FILE:  EE

Cf:  JGB, KG

CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

The Rapides Parish School Board believes the school district should have a sound child nutrition program and that the child nutrition program should be an integral part of the total educational program.  The School Board also believes that the highest possible sanitation standards should be maintained and that every effort should be made to make it possible for every child to participate in the child nutrition program without regard to race, color, disability, national origin, sex, or age.

GUIDELINES

The School Board shall administer a Child Nutrition Program in accordance with federal and state standards and requirements.  The School Board, as the recognized child nutrition program authority for the school district, shall annually approve the national school lunch program, school breakfast program, U.S.D.A school commodity programs and any other related programs.  The approved agreement shall meet all specifications mandated by the Louisiana Department of Education's Division of Nutrition Support.

Guidelines of the Louisiana Sanitary Code shall be strictly followed in the preparation, serving, and cleaning of all child nutrition programs and facilities.

Each school shall abide by state and federal guideline restrictions on the operation of concessions, canteens, snack bars, vending machines or other food and beverage sales or class parties.  (Refer to policy JGB, School Wellness)

No supplies or foods, including leftovers, shall be removed from the child nutrition department by any employee of the school system unless he/she has been authorized to transfer the items to another school location.  Disciplinary action may result for unauthorized food removal.

In elementary schools, reimbursement for lunch and/or breakfast may be withheld from schools if concessions, canteens, snack bars, or vending machines are operated on a profit basis before the end of the last lunch period.  In schools with multiple lunch periods, reimbursement for breakfast and/or lunch may be withheld from schools if concessions, canteens, snack bars, vending machines or other food sales are operated on a profit basis before the last 10 minutes of each lunch period.  The official school schedule shall indicate the time for each lunch period.  Such services are operated for profit if the income is not deposited to the nonprofit child nutrition department account, and expended only for the purpose of the child nutrition program(s).

Schools with multiple lunch periods shall implement the following guidelines:

1. No food item shall be sold before the last 10 minutes in each lunch period.
   
   

2. Lunch periods shall be divided by a period of time so that students from one period do not come into contact with students from another period.
   
   

3. A system shall be in place to ensure that students do not have access to competitive foods before the last 10 minutes of each lunch period.

The School Food Authority shall be required to reimburse the child nutrition account for any funds withheld for violation(s) of the Competitive Foods policy.  Under no circumstances can foods in competition be sold or given to children in food service areas during the lunch period(s).  This policy will be managed and monitored by both the local child nutrition director as well as the State.

NUTRITION REQUIREMENTS

The Child Nutrition Program

1. The District shall commit to utilizing all available resources and strengthening its outreach to students and their families to ensure that all students have access to nutritious breakfasts, lunches, snacks for after school educational programs, and the summer food service program.
   
   

2. The District shall hire dedicated food service staff and shall provide them with pre-service and ongoing in-service training in nutritious food preparation, safety and sanitation.
   
   

3. All school cafeterias and dining areas should be healthy nutrition environments.  Louisiana public schools participating in federal child nutrition programs should ensure that all students have daily access to school meals (breakfast and lunch).  Schools should not establish policies, class schedules, bus schedules or other barriers that directly or indirectly restrict meal access.
   
   

4. All students shall have a minimum of ten (10) minutes for breakfast and twenty (20) minutes for lunch periods, preferably thirty (30) minutes.  Schools shall provide sufficient serving areas to ensure access to school meals within the allotted time.
   
   

5. School meals shall meet the USDA nutrition standards as well as provide sufficient choices, including new foods and foods prepared in a variety of ways.
   
   

6. Schools shall provide a pleasant dining area that encourages students to enjoy the social aspects of a healthy meal by including:

7. Schools shall promote healthy food choices in a variety of ways, such as:  display nutritional information about food items, highlight healthier food selections in menus, school-wide audio or video announcements, educational table tents, taste testing opportunities, health fairs, nutrition tips in school newsletters, various contests with incentives, dress-up characters as role models, etc.
   
   

8. Commercial fast foods, carbonated beverages, sports drinks, energy drinks, concentrated sweets, and high fat foods shall not be allowed in the cafeteria.
   
   

9. Students who do not wish to eat in the cafeteria will be responsible for bringing their lunches from home in the morning.  If a child leaves home without a lunch, one may be purchased in the cafeteria.  Parents bringing lunches to school cause a disruption to the daily school routine; therefore, parents will be allowed to bring a child’s lunch only in extenuating circumstances.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Special events should not interfere with the preparation and service of school lunch, breakfasts, or snacks.  School functions involving the use of the cafeteria shall be arranged through the principal and approved by the child nutrition director.  Whenever the cafeteria is used by the school, one or more of the child nutrition employees shall be in charge to ensure control over child nutrition foods and to ensure proper use and care of equipment and facilities.  A Special Event form must be completed and sent to the director of child nutrition at least two (2) weeks in advance of the event.  Events that occur at scheduled times during the school year can be handled by sending in one notice listing all of the dates.

PAYMENT FOR MEALS

Meals may be paid for daily, weekly, monthly, or annually.  Checks shall not be accepted for the payment of meals after the last day in April, in order that any insufficient funds (NSF) checks may be cleared prior to the end of the school year.

Meals shall not be denied to Pre-K - 8TH grade students (Refer to ACT NO. 737 (HB1141).

Grades PreK-8:  When a student’s funds are depleted and they have to charge for meals, the Child Nutrition Program school staff shall make documented telephone calls to parents/guardians and send letters home by the student.  If balances become excessive, accounts shall be referred to the principal for collection.

Grades 9-12:  When a student’s funds are depleted and they have to charge for meals, the school cafeteria manager shall make documented telephone calls to parents/guardians and send letters home by the student.  If balances become excessive, accounts shall be referred to the principal for collection.

Under no circumstances shall a tray be taken away from a student in line at breakfast and/or lunch.

Students who owe more than $20.00 shall not be allowed to charge meals until debts are paid in full.  Charging of meals shall cease by May 1st.

Adults shall not be allowed to charge for meals

The cafeteria manager shall be responsible for providing the administrator a regular update as to charge balances at his/her school.  It shall be the responsibility of the administration to collect these funds owed to their school.  At the end of the school year, any uncollected debt to the child nutrition department must be paid by the school to the child nutrition department.

No discrimination against any individual shall occur because of his/her inability to pay, nor shall the School Board or any nutrition service provider publish or permit to be published the names of any individual unable to pay for the food.

Any public school employee who discloses the name of any individual unable to pay for such food, either orally or in written form, except as reasonably necessary in the conduct of his/her official duties, shall be subject to the penalties provided in state law.  No employee shall disclose such information to any student for any reason.

FREE AND REDUCED PRICE MEAL APPLICATIONS

Eligibility for participation of students in the free and reduced meal program shall be determined by family meal application or direct certification of participation in migrant, runaway, or homeless education programs.  A multi-child, family application to apply for school meal benefits shall be sent to the parents or guardians of each student within the first day of school.  Parents shall be requested to complete an application listing all students enrolled in Rapides Parish public schools and return it to the determining official for review.  The applicant should be made aware that deliberate misrepresentation on the application may subject him or her to prosecution under applicable state and federal criminal statutes.  Such applications (approved and disapproved) and documentation of the action taken shall be maintained for three (3) years after the end of the fiscal year to which they pertain.

State guidelines allow for the limited disclosure of information about free and reduced price meal eligibility without consent of the parent.  The information may be used only for the purpose authorized and may not be shared with any other parties for any reason.  Aggregate information that does not identify individuals continues to be permitted without parental consent.  Under the National School Lunch Act (NSLA) the release of a child's eligibility status is permitted to persons directly connected with and who need to know a child's free and reduced price meal eligibility status in order to carry out an activity specifically authorized by the NSLA.

Revised:  August, 2010

Revised:  June, 2014

Revised:  April 10, 2018

Ref:    42 USC 1751 et seq. (School Lunch Programs)

42 USC 1771 et seq. (Child Nutrition)

7 CFR 210 (National School Lunch Program)

7 CFR 220 (School Breakfast Program)

La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:82, 17:191, 17:192, 17:192.1, 17:193, 17:194, 17:195, 17:196, 17:197, 17:197.1, 17:198, 17:199,  39:2101, 40.4

Louisiana Sanitary Code, Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals

Board minutes, 4-16-02, 10-5-10, 9-2-14, 4-10-18

Rapides Parish School Board