Agreement and Policy Statement Attachments 2015-16 School Year Karen Franklin, SNS Child Nutrition Unit Distance Learning April 2, 2015

Agreement and Policy Statement Attachments 2015-16 School Year

Karen Franklin, SNSChild Nutrition Unit

Distance Learning April 2, 2015

Agreement

• The Agreement will be approximately 10-12 pages.

• Must be signed:– Superintendent– Child Nutrition Director– If the Superintendent authorizes someone else in

the district to sign the Claim Form they will also need to sign the Agreement

Schedule A

Each year ADE CNU prints the CN Program Schedule A with information based on the programs offered at the schools in the district for the previous school year.HOWEVER, this year the plan is to print the Schedule A with the specific district and schools information (addresses, etc.) and NOT with the check boxes checked (for ex: Regular lunch, Afterschool Snack, Meal Pattern, Breakfast alternative, etc.)

Schedule A

• SFA’s are required to revise the CN Program Schedule A with specific district AND school information for the upcoming school year

• Safety Net boxes will not be checked (a list will be provided with the Commissioner’s Memo)

• Severe Need boxes will not be checked (letters from LouAnn Griswood will be sent to SFAs regarding the schools that are approved)

• The district will need to ensure the proper boxes are checked prior to submission to ADE CNU

Schedule A

• District Information at the top of the first page of the Schedule A– Superintendent name and contact information

(including email)– Child Nutrition Director (CND) name and contact

information (including email)– Number of schools– Number of schools serving breakfast, lunch, snack,

regular summer or seamless summer meals

Schedule A

• Each School that has an LEA number MUST be listed on the Schedule A (doesn’t matter if there is a kitchen there or not)

• The programs being offered at each school must be accurate for the 2015-16 SY– Lunch– Breakfast– Afterschool Snack– Seamless Summer– Regular Summer meals

Schedule A

• School specific information:– Physical address of the school– Provision 2 or CEP school? (Check the box if yes)– Year round school? (Check the box if yes)– Grade span of the school– Principal

Schedule A

– CN Manager– CN Manager certified?– Is this school a Serving Site• The number of serving sites may or may not be the

same number of schools• Some serving sites serve more than one school• Some schools have more than one serving site• If there is one serving site for two different schools

then only check serving site for one school

Schedule A

• Meal prices charged to students and adults– Adult meal prices should be set AFTER the new

reimbursement rates are published in July and the Schedule A revised with ADE CNU in writing

– If money is not collected from students then indicate “0” for the meal prices. For example:• The district pays the reduced co-pay• The school is a Provision 2 or CEP that does not charge

students for meals

Schedule A• Menu Planning used at each SCHOOL:– Lunch menu planning options are:

• K-5• K-8• 6-8• 9-12

– Breakfast menu planning options are:• K-12• K-5• 6-8• 9-12

Schedule A

• MUST USE THE MENU PLANNING OPTIONS OFFERED!!!

• Do not change the grade groupings for the menu planning options – these are part of the 7 CFR 210 and 220 regulations.

• They are not customizable by school population

Schedule A

• Alternative Breakfast offered at this school?• MUST answer this question with Yes or No

– Do Not Leave this blank – Blank means the Schedule A is incomplete– This will cause the Area Specialist to have to contact you to

complete• If offering a Breakfast alternative must tell us the type:

– Grab and go (cafeteria or outside cafeteria)– Breakfast in the Classroom– Second chance breakfast – Other alternative (explain)

Schedule A

The Schedule A MUST be signed FOR EACH SCHOOL by the CND and the menu planner if the menu planner is not the CND.

Paid Lunch Equity Tool• Commissioner’s Memo FIN-15-089 • Tool must be completed and sent as part of

the Agreement (do not send now!)• Signature page of the tool must be signed by

the Superintendent and the Child Nutrition Director

• Tool has a few tweaks from previous tools so read the instructions carefully

Wellness Policy/Committee

• Each SFA is required to have a Wellness Policy and a WORKING Wellness Committee

• Wellness Policy Checklist must be completed to indicate the SFA is completing all FIVE federal requirements of the Wellness Policy:– FEDERAL WELLNESS POLICY REQUIREMENT #1

Include goals for nutrition promotion and education, physical activity, and other school-based activities that promote student wellness.

Wellness Policy

– FEDERAL WELLNESS POLICY REQUIREMENT #2 Include nutrition guidelines to promote student health and reduce childhood obesity for all foods available in each school district.

– FEDERAL WELLNESS POLICY REQUIREMENT #3 Address the need for parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, teachers of physical education, school health professionals, the school board, school administrators, and the general public to participate in the development, implementation, and review and update of the local wellness policy.

Wellness Policy

– FEDERAL WELLNESS POLICY REQUIREMENT #4 Address procedures for informing and updating the public (including parents, students, and others in the community) about the content and implementation of local wellness policies.

– FEDERAL WELLNESS POLICY REQUIREMENT #5 Address the need of the policy to be measured periodically on the extent to which schools are in compliance with the local wellness policy, the extent to which the local education agency’s local wellness policy compares to model local school wellness policies, and the progress made in attaining the goals of the local wellness policy, and make this assessment available to the public.

Wellness Policy

– ARKANSAS WELLNESS POLICY REQUIRMENT Include language that the district will adhere to the Arkansas Rules Governing Nutrition and Physical Activity Standards in Arkansas Public Schools.

Wellness Committee

• Committee Members should include:– SFA Designated Employee to ensure Wellness

Policy Compliance– Chairperson (may be the same)– Child Nutrition representation– Parent– Student– SFA Administration

Wellness Committee

– School Health Professional– School Board Member– Community Member– Physical Education TeacherIf you need to add more pages to get all of the Wellness Committee Member information then please do so.

Food Safety Plan

• The SFA must attest that there is a Food Safety Plan that is used at all storage, preparation and serving sites

• The Plan must cover Hazard Analysis Critical Control points (HACCP) as required by USDA

Health Inspection Requirement

• SFAs must report regarding the federal requirement of two health inspections each school year for each serving site– Based on # serving sites for 2014-15 SY– How many received the required TWO inspections– How many received more than TWO inspections– How many received less than TWO inspections• Documentation of what the SFA is doing to get the

TWO required inspections

Procurement Plan

• Must complete this form to state how the SFA is purchasing with federal child nutrition money– Who is authorized to purchase with CN funds– If purchase is over $150,000 what are the

procedures– If between $10,000 and $150,000 – Under $10,000DO WHAT YOU SAY YOU ARE GOING TO DO!!!!

Procurement Plan (Written Code of Conduct)

• NEW REQUIREMENT:– FIN-15-074 Written Code of Conduct • All SFAs receiving federal money for the CN program

must have a WRITTEN Code of Conduct for personnel involved in purchasing with CN funds– Prohibit employees from soliciting gifts– Prohibit employees from accepting travel packages– Prohibit employees from accepting other incentives– Prohibit employees from being involved in purchasing from

and entity or certain persons where there is a financial interest


– Provide for Child Nutrition Program (CNP) operators to set standards when financial interest is not substantial or the gift is an unsolicited item of nominal value and may be acceptable (for example: coffee mug or calendar)

– Must provide for disciplinary actions to be applied in the event the standards are violated


• How would the public perceive this action of receiving the gift, favor, etc.?

• Will acceptance of the gift, favor, etc. possibly influence a future purchasing decision?

The Sheila Chastain rule of thumb: If you have to ask if it is allowable it probably is not…


• The SFA will be required to submit the Written Code of Conduct as part of the Agreement

• The Code must include all elements required by federal regulation

• The Commissioner’s Memo has an example that covers all required elements

• The Arkansas School Board Association is developing a Code that can be used by their members

Vending Contracts as Part of Procurement Plan

• All vending contracts in effect at the SFA must be sent to ADE CNU as part of the Agreement

• If Child Nutrition is part of the contract (purchasing from the contract) then the contract must conform to federal purchasing requirements

• The vending contracts must follow Arkansas Nutrition Standards AND USDA All Foods on Campus (Smart Snack) standards

Vending Contracts as Part of Procurement Plan

• If Child Nutrition is purchasing on the vending contract, then any rebates or commissions paid to the SFA based on the Child Nutrition purchases must be credited to child nutrition funds

• If there is a “signing” bonus on a vending contract that involves CN then the percentage of that signing bonus must credit to CN funds based on the percentage of the contract that is CN money

Competitive Foods Attestation

• NEW: Based on USDA’s new competitive foods regulations (Smart Snacks, All Foods on Campus) as well as the Arkansas Nutrition Standards with Maximum Portion Size Chart there will now be an Attestation Statement that will be signed by the Superintendent and the CND stating that ALL foods or beverages made available to students on school campus during the school day will meet all state and federal regulations.

Civil Rights• The SFA will be required to submit the

methods they use to ensure Civil Rights regulations are being met– Includes racial/ethnic data collection– Plan to see if denied applications are

disproportionately from a racial or ethnic group– How the SFA meets the requirements for

supplying CN information to households that have limited English proficiency; USDA SP 42-2012

Civil Rights• How will the SFA display the “And Justice for

All” poster at all serving sites• Procedures used by SFA to ensure

confidentiality of student meal status and information

• Policy for informing the public about the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Program (Media Release)

Civil Rights• New USDA Policy Memo SP 31-2015 Guidance on

Prohibition of Separation by Gender during Child Nutrition Program Meal Service (Commissioner’s Memo in the works)

• School food authorities (SFAs) participating in any of the following Child Nutrition Programs: National School Lunch Program; School Breakfast Program; Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program; Special Milk Program; Child and Adult Care Food Program; and Summer Food Service Program

Civil Rights

• SP 31-2015 - In general, SFAs participating in the Child Nutrition Programs are not permitted to separate children on any protected basis during the service of Program meals or snacks, in keeping with Federal non-discrimination laws and policies as outlined for the Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs in 7 CFR Parts 15, 15a, and 15b. Federal law prohibits discrimination based on gender at any educational institution receiving Federal assistance.

Civil Rights

• As a reminder the six protected classes in our program are:– Race– Color– National origin– Age– Disability– Sex (gender)

Civil Rights

• US Education Department (ED) guidelines allow school and school-based sites to apply for an exemption when Federal law prohibiting gender separation is inconsistent with the institution’s religious tenets. These exemptions apply broadly to operations, including the meal service at a given site, such as a faith-based school.

• The public schools in Arkansas are not faith-based school and do not fall under this exemption

Civil Rights

• It is important to emphasize that since the general rule is that gender separation during meal service is prohibited, a co-educational school may not use limited ED approval of gender-separate instruction to justify blanket gender separation during meal service. Limited exemptions in such situations must be expressly approved by FNS.

Civil Rights

• Any gender separation not based on the ED and/or FNS approval processes is strictly prohibited.

• There are principals and/or other administrators that want to separate by gender in the cafeteria (boys on one side of the room, girls on another).

• This is not allowed by the federal regulations.

Civil Rights

• Must submit the procedures the SFA will use with regard to processing complaints of civil rights violations

• SFA must attest that there will be access to the cafeteria for disabled students

• SFA must attest that they will follow Special Dietary Plans for students with medical documentation on file for a disabling condition

Schedule B – Afterschool Snacks• Afterschool Snack program during the 2015-16 school

year– Must complete the Schedule B

• By school; using most recent Cycle 2 data• Must have dates and number of serving days

– Can be completed at any time • If SFA decides during school year to add Afterschool snack can do

so; complete Schedule B and submit to Patricia Winders• Two weeks notice to get paperwork completed• Must follow regulations regarding requirements • If Snacks are added at a school the CN Program Schedule A must

be updated

Schedule C-16• Seamless Summer for summer of 2016– Must complete the Schedule C-16

• By school; using most recent Cycle 2 data• Must have dates and number of serving days, locations

– Can be completed at any time • If SFA decides during school year to add Seamless

Summer for 2016 can do so; complete Schedule C-16 and submit to Patricia Winders

• Two weeks notice to get paperwork completed• Must follow regulations regarding requirements• If Seamless Summer is added at a school the CN Program

Schedule A must be updated

Policy Statement

• Look at the Eligibility Manual for School Meals, Part 11 for the information that is required to be in the Policy Statement

• Some of this information is collected in the Policy Statement as part of the CN Contact Page (will be discussed later)

Policy Statement

– Names of official(s), or the position of the LEA or school official, designated to make eligibility determinations - Determining Official(s)

– An assurance that the LEA will determine eligibility in accordance with the current Income Eligibility Guidelines (IEGs)

Policy Statement– The LEA’s specific procedures to accept

applications for benefits and its direct certification procedures

NEW Requirement: There will be a new Policy Statement attachment this year that will require the SFA to submit the procedures used at the SFA in accepting and processing F/R meal applications as well as the direct certification process used by the SFA

Policy Statement

• Application and Direct Certification Procedures:– How are the applications are provided to the HH– Where are the applications returned from the HH– How do the applications get to CN– What does CN do when receive the application– What does DC contact do when receive that DC portal

is open and updated– Who confirms DC list students receive free benefits– How are Other Students in HH found to go with DC

students

Policy Statement

• Commissioner’s Memo FIN-15-020 (Eligibility Manual for School Meals discusses eligibility date determinations for F/R meal applications AND

• Commissioner’s Memo FIN-15-055 regarding Eligibility Effective Date of Directly Certified Students

• If the SFA is going to implement either of the above memos, this must be included in the procedures and the correct paperwork completed

Policy Statement

• Description of the method(s) used to collect payments from children paying the full price of the meal or milk or the reduced price of the meal which prevents the overt identification of the children receiving free or reduced price meals or free milk (Meal Count and Collection Procedures to be discussed later)

Policy Statement

– An assurance that the school will abide by the hearing procedures and the nondiscrimination practices

– A copy of the application form and letter to households • Prototype form and letter to households is part of the

Agreement and Policy Statement each year• Any changes to the prototype must be approved by

ADE CNU PRIOR to publication• Required each school year!!

Policy Statement

• A statement that a foster child is categorically eligible for free meals and may be included as a member of the foster family if the foster family chooses to also apply for benefits for other children and an explanation that including children in foster care as household members can help other children in the household qualify for free or reduced price meals. If the foster family is not eligible for free or reduced price meal benefits, this does not prevent a foster child from receiving free meal benefits;

Policy Statement

• Arkansas SFAs are required to have a Foster Child liaison based on Commissioner’s Memo LS-14-015 states that school districts are required to Identify a Foster Care Liaison to Ensure Continuity of Educational Services to Foster Children

• The Determining Official can accept a list from the Foster Care Liaison just like a Homeless list

Policy Statement– An explanation that households with children who

are categorically eligible under Other Source Categorically Eligible Programs should contact the school for assistance in receiving benefits and mark the relevant box on the application to indicate their status (Arkansas = lists)• Homeless list• Migrant list• Runaway list• Head Start list• Even Start list

Policy Statement

– A statement that State agencies and LEAs will ensure there are no barriers for participation in our Programs for Limited English Proficient (LEP) families and that State agencies and LEAs are required to communicate with parents and guardians in a language they can understand throughout the certification and verification processes

Policy Statement

• ADE CNU usually provides Spanish language application materials as part of Agreement and Policy Statement

• USDA provides the USDA application in thirty four different languages; the SFA is RESPONSIBLE to ensure that materials are available in the language used in the HH

www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/family-friendly-application-translation

http://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/family-friendly-application-translation

http://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/family-friendly-application-translation

Policy Statement

– LEAs selling competitive foods during a meal service (a la carte) are encouraged to include in the description of how the cafeteria and meal service prevents overt identification of the children receiving free or reduced price meals

– A statement of the measures the LEA has taken to prevent disclosure of confidential free and reduced price eligibility information as required under 7 CFR 245.6(f-k)

Policy Statement

• Prevent confidential disclosure of free and reduced price eligibility information…– Who at the school district has access in student

records (eSchool) to VIEW student meal eligibility status?

– Who at the school district has access in student records (eSchool) to CHANGE student meal eligibility status

– How have these people been trained regarding confidentiality requirements of this program?

Policy Statement

• The free and reduced price policy statement should also contain a copy of the following:– Media release– Notice to households of approval or denial of

benefits– Notice to households of selection for verification – Notice to households of adverse action (the

verification results letter)– Notice of eligibility, based on direct certification

Policy Statement

• As a reminder – all of the forms and letters mentioned in the previous slide are part of the Forms and Letters Packet that is part of the Agreement and Policy Statement each school year

Any changes from the prototype provided by ADE CNU must be

approved PRIOR to use

Policy Statement

• The LEA must amend its policy statement for any substantive changes to its free and reduced price policy and include a description of the change. In all cases, the LEA must have an approved policy statement on file at the State agency that accurately describes its current free and reduced price policies. Amendments must be submitted for approval by the State agency by October 15. The amendments must be approved by the State agency prior to implementation.

Policy Statement

• The amendments must reflect: – Changes made necessary by law/regulations; – Changes made by the LEA (e.g., changes in

collection procedures, designation of new approving/hearing official(s), changes in procedures for accepting applications, revisions in the letter to households or application for free and reduced price meals/free milk);

Policy Statement

• The amendments must reflect:– Additional information specified by the State

agency (ADE CNU)• Schedule A• Child Nutrition Contact Information• Changes in Superintendent or Child Nutrition Director• Any information that changes from the Agreement or

Policy Statement that is submitted to ADE CNU in May and the following school year must be made in writing to ADE CNU

Meal Count and Collection Procedures

• SCHOOL specific information• MEAL specific information (breakfast meal

count procedures are often different from lunch meal count procedures)


• Medium of Exchange – what does the student exchange for their meal? For example:– Enter ID number into key pad at Point of Sale

(POS)– Fingerprint or thumbprint at POS– Roster checked off by name at POS– Bar code or magnetic strip ID cards– Verbal identifiers (student gives name to cashier)


• Collection of Payment– Students may pay in either the serving line or in

another area designated – cannot be accept pay ONLY in serving line – overt identification of F/R

– Students may pay ONLY in designated area not in serving line

– Student payments accepted through on-line payment system


• Collection of Payment– No money is collected from reduced price

students but counted and claimed correctly (for ex: schools that pay the reduced co-pay for students)

– No money is collected from paying students but counted and claimed correctly (for example: schools that are Provision 2 or Community Eligibility Provision)

– Other – include a description


• Notification of payment procedures – how does the school district let households know how, when and where to make payments– Letters to parents– Public announcements to all students and households– Newspaper/newsletter– Posted notice (sign) displayed in the cafeteria and sent to

households– Notification in Student Handbook with signed

acknowledgment from household– Other – include a description


• Meal Count by Category – how is the school getting an accurate meal count by F/R/P at the point of service– Cashier at beginning of line and worker at end of

line confirming reimbursable meal– Cashier at end of line confirming reimbursable meal– Classroom counts by category confirmed at POS by

child nutrition with worker at end of line confirming reimbursable meal


• Charge policy – Does the school have a charge policy (again school

specific)– How is the charge policy information published to

households• In student handbook• Letters to households• Signs in cafeteria

Child Nutrition Contact Information

• Determining Official – the person or persons at the SFA that make F/R eligibility determinations (will probably require the Determining Official Signature this year)

• Verifying Official – the person or persons at the SFA that are responsible for verification activities (everything from choosing the applications to be verified to submitting the Verification Collection Report to ADE CNU)


• Confirming Official – Person that looks at applications that have been

chosen to be verified and CONFIRMS the Determining Official made the correct DETERMINATION

– CANNOT be the Determining Official – this person is checking the Determining Officials work, so must be a different person from the Determining Official


• Hearing Official – Person that would hold hearing procedures if

someone filed a civil rights complaint (for ex: HH believes that F/R benefits were not approved based on the HH race or ethnicity)

– Cannot be anyone that has been involved in the Determining, Confirming or Verifying of meal applications

– Often this is superintendent , assistant superintendent, CFO, etc.


• Direct Certification Contact– Person at the SFA that is responsible to receive ADE

CNU emails regarding Direct Certification (including when the portal has been updated)

– Ensures DC list is provided to the Determining Official so that the Determining Official can ensure that all DC list students receive free meal benefits based on DC categorical eligibility

– Ensures other students in household with DC list students also receive free meal benefits based on DC categorical eligibility (audit trail)


• Authorized Purchasing Agent– Who in the district is authorized to make

purchases with child nutrition funds– Often this is CND only– Sometimes it is CND and Superintendent– Sometime it is CND and kitchen managers (be

careful with this)


• District bookkeeper working with CN Program– Assists CND with financial information for the claim

for reimbursement based on• APSCN reports of detailed revenue • APSCN reports of detailed expenses• APSCN changes in fund balance• APSCN board reportIf the person that is completing the Claim for Reimbursement is not using the above reports for the financial information on the claim form, there is a problem


• Migrant Coordinator for the district– Often the Migrant Coordinator works out of the

Educational Cooperative– Some school districts have a district employee that is the

Migrant Coordinator– This is the person the Determining Official will get a

Migrant student list from (Other Categorical Eligibility)– All students listed on the Migrant List receive free meal

benefits– Does not expand to all students in HH, only those on the

list


• District Homeless/Runaway Liaison– Responsible for DETERMINING when a student is

considered Homeless or Runaway based on the McKinney Vento Act

– Gives Determining Official list of students considered homeless (Other Categorical Eligible)


• On-Site Reviewer– Responsible to ensure On-Site reviews are

performed at ALL schools – Must be completed by February 1 each school

year– Form on the forms page of the ADE CNU website– Responsible to ensure that any issues requiring

corrective action on the On-Site review are completed and in compliance


• District Arkansas Comprehensive School Improvement Plan (ACSIP) Coordinator

• ACSIP is annual planning and fund distribution design that must be used by all Arkansas public and charter schools


• District Technology Coordinator– Responsible for submitting District Cycle 2 Report– This is usually not the CND

• Emergency Contact Information– For emergency contact when school is not in

session– Food recalls over spring break

Computer Information

• ADE CNU collects information regarding which computer systems are being used in Child Nutrition Programs

• Does the SFA use a computer software to make eligibility determinations?– Which software– What does it do (scanned applications, letters to

households, etc.)


• Does the computer system choose applications to be verified?

• Does the computer system generate letters to the household?– If using the computer system letters, they must be

submitted to ADE CNU for approval– These letters can be edited in the computer system– Best to edit the letters to match the prototypes

from the Agreement


• What is the name of the computer system used for:– Eligibility determinations– Verification activities– Letters to household• Eligibility determination• Verification


• Does the SFA have a computerized Point of Sale (POS) system?

• If yes, is it used at all schools?• What is the POS meal exchange? For ex:– Scanned cards– Fingerprint/thumbprint– ID numbers on keypad

• What is the name of the POS being used?


• Does the SFA use on-line meal payments?• If yes, what system is being used?

Agreement Commissioner’s Memo

• Please READ the entire Commissioner’s Memo regarding the Agreement and Policy Statement

• The Agreement and Policy Statement must be approved by USDA prior to publication to SFAs

• New items or changes from the ‘norm’ are usually spelled out in the Commissioner’s Memo

Mailed Agreement

• The SFA will be mailed TWO sets of the Agreement and Policy Statement

• Complete BOTH sets• Original Signatures on BOTH sets• Double Check the ENTIRE packet for

completeness prior to returning to ADE CNU• Mail back to us as soon as completed

Documents

Agreement and Policy Statement Attachments 2015-16 School Year Karen Franklin, SNS Child Nutrition Unit Distance Learning April 2, 2015