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Join us for office hours held every other Wednesday of the month through June, from 2-3 pm.
Come talk to SFSP specialists and fellow sponsors about all things SFSP.
Register for Office Hours Here
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Apply for the Summer Meals for Kids Grant (Form Package 412) by Thursday, March 30 at 4 pm PT.
The Washington State legislature has provided $50,000 for the Summer Meals For Kids grant. This is a competitive grant for existing Summer Food Service Program sponsors in good standing.
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These funds may be used to:
- Increase the number of sites participating in the summer meal programs and/or the reach of a site through a meal distribution program.
- Increase the number of meals served in existing programs and sites.
- Begin or expand promotion and outreach for a SFSP – including Washington's Farm-to-Summer Week (July 10–14, 2023).
- Provide training to staff and volunteers for operation of new equipment, outreach activities, etc.
- Improve meal quality, equipment, or small supplies used in the program.
Special emphasis for Summer 2023 is:
- Adding new SFSP sites;
- Expanding an existing program;
- Programs operating in a rural area (as defined by USDA); and/or
- Programs that have never received a grant from OSPI CNS in the past.
Here are some ideas from previous applications:
- Marketing materials such as vehicle wraps, billboard space, sandwich boards, or printing of marketing materials (i.e. stickers, door hangers, etc.);
- Meal delivery vans/busses/food trucks;
- Portable plug-in coolers;
- Portable hand-washing stations;
- Gardening equipment and supplies for meal site gardens that are used to provide food to program and/or support nutrition education activities.
These grants are available to all sponsors. If you do not have an EDS or iGrants account, you must create one - get started early!
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Use this link to create an account with EDS.
- If you are not a certified teacher, you do not need to complete the second box.
- Fill in all required sections; you will receive a confirmation email. Make sure to complete the verification process.
- After creating your EDS account, you must get iGrants access. Email CustomerSupport@k12.wa.us with the following information:
- Your first and last name
- Your email address
- Legal name of your organization
- Street address of your organization
- City
- State
- Zip
- Business phone (with area code)
NOTE: It may take up to 48 hours for Customer Support to respond to your request. Please plan accordingly.
Questions? Please email the CNS Grants team.
Summer 2023 is Quickly Approaching!
Applications to operate the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) for Summer 2023 will be opening April 15th, and that means it's time to plan for annual training!
Requirements for All Sponsors
All lead program administrators from organizations planning to operate the SFSP in 2023 must watch OSPI CNS’s Civil Rights and Procurement recorded trainings annually, prior to program application submission.
Note: Civil Rights & Procurement trainings can be waived if training was completed earlier in the year with another CNS program. Please keep documentation regarding training completed.
Annual Training
You are required to attend in-person Annual Training if you are:
- A new SFSP Sponsor
- A returning sponsor with new lead administrator(s)
- A sponsor who did not operate SFSP in Summer 2022
- A Sponsor who was assigned in-person training as part of Corrective Action from an Administrative Review.
You are encouraged to attend if you are:
- A returning sponsor in good standing
For more details about program operations, please review the Intro to SFSP recorded training.
SFSP Returning Sponsor Webinar –
This webinar will satisfy the annual training requirement for sponsors who operated SFSP in 2022, do not have new lead administrators, and were not assigned in-person training as part of Corrective Action. Join us to hear program updates and refresh on SFSP requirements. A recording of the webinar will be made available at a later date for those who cannot attend live.
2023 SFSP Returning Sponsors Annual Training (pdenroller.org)
Date: Wednesday, April 5
Time: 1 pm — 4 pm PT
Reminders
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Application Deadlines SFSP applications open in April and the federal deadline to submit a complete and correct application is June 15. When applying to sponsor the SFSP, consider your anticipated meal service begin date and submit your WINS application and additional required documentation at least 30 days before your program will start.
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Site Locations To prevent the duplication of services, the area new sites propose to serve must not be served in whole or in part by another site.
- Additional sites in a single area may be considered if it is demonstrated that each site will not serve meals to children who are served by another site in the same area for the same meal. 7 CFR 225.6(d)
- Use the USDA SFSP Capacity Builder to see if other sites operate in the same location as your proposed site. Priority is given to returning SFSP sponsors and sites.
Questions? Please email our Summer Meals Team.
This memo provides:
- Guidance on how the USDA SFSP Program Integrity Final Rule aligned Performance Standards, Budgets, and Management Plans in SFSP with other child nutrition programs.
- Clarification on existing SFSP requirements along with support and guidance to State Agencies when evaluating SFSP sponsor applications.
- An outline on requirements for evaluating Performance Standard compliance with sponsor management plans and budgets.
These Performance Standards are commonly referred to as “VCA” which stands for:
- Viability – Financial Viability and Management
- Capability – Administrative Capability
- Accountability – Internal Controls for Program Accountability.
These mirror CACFP regulations at 7 CFR 226.6(b)(1)(xvii) and 7 CFR 226.6(b)(2)(vii).
Starting Summer 2023, community sponsors participating in SFSP must submit a Management Plan for approval when completing your WINS application. If your organization is a current CACFP sponsor in good standing with CNS, then you are exempt from this requirement.
Not sure if this new requirement applies to your organization? Please check your email inbox. We will be sending additional details to the main SFSP contact.
If you received the email but have additional questions, email summermeals@k12.wa.us or come see us at our bi-monthly office hours.
In preparation for summer 2023, we have made several updates to our SFSP forms. Please ensure all copies of your forms are the most current version.
Monitoring Forms
In accordance with the USDA SFSP Program Integrity Final rule, there have been some permanent changes to how monitoring may be conducted in SFSP. Read over our SFSP Monitoring Requirements Reference Sheet .
Changes to note:
Sites and Eligibility Reference Sheet
Confidential Income Statements and Letters to Households for Camps and Closed Sites
We will be handing out this year's SFSP promotional materials at each one of the in-person trainings. If you are able, please be prepared with a vehicle that has adequate storage to take them back with you.
In partnership with United Way of King County we will be providing;
- Yard signs
- Bookmarks
- Stickers
- Banners - these are being offered on a limited basis. Please email us at summermeals@k12.wa.us at least one week prior to the training you are attending if you need a new banner.
The Proposed Rule Child Nutrition Programs: Revision to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans has been published in the Federal Register.
Based on the latest nutrition science and feedback from Child Nutrition Stakeholders across the nation, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service is proposing updates to the child nutrition standards. The proposed updates reflect the goals of the most recent Dietary Guidelines, as required by law, and build in time for planning and implementation to ensure Sponsors and the children they serve are set up for success.
Want to learn more?
Proposed CACFP/SFSP Meal Pattern Revisions Webinar
The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) presented a webinar on March 1st tailored specifically for CACFP and SFSP sponsors. You can access the Child Nutrition Programs Proposed Rule: Revisions to the CACFP & SFSP Meal Patterns presentation by registering for the on-demand recording.
Proposed Child Nutrition Program Meal Pattern Revisions Webinar
If you would like to know about proposed revisions across all Child Nutrition Programs, you can access the recorded webinar, Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent with the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Proposed Rule on FNS’s Website.
USDA would like your Feedback!
Comments on the Proposed Rule can be submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal through April 10, 2023. Section 16 of the proposed rule provides a summary of the rule and a list of specific questions for which USDA is seeking public comments. For more information on submitting comments, please see Tips for Submitting Effective Comments.
For information and next steps on the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, please review the following:
Post-Conference Updates
You are invited to join the Biden-Harris administration for their post-Conference monthly update.
Register for the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health Monthly Update session
Date: Tuesday, March 28
Time: 1:00 pm PT
The Washington State Farm to School Network is planning a gathering to regroup and revitalize Farm to Child Nutrition efforts in Washington State. The event will be held in Central Washington.
Please complete this brief survey letting the network know what topics you are interested in.
New to the Washington Farm to School Network? The network focuses on active participation to connect members and grow Farm to Child Nutrition participation and success in Washington state. Join the network to get updates on all things Farm to Child Nutrition.
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March 28
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Farm to School Roadshow at NWREC, Mt. Vernon
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March 30
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Farm to School Roadshow at ESD 113, Tumwater
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April 5
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SFSP Returning Sponsor Annual Training Webinar
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April 10
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Semi-Monthly Newsletter Released
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