State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Urges Agencies to Apply to Become Summer Food Service Program Sponsors
SACRAMENTO—Helping students get enough nutritious food during the summer recess will help them succeed in school in the fall, according to State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, who today urged eligible organizations to become sponsor meal sites under the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).
"California's young people need healthy meals and intellectual stimulation as much when school is out of session as they do during the regular school year," Torlakson said. "That's why I'm urging leaders at school, in the community, and other agencies to sign up to become summer meal sites to help keep kids well-nourished and ready to learn when they return."
The SFSP helps provide nutritious meals to children in geographic areas where at least 50 percent of students are eligible to receive free or reduced-price school meals. The program works by reimbursing agencies that serve these meals to children 18 years and younger during school vacation. The SFSP operates when schools in a community are on vacation for at least 15 continuous school days or when year-round schools are off track. The program benefits all children in accordance with federal law and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) policy, and is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability.
Eligible sponsors may include schools, camps, Indian tribal governments, private nonprofit agencies, and municipal, state, county, or local government offices. Sponsors may prepare meals or obtain meals from another SFSP sponsor, public or commercial food vendor, or a school food service department. All meals must meet the USDA minimum meal pattern requirements. Eligible sponsors often provide summer activities for children to promote their summer feeding sites. All families have to do is show up at any open meal site and their hungry children will be fed, no questions asked, and no income verification is necessary.
Agencies interested in becoming SFSP sponsors must obtain training by California Department of Education (CDE) staff before their applications can be approved. Applications are due 45 days before beginning meal service and no later than May 15, 2014. Training sessions are available from early February through April. All commercial food service vendors are also invited to participate in the training sessions. The training will benefit food service vendors by providing information for meeting SFSP meal pattern and contract requirements.
Agencies interested in becoming SFSP sponsors may contact Vincent Keene at 800-952-5609, 916-322-8319, orvkeene@cde.ca.gov. Applicants may also contact Augie Aguilar at 800-952-5609, 916-327-5865, or auaguilar@cde.ca.gov.
To receive training information, learn how to access the online application, or learn how to become an SFSP sponsor or SFSP food vendor, visit CDE's Summer Food Service Program Information - Summer Food Service Web page.
For more information on running a successful summer program, visit the California Summer Meal Coalition 
Web site.
Web site.
The CDE will update its interactive map of Summer Meal Service Sites - Food Programs in early summer to help families locate a summer meal site or summer sponsor close to their homes.
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Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100
2013-14 Sponsor Verification Report
Nutrition Services Division Management Bulletin
| |
| Purpose: Action Required | |
| To: National School Lunch Program Sponsors, School Breakfast Program Sponsors | Number: USDA-SNP-28-2013 |
| Attention: Food Service Director, Business Official | Date: December 2013 |
| Subject: Annual Sponsor Verification Report for 2013–14 is Now Available | |
| Reference: Title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 245.6a(c), Verification Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements; Policy Memo SP 38-2013 (April 29, 2013) Release of the new School Food Authority Verification Collection Report (Form FNS-742) | |
This Management Bulletin (MB) provides School Food Authorities (SFA) (Local Educational Agencies participating in school meal programs) with information on annual Verification Reporting requirements. Please read this MB even if the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has never required your district/agency to complete the Verification Report in the past.
By February 10, 2014, National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) sponsors/SFAs mustsubmit their annual Verification Report to the California Department of Education (CDE) Nutrition Services Division via the Child Nutrition Information and Payment System (CNIPS). The report requires NSLP and SBP participating districts/agencies to report the verification results of their annual free and reduced-price (F/RP) application process to the CDE. The CDE reports consolidated verification results for all SFAs on the NSLP and/or SBP to the USDA by March 14, 2013.
Revision Highlights
Effective School Year (SY) 2013–14, the USDA has made several changes to the Verification Report. The following list highlights the revisions made to the report:
- All SFAs, including Residential Child Care Institutions (RCCI) without day students, that participate in the NSLP and/or SBP must submit the Verification Report via the CNIPS.
- All SFAs that participate in the NSLP and/or SBP must annually file this report even if they were previously exempt from completing the report.
- RCCIs must separately report the number of sites with and without day students.
- SFAs must report the number of schools and the number of students attending schools on Provision 2/3 serving bothlunch and breakfast, and those serving lunch or breakfast.
- SFAs must report the total number of verified applications, error-prone applications, and applications that have been verified for cause.
- The USDA requires SFAs to report CalFresh and California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) Direct Certification (DC) student eligibility separately. The CDE Data Management Division (DMD) is working with the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to implement this new USDA requirement and report CalFresh and CalWORKs DC student eligibility separately in the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS). However, at this time the DMD is unable to report the CalFresh and CalWORKs DC student eligibility separately in CALPADS for SY 2013−14; therefore, SFAs must report both CalFresh and CalWORKs students as only CalFresh. If the SFA obtains its list of DC students from the county Department of Social Services, the county may be able to provide the district/agency with the CalFresh and CalWORKs data separately for reporting.
- If a student receives both CalFresh and CalWORKs benefits, the SFA must report all students in the same household as recipients of CalFresh only.
- The new Verification Report includes fields for agencies participating in the Community Eligibility Option (CEO), which is an alternative to collecting household applications for F/RP meals. Leave this field blank in the Verification Report, as the CEO will not be implemented until SY 2014–15.
How to Access the Verification Report
SFAs are now able to access the Verification Report via the CNIPS. The steps to access the report are detailed below:
- Access the CNIPS Web site at https://www.cnips.ca.gov
- In the boxes provided, enter your User ID and Password and select Log On
- Select Applications from the blue tool bar at the top of your screen
- Select Verification Report
- Follow the Verification Report Instructions below and complete the report
- Select Save—NOTE: you will not receive a confirmation message
If the message Saved with Errors is displayed:
- Select Edit, make the corrections
- Select Save
- Select Finish—you will not receive a confirmation message
Verification Report Instructions
The USDA has provided detailed instructions for completing the revised Verification Report. The instructions are in SFA Verification Collection Report (Form FNS-742), the attachment to USDA Policy Memo SP 38-2013, which can be downloaded from the USDA School Meals Policy Memos Web page at http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Governance/policy.htm. Please read all of the instructions before completing the Verification Report.
For more information about verification of eligibility in the NSLP, refer to the CDE School Nutrition Program (SNP) Verification Materials Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/sn/verification.asp#reporting.
Verification Reporting Dates
The required dates for SFAs to determine the number of applications on file for verification and to report the number of F/RP eligibles to the CDE are different. SFAs must select their verification samples based on the number of applications on file as of October 1 and report that count, while the count of F/RP eligibles will be reported as of the last operating day in October.
Please remember, sponsors must complete and submit their verification report to the CDE through their CNIPS account by February 10, 2014.
Questions and Contact Information
If you have any questions regarding this MB, please contact your SNP County Specialist. The SNP County Specialist list is available in the CNIPS Download Forms section, titled as “Caseload SNP.” You may also contact an SNP Office Technician by phone at 916-322-1450, 916-322-3005, or 800-952-5609.