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Applications for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) are due by September 1.
Renewal Bulletins
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Residential Child Care Institutions
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Public and Private Schools
- Special Milk Program
Resources
Questions? Contact your School Meals Program Specialist.
The Child Nutrition Eligibility & Education Benefit Application has launched for school year 2024–25. With the implementation of the new Summer EBT program, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) updated their guidance on applications in Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) and Provision 2 schools. The Child Nutrition Eligibility & Education Benefit application merges the Free & Reduced-Price Meal Application and Family Income Survey and will be required to be distributed by ALL schools, including CEP and Provision 2, next school year.
The Child Nutrition Eligibility & Education Benefit application may qualify households for:
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Summer EBT benefits (if enrolled in a NSLP/SBP school),
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Reduced fees for other programs and activities, and/or
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Help secure funding for the school district.
Program operators offering the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) during the 2024–25 school year are encouraged to join us for monthly webinars!
We will discuss annual program requirements, new policy guidance, important reminders, and provide an opportunity for you to ask questions. The first webinar is scheduled for September 5!
Register for the School Meal Programs Monthly Webinars here!
Dates: Monthly, September 2024–June 2025
Time: 2–3pm PT
Please note: You only have to register once, and you will receive updates and reminders for each webinar.
Reminders
- Save us on your calendar! When you register, there is an option to add us to your calendar at the bottom of the confirmation email.
- A reminder email with your link to log into the webinar is sent 1 hour before the session starts.
- Follow up emails with a copy of the slides are sent to everyone registered for the session, even if they did not attend.
- We do not post recordings to the CNS webpages.
Please keep an eye out in your inbox for these emails. If you do not see them in your inbox please check your SPAM folder.
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Students on the district list, confirmed near matches, and students found using the Student Search function are free and reduced-price meal eligible beginning SY 24–25.
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 Care
- 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 SY 2024–25, 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.
- LEAs should access the near match list and resolve all near matches before accessing the exact matches list. Resolved near matches become exact matches.
- The matching software for direct certification list has changed including the parameters for matching. As a result, we have noticed fewer near matches on district lists.
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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.
OSPI encourages LEAs to use Student Search often 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, Director of School Meal Programs.
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For questions regarding your meal counting system— contact your software vendor.
Important Requirements and Information
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Sponsors who contract with Food Service Management Companies (FSMCs) and/or vendors for program year 2023–24 must complete the FSMC/Vendor Fact Sheet in WINS. The fact sheet must be submitted and approved before you enter your first claim in WINS. Otherwise, the claim will go into error status.
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Sponsors who contract with FSMCs must maintain signature authority over reimbursement claims in WINS. FSMC employees may prepare the claims and provide supporting data but sponsor staff must review, approve, and submit the claims for reimbursement in WINS per 7 CFR 210.16(a)(5).
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Local Education Agencies contracting with an FSMC must retain control of the quality, extent, and general nature of food service and ensure that the food service operation is in conformance with the SFA’s contract with the Food Service Management Company (FSMC). Furthermore, SP 05-2020 clarifies that a school district employee must fulfill the role of the Food Service Director (FSD) and thus meet the hiring standards and training requirements for Professional Standards outlined in 7 CFR 210.30.
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House Bill (HB) 1238 passed during the 2023 legislative session, amending RCW 28A.234 requiring LEAs to provide meals at no cost to students enrolled at elementary schools where 30% or more of enrolled children are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. This requirement is based off October 2023 data for school year 2024–25. Elementary schools are defined as schools consisting of any of the K–4 grade levels.
State Funding will Supplement Federal Funds for Paid Meals
Qualifying elementary schools that are not operating Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) or a Provision 2 non-base year for both breakfast and lunch must claim meals according to a student’s approved eligibility status. With the passage of HB 1238, Washington state supplements paid meals at qualifying schools, providing reimbursement to bring it up to the federal free rate.
All meals served at elementary schools with a free and reduced-price percentage greater than or equal to 30% will be reimbursed at a rate equal to the USDA free rate.
2024–25 HB 1238 Eligible Schools Report
Required Training
One representative from each LEA with qualifying schools will be required to take Meals for Washington Students training prior to the start of the 2024–25 school year.
Watch the HB 1238 Recorded Webinar
Resources
Questions? Please contact your School Meal Programs Specialist.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released Child Nutrition Program reimbursement rates for the upcoming school year.
Rates are effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025, and are posted on the CNS Claims, Fiscal Information and Resources webpage.
Reimbursement Rates for National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP)
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Meal
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Free
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Reduced-Price
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Paid
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Breakfast
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$2.37
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$2.07
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$0.39
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Severe Need Breakfast
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$2.84
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$2.54
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$0.39
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Lunch (less than 60%)
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$4.43
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$4.03
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$0.42
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Lunch (60% or more)
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$4.45
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$4.05
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$0.44
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Performance Based Reimbursement
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$0.09
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$0.09
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$0.09
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Snack
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$1.21
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$0.60
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$0.11
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Reimbursement Rates for Special Milk Program
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Program Option
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All Milk
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Paid Milk
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Free Milk
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Pricing programs without free option
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$0.27
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N/A
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N/A
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Pricing Programs with free option
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N/A
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$0.27
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Average cost per 1/2 pint of milk
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Non-pricing programs
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$0.27
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N/A
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N/A
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USDA Foods Commodity Rates
USDA recently released the Value of Donated Foods rates for July 1, 2024– June 30, 2025. The SY 2024–25 per meal rate for NSLP and CACFP is $0.03000 cents, which is an increase from $0.2950 in SY 2023–24.
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For NSLP the effective SY 2024-25 NSLP rate is $0.4500 (the sum of the per meal rate (0.03000 cents) plus the 12% provision dollars and the $20M breakfast monies). The Planned Assistance Level (PAL) is based on the Total Lunches Served from the previous school year.
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The CACFP per meal cash in lieu of USDA foods rate is $0.3000. The Planned Assistance Level (PAL) is based on the total number of lunches and suppers served from the previous school year.
OSPI has ordered updated “And Justice for All" posters and are currently waiting to receive these items. Ordering information will be announced when the new posters have been received. Until you receive the updated posters, please continue using the 2019 “And Justice for All” poster in areas where participants may see it. Administrative Review findings will not be issued for missing or outdated posters.
We proudly announce that Washougal School District and Selah School District received Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards for making improvements to the nutritional quality of their district’s school meals.
Awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in collaboration with Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK), Washougal SD and Selah SD received the Innovation in the Preparation of School Meals Award!
Washougal SD introduced scratch made menu items including Breakfast Burritos with Homemade Salsa, Asian Sloppy Joe, Tomato Basil Soup, and Beef Kabob with Brown Rice. The district collaborated with students in the Advanced Culinary Career and Technical Education class to design and promote new recipes that are compliant with meal pattern requirements.
Selah SD introduced scratch made menu items, including a Bulgogi Beef Bowl.
Find more information about these awardees: https://healthymealsincentives.org/awardee-spotlight
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USDA released a recorded webinar that includes a walk-through and demonstration of the School Year 2024–25 Paid Lunch Equity (PLE) Tool. This webinar includes a brief introduction on what the PLE requirement is and how to complete the tool based on the method the SFA chooses to use to meet the PLE requirement. This webinar is a great resource for individuals who have not worked with the tool before or would like a refresher given recent updates to the tool.
To access the link to view the video, please click: School Year 2024-2025 Paid Lunch Equity Tool Walk-Through.
To access the existing Paid Lunch Equity memo, please click: SP 14-2024 Paid Lunch Equity: Guidance for School Year 2024-25.
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School districts can now apply to participate in the sixth cohort of Get Schools Cooking!
The Get Schools Cooking program helps school districts transition from a heat-and-serve to a scratch-cooking operational model. Since the program launched in 2016, Get Schools Cooking has helped 27 districts in 21 states that collectively serve more scratch-cooked school meals to an estimated 180,000 students.
Apply by September 30, 2024.
Learn more at The Lunch Box | Get Schools Cooking. If you have questions, contact Jessica Keene.
New Team Nutrition Back-to-School Resources
Team Nutrition Resource Bundles
Save time by ordering a Team Nutrition Resource Bundle! The following bundles include a variety of resources that school nutrition professionals, teachers, parents/caregivers, and the entire school community can use to promote school breakfast:
Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awardee Spotlight Webpage
The Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards recognize and celebrate school nutrition programs across the country! Visit the Awardee Spotlight webpage to discover a collection of best practices that support the implementation of the final rule including reducing added sugars and sodium in school meals.
Stay Connected
Congratulations to the 2024 USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grantees
Washington state school district and district non-profit partners received USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School grants for 2024.
- Tilth Alliance supporting Seattle Public School
- The City of Seattle supporting Seattle Public School
- Schools on the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation
- Boys and Girl’s Club of the Columbia Basin
- Federal Way Public School
- Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction is also proud and honored to be a grantee this year. The grant will support the creation of a Harvest of the Month plug and play toolkit.
Harvest of the Month
OSPI is excited to feature a 2024–2025 School year Harvest of the Month Calendar and resource sheets. Each month we will highlight one local food that will be in season the following month. The resource sheets will include fun facts, nutritional information, selection and storage tips, recipe ideas, and educational resources/activities. We are kicking off the school year by featuring pluots for the month of September. If you don’t have access to pluots near you or want to feature another food item, check out our past Harvest of the Month resource pages on the OSPI Farm to School webpage under the Harvest of the Month drop down menu.
NEW! School Garden Reference Sheet
Have you been approached by a school’s garden coordinator, horticulture or agricultural program teacher encouraging you to use food produced in a school’s garden for school meals? Want to provide taste tests or nutrition education to improve student acceptability? OSPI has a new School Meals School Garden reference sheet that outlines ways to support these activities with your non-profit food service department within the context of your meal service.
Sign Up for Taste Washington Day!
Wednesday, October 2 is Taste Washington Day! On this day, schools around the state serve meals from food grown on local farms or produced in Washington, while students learn about and celebrate the farms that feed us through activities, promotions, and special events.
How to Participate
- Sign up your district
- Plan to serve a lunch with local ingredients on October 2
- Celebrate with activities beyond lunch.
Share your activities and promotions on social media with #TasteWADay and #WAfarmtoschool.
WSDA Farm to School can help you find local ingredients or local partners to support your event and meal program. Contact Annette Slonim at aslonim@agr.wa.gov or call/text (206) 714-2757.
Grant Opportunities
The Outdoor Learning Grants Program helps to develop and support outdoor educational experiences for students in all geographic regions and include high levels of accessibility for students with disabilities. Outdoor education programs should be aligned with the Washington State content learning standards and the development of social and emotional learning skills.
Learn more about Outdoor Learning Grants in this short video or login to EGMS for more information. OSPI will host virtual office hours, every Monday from 3:30 – 5:00 PM.
Application is open July 1, 2024 – Dec. 31, 2024 or until all funds are expended.
Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) grants for projects that provide outdoor education and recreation for underserved, underrepresented, and historically excluded youth. You can apply for up to $150,000 of the $4.5 million in funding available.
Application is open Aug. 8, 2024 – Oct. 31, 2024
Salad Bars to Schools (SB2S) is a grant program that provides schools and districts with salad bar equipment and support, including salad bars, camchillers, and technical assistance.
Application is open on a revolving basis.
The Lorrie Otto Seeds for Education grant provides grants ranging from $100 to $500 for native plant gardens and landscaping projects. The funds are designated for acquiring native plants and seeds for outdoor learning areas that engage youth (preschool to high school) directly in planning, planting and caring for native plant gardens. Note that these grants do not fund vegetable gardens.
Application is open July 15 – Nov. 15, 2024
October Order Period
October orders open Wednesday, September 4, and will close Wednesday, September 11, at 4pm.
Surplus orders will open Thursday, September 15, at 1pm for groups 1 and 2; 1:30pm for group 3; and 2pm for group 4.
Surplus closes Friday, September 16, at 4pm.
There are new group numbers this year. Please verify yours on the Group Numbers Reference Sheet to see when you have access to Surplus.
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FDP School Year 2024–25 Entitlement
Food Distribution distributes Entitlement several times during the school year. USDA released the 2024–25 meal rate of 0.4500 and this calculation has been applied to your accounts in CNPweb. The meal rate increased from 0.3650 to 0.4500 and all sponsors have received additional funds.
Entitlement Calculation: Total Lunches Served x USDA Meal Rate = Entitlement
Questions? Email Sarah Davis or call 360-725-6215.
Value of Commodities Shipped for School Year 2023–24
The annual Value of Commodities Shipped report summarizes the total value of USDA Foods shipped to your district during the school year for the National School Lunch Program. The report for School Year 2023–24 is now available.
Instructions on how to generate and print the report are available on the Food Distribution webpage under the Program Application and Requirements section.
Please print a copy of the report for your business manager or fiscal officer.
The following information is provided in the Value of Commodities Shipped report:
COMMODITY: Each commodity is listed as either bonus or entitlement.
- 10000 codes: USDA direct items
- W-Code: State processed USDA items
- D001 code: Department of Defense (DoD) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program Fresh funds (if applicable)
- 100532 code: Unprocessed Fruit and Vegetable Pilot funds (if applicable)
UNITS SHIPPED: The cumulative number of units that were shipped to your district during the 2023–24 school year.
SFSP REPORT: If you participated in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), you will need to log into CNP using your SFSP username and password to access your summer usage. Then continue with the instructions above.
USDA VALUE: The cumulative values using weighted cost averaging of all shipments received as shown on each Local Education Agency (LEAs) Order Form.
The total value (sum of total entitlement value and total bonus value) may be used as the amount of revenues for account 6998 commodities on the district’s annual financial statement (Form F-196).
The value may also be used for:
- Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) 10.555 National School Lunch Program.
- Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA).
Questions? Please email Sarah Davis or call 360-725-6215.
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