TheCommunityEligibilityProvision(CEP)allows high‐povertyschoolstoofferbothbreakfastand lunchatnochargetoallstudentswhileeliminating thetraditionalschoolmealapplicationprocess. Schoolsacrossthecountryhavesuccessfully implementedthisnewoptionandareseeingthe manybenefitsofensuringthatalloftheirstudents haveaccesstohealthyschoolmeals. BenefitsoftheCommunityEligibilityProvision Lessens administrative work—schools no longer have to collect and verify school meal applicationsandcanfocusonfeedingchildren. Increasesparticipation—intheinitialpilotstates,schoolsthatimplementedtheprovisionfortwo yearsincreasedbreakfastparticipationby25percentandlunchparticipationby13percent. Facilitates implementation of alternative breakfast service models—when schools don’t have to collectfeesorcounteachmealservedbyfeecategory,itsimplifiesimplementationofbreakfastin theclassroomand“grabandgo”servicemodelsthatcanboostparticipationfurther. Improvesthefinancialviabilityofschoolnutritionprograms—whenparticipationincreases,school districts can take advantage of economies of scale, and reinvest additional revenue to improve nutritionqualityandprovidestafftraining. Eliminatesunpaidmealfees—whenallchildreneatatnocharge,theschooldistrictdoesnothave tocollectunpaidfeesfromfamilies. AnUnequivocalSuccessintheFirstYearofNationwideAvailability CEPhasbeenphasedinafewstatesatatimesincethe2011‐2012schoolyear.Inthe2014‐2015 schoolyear,thefirstyearofnationwideavailability: Morethan14,000highpovertyschoolsareparticipating,roughlyhalfofalleligibleschoolsand1in 10schoolsnationwide; Morethan2,200schooldistrictshaveadoptedtheprovision,about1in7districtsnationwide;and Asaresult,morethan6millionchildrenintheseschoolshaveaccesstotwohealthymealsatschool eachday.1 WhoShouldParticipate? Anyschoolwith40percentormore“identifiedstudents”canparticipateinCEP.Identifiedstudents includechildrenwhoaredirectlycertified(throughdatamatching)forfreemealsbecausetheylive inhouseholdsthatparticipateintheSupplementalNutritionAssistanceProgram(SNAP), TemporaryAssistanceforNeedyFamilies(TANF),orFoodDistributionProgramonIndian Reservations(FDPIR),aswellaschildrenwhoarecertifiedforfreeschoolmealswithout CenteronBudgetandPolicyPriorities,TakeUpofCommunityEligibilityThisSchoolYear:MoreThan6MillionChildrenHaveBetterAccesstoSchool Meals,http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=5273 1 submittingaschoolmealapplicationbecauseoftheirstatusasbeinginfostercare,enrolledinHead Start,homeless,runaway,ormigrantstudents. Typically,schoolswith75percentormorefreeandreduced‐pricecertifiedstudentswillmeetthe 40percentidentifiedstudentrequirement.Schooldistrictswith40percentormoreidentified studentsmayparticipatedistrict‐wideormaygroupschoolstogethertoreachthe40percent identifiedstudentthreshold. Reimbursementsarecalculatedbymultiplyingthepercentageofidentifiedstudentsby1.6to determinethepercentofmealsthatwillbereimbursedatthefreerate.Forexample,aschoolwith 50percentidentifiedstudentswouldbereimbursedfor80percentofthebreakfastsandlunches eatenatthefreereimbursementrateandtheremaining20percentatthepaidrate. IncreasesSchoolMealParticipation InschoolsthatimplementedCEPinthe2011‐2012schoolyearinIllinois,KentuckyandMichigan: Breakfastparticipationincreased25percent,from44percentinOctober2010to56percentin October2012;and Lunchparticipationincreased13percent,from69percentinOctober2010to78percentin October2012.2 ForschooldistrictsthatimplementCEPdistrict‐wide,likeDetroitPublicSchools,theeffectisfurther amplified.InDetroit,duringthe2011‐2012schoolyear,comparedtothepreviousschoolyear: Breakfastparticipationincreasedby15percent,or7,400additionalstudentsperday;and Lunchparticipationincreasedby30percent,ornearly14,000additionalstudentsperday. ImprovestheFinancialViabilityofSchoolBreakfastandLunchPrograms Asaresultofexpandedstudentparticipationandreductionsinadministrativework,manyCEPschools havereportedincreasedrevenues,resultinginstrongerschoolnutritionprogramsoverall. “Our department’s main goal is to feed students healthy meals so that they are ready to learn. Providing breakfast and lunch free of charge to all students through community eligibility has boosted participation by removing barriers like household applications and collecting fees from students.Byfeedingmorechildrenwearebenefitingourschool,ourstudents,andourcommunity.” –LeslieFowler;ExecutiveDirectorofNutritionSupportServices,ChicagoPublicSchools,Illinois “Community eligibility has strengthened our school nutrition program financially by expanding participation and increasing revenue. We now have children eating who never ate school meals before,with anincrease of approximately1million additionalmealsservedoverthe schoolyear. Wehavebeenabletousetheincreasedrevenuetoimproveschoolnutritioninfrastructureandthe qualityofthefoodservedtoourchildren.”–BrendaFish;DirectorofSchoolNutrition,FloydCounty Schools,Kentucky EliminatingUnpaidMealFees Offeringmealsatnochargetoallstudentsmeansthatschoolsnolongerhavetogoaboutcollectingunpaid mealfeesfromfamiliesorfootthebillformealsservedwhenchildrendonothavemoneytopay.Removing thisdynamicbetweenfamiliesandschoolsallowsschoolnutritionstafftofocusonpreparingandserving healthymealstochildrenandeliminatesasignificantfinancialburdenforschooldistrictsandfamilies. Formoreresources,visitFRAC’sCommunityEligibilityPage–www.frac.org/community‐eligibility FRACandCenteronBudgetandPolicyPriorities,CommunityEligibility:MakingHigh‐PovertySchoolsHungerFree, http://frac.org/pdf/community_eligibility_report_2013.pdf 2
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