integrated Nutrition System on the October claim for reimbursement. This must be completed by December 30 each year.

October Building Data (OBD) must be collected from all traditional National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), and Special Milk Program (SMP) sponsors.

Enter OBD for All School Sites

• Sponsors currently operating the NSLP/SBP October Building Data should be entered with the October claim for reimbursement.
  • Standard Counting and Claiming
    Data is entered for the number of enrolled students eligible in the free, reduced-price, and paid categories.
  • Community Eligibility Provision
    Total enrollment as of the last operating day in October should be submitted. WINS will calculate the number of free eligible students using the approved site’s free claiming percentage (Identified Student Percentage multiplied by the 1.6 factor). The remaining number (enrollment minus free) is the number of students eligible for paid meals.
  • Provision 2 Schools
    
    • Base year: Use procedures for standard counting and claiming.
    • Non-base year: Total enrollment as of the last operating day in October should be submitted. WINS will calculate the number of free, reduced-price, and paid eligible students using the school’s approved claiming percentages.
    • Schools that are Provision 2 for breakfast only will use procedures for standard counting and claiming.
• Sponsors currently operating the SMP OBD should be entered with the October claim for reimbursement.

For more information on OBD please see the October Building Data reference sheet.

Questions about how to enter OBD or if the SY 22–23 renewal application has not been approved? Please contact your School Meals Program Specialist. 

Update: Plant Based School Meals Grant Now Opens This Week!

The Washington State Legislature provided $150,000 to support grant for schools seeking to implement more plant-based meal options in school year 2022–2023. These funds will be distributed as competitive grants up to $10,000 per school district to be spent during SY 2022–23.   Who Can Apply? All K-12 schools, including public, charter, and tribal compact schools, participating in the National School Lunch and/or School Breakfast Program in Washington state are eligible to apply. All districts interested in making more plant-based entrees, sides, and/or dairy alternatives available to students on their menu are encouraged to apply.   Application and Grant Funding Resources Plant Based School Meals Grant Reference Sheet Application Information Sheet    Apply Early! Consider submitting your application in iGrants as soon as possible to assist CNS in approving your application so purchases can be finalized before the June 30, 2023, deadline. Plant Based School Meals Grant (Form Package 245) due by 4pm on Tuesday, December 6, 2022.   Why Serve Plant-Based School Meals? There are a variety of benefits to serving plant-based school meal options, including: Supporting Student Health: Well-planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits for the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Additionally, many students follow plant-based diets for a variety of reasons. Serving Culturally Appropriate Meals: Providing plant-based menu offerings can make school meals more accessible to children following halal, kosher, and other specific cultural dietary practices. Supporting Local Agriculture: Washington has a bounty of local farmers and food businesses that are growing and selling plant-based protein foods, like lentils and soy products.   Other Grants Opening Soon Breakfast Meals for Kids Grant (planned release date: November 2022) A state funded grant to start or expand the School Breakfast Program.  Applicants must be a public school district, charter school or tribal compact school and have an approved application or be in the approval process to operate the USDA School Breakfast Program. This grant may also be utilized to purchase or renew a license for nutrient analysis software used to support the School Breakfast Program.  Grant Criteria- Start or expand the School Breakfast Program Grant funds must be utilized by June 30, 2023. U.S. Department of Agriculture Equipment Assistance Grant (planned release date: January 2023) A federally-funded grant for equipment that costs $1,000 or more per unit.  Applicants must be a public or private school, charter school, tribal or tribal compact school, or a residential child care institution and have an approved application to operate the USDA National School Lunch Program.  Grant Criteria- Purchase equipment to serve healthier school meals, improve food safety, and help support the establishment, maintenance, or expansion of the School Breakfast Program.  This grant has a 2-year project period and is suited for complex projects and long lead times for equipment. Grant funds must be utilized by September 30, 2024.  Questions? Please email the CNS Grants team inbox.

Update: SCA Funds Webinar Next Week!

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released information regarding a third round of Supply Chain Assistance (SCA) funding.  Join us for a Webinar! SCA funds must be used to purchase domestic, unprocessed, or minimally processed food products for the school meal programs. During this webinar, panelists from across Washington State will provide examples of working with local farmers, broadline distributors and food hubs. Register for the Utilizing Supply Chain Assistance Funds webinar Date: Wednesday, November 9 Time: 2–3 pm PT This webinar will be recorded and posted to the Miscellaneous Trainings tile on the NSLP Public Trainings Moodle within two weeks after the webinar concludes. Please keep an eye out in future newsletters for updated information.  Questions? Please contact your OSPI CNS School Meals Program Specialist.

Update: Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreements

Child Nutrition Services was awarded $3.6 million dollars for Local Food For Schools from the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. The purpose of the project is to purchase domestic, locally grown foods from local producers, small businesses, and socially disadvantaged farmers/producers for distribution to schools operating the NSLP.

Our approved plan includes purchasing frozen and dry storage food products utilizing the Food Distribution Program systems and processes for storage, ordering, and delivery of these products to schools in school year 2023–24. Proposed foods to be purchased includes:

• Frozen food- raw animal protein products and frozen fruit
• Dry Storage- whole-grain flour and dried pulses

This project is in the early stages of development and we plan to share more information and plans as they become available. 

Please visit the USDA AMS Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreements webpage for more information. 

Reminder: SY 22–23 School Meal Programs Annual Requirements

Participation in USDA school meal programs requires program operators to meet certain annual requirements. These include:

• Direct Certification: Direct Certification is required by the USDA and must be conducted monthly under Washington state law. Please review our Direct Certification Article for more information.
• Verification of Eligibility: Begins October 1 and ends November 15. The Verification Summary Report is due to Child Nutrition Services by February 1. The summary report will be submitted in WINS.
  • All sponsors who collect school meal applications must complete the annual verification process for SY 22–23.

• Sponsors operating CEP or Provision 2 district-wide are exempt from conducting verification. However, they must still submit the Verification Summary Report by February 1 each year. This reports enrollment and certifies that verification was not conducted. Review the Verification Summary Report – CEP/Provision 2 District-Wide Reference Sheet for more information.

• October Building Data (OBD): Data must be reported on the October claim for reimbursement by December 30.
  • All School Meal Program sponsors, including those operating the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), or Special Milk Program (SMP), must report OBD. OBD documents the number of enrolled children eligible for free, reduced-price, and paid meals who traditionally have access to meals in the NSLP, SBP, or SMP.
• Afterschool Snack Program (ASP) Reviews: Complete twice annually. The first review must occur within the first four weeks of program operation. Use the ASP On-Site Review Form.
• CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meal Program Reviews: Complete twice annually. The first review must occur within the first four weeks the program is in operation. Use the At-Risk Review form. 
• Onsite School Reviews: Complete by February 1. Use the newly updated On-Site Review form.
• Food Storage Evaluation: Complete by February 1. Use the Storage Facility Review Reference Sheet for additional details. 
• Food Safety Inspections: Receive two food safety inspections for each site, each school year. If two inspections are unable to be received in the school year, document a written request to the local health department for two inspections.
• 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. Note: You must have a Moodle Account to view this recorded training. 

Completed forms are not required to be submitted, however, you must keep them on file for Administrative Reviews.

REMINDER

The school meal programs have other requirements that must be completed throughout the program year. Please use the updated School Meal Programs Requirements Reference Sheet and School Meal Program Monthly Requirements Reference Sheet for resources to assist in understanding program requirements.

Instructions, forms, and tools are available on the Child Nutrition Services webpages. 

Questions? Please contact your OSPI CNS School Meals Program Specialist.

Reminder: Report SEFA to State Auditors by 11/30!

The Accounting Manual for Public Schools requires all school districts receiving federal funds to report in a specific manner. This includes USDA federal grant expenditures on the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA).

State auditors use this information to determine which federal programs to audit. The SEFA is included in the audit report and must be complete and accurate. The district is not required to include the Federal Award Identification Number (FAIN) on the SEFA for USDA grants passed through OSPI Child Nutrition Services to public schools but we are required to provide the FAINs to public schools (2 CFR 200.332(a)).

For school fiscal year ending 8/31/2022 report the following Federal Award Identification Numbers (FAINs):

Please review the CNS Accounting Reporting Codes Reference Sheet for more details. 

Questions? Please email Jeff Booth, Audit and Financial Manager.

FYI: Updated Whole Grain Resource for School Meal Programs

Team Nutrition recently updated the Whole Grain Resource for The National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs to reflect the whole grain-rich meal pattern requirements in the transitional standards for School Meal Programs. This comprehensive guide can help you determine whether a grain product is whole grain-rich or can credit as enriched in school meals. It is an important reference for anyone involved in planning school meals or training others to plan school meals. The Whole Grain Resource provides examples of various grain products often served in schools and walks the user through the process of determining whether products are whole grain-rich, creditable as enriched, or not creditable.

FYI: Successful Implementation of Culturally Inclusive School Meals Webinar

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.

Register for a Webinar

This Culinary Institute of Child Nutrition (CICN) webinar will focus on serving culturally inclusive school meals! Join the webinar to discover examples of identifying and implementing culturally inclusive meals in schools from school district leaders. Join in to this webinar to hear from Washington's own Semhar Kifle and Eva Yablonsky Smith from Seattle Public Schools!

Register for the Successful Implementation of Culturally Inclusive School Meals webinar
Date: Thursday, November 3
Time: 12–1 pm PT

Additional Details

• After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. 
• Registrants are eligible to receive a continuing education certificate for attending this webinar. Professional Standards Codes: 1100 – Menu Planning, 2100 – Food Production, 2400 – Purchasing/Procurement, 3200 – Program Management
• Webinar recordings can be found on ICN’s online course platform, iLearn, one week after the live webinar. 

Highlight: Moses Lake Celebrates Local Farms for Taste WA Day!

Moses Lake School District showcased the wonderful produce local growers provide to their district as part of Taste Washington Day (October 5)!

Taste Washington Day is an annual celebration of Washington grown foods served in school meals during the fall harvest season. 

Thank you Moses Lake School District for all you do to serve fresh produce to students in our state!

How did your schools connect with local farms to make the most of our bountiful fall harvest? Share your stories and pictures with us!

FDP Corner: Returning Shipping Pallets

Please remember all shipping pallets must be returned to the delivery company. Please have your pallets available for pick up at the time of your next USDA Foods shipment. Unreturned pallets can lead to increased shipping costs for everyone. Thank you for your cooperation.   Have a Broken Pallet? If a pallet is broken, please do not return to the delivery company. Broken pallets can be a hazard to employees and also increase costs to you.    Questions? Please email Food Distribution team or call 360-725-6204.

Update: USDA Foods Database Release

The USDA Foods Database is now available for school districts to access up-to-date, vendor-specific nutrition, allergen, and ingredient information for direct delivered USDA Foods for Child Nutrition Programs.   What is the purpose of the USDA Foods Database?   The USDA Foods Database makes USDA Foods product information available in an easily accessible format. The USDA Foods Database will inform the ordering decisions of FNS stakeholders and will help them manage menu planning, meet USDA meal pattern requirements and nutrition standards, and provide safe meals for students with food allergies and other special dietary needs.     What type of product information will be included in the USDA Foods Database?  A variety of product information from vendors is provided including the USDA Foods material code, brand name, nutrition facts, serving size, allergen information, ingredients, and the kosher and halal certification, when applicable.   How will users access the USDA Foods Database?  The USDA Foods Database will provide vendor-specific product information in a non-editable Excel spreadsheet on the FNS website. States and school districts will be able to access the USDA Foods Database at-will to use as a planning tool.     Written instructions on how to navigate the USDA Foods Database are available on the FNS website and a webinar will be made available soon. To explore the USDA Foods Database, please visit the USDA Foods Database webpage.    Questions about the USDA Foods Database? Email USDA Foods inbox!

Important Dates to Remember