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Monthly Newsletter for Child Nutrition Administrators
"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
Everywhere you go
Take a look at the five and ten
It's glistening once again
With candy canes and silver lanes aglow
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
Toys in every store
But the prettiest sight to see is the holly that will be
On your own front door."
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
— Michael Buble
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LISTEN TO THE LATEST NEWS
MILK FLEXIBILITY FOR EMERGENCY CONDITIONS
TDA recognizes that in any given program year, unanticipated emergency conditions, including supply chain disruptions, may temporarily prevent Child Nutrition Program (CNP) sites from offering fluid milk as required by the program's meal pattern.
To assist with this issue, sites are permitted the flexibility to serve and claim meals without fluid milk per USDA regulation. Program operators are expected to meet the fluid milk requirements or seek out an equivalent substitute to the greatest extent possible.
To utilize the flexibility, a Contracting Entity (CE) must submit this form as soon as possible after the disruption occurs.
The form will provide flexibility for up to 30 calendar days or until fluid milk becomes available, whichever is sooner. If the shortage exceeds 30 days, the CE must submit a new form. If the milk shortage ends prior to the end of the 30 days, the CE must return to regular service and document the date of return to service for each site.
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DID YOU MISS THE LAST TDA SCHOOL CALL?
Farm to School Census
All schools should complete this, regardless of participation. You should have received an email from USDA with the link and instructions on how to complete. It is due at the end of the year. If you need your link sent to you again, please call 866-986-2230 or email Farm2SchoolCensus@dir-online.com.
Local Food for Schools Grant
Congratulations to all recipients of this grant! TDA will be offering monthly office hours to discuss with CE's on how to spend the money. The first will be on December 12 at 3 p.m. If you received the grant, you will be getting an invitation. If you have any questions about the grant, please email localfoodgrant@texasagriculture.gov.
Reduced-Price Breakfast Reimbursement
The additional reimbursement for reduced-price breakfast claims will begin to be paid in December, starting with September claims.
USDA Foods Updates
- Total lunches served (TLS) for the state were adjusted by USDA and will be updated in TX-UNPS accordingly. There is a statewide overage of approximately $12 million, so you will see a decrease in your entitlement. Please review your accounts and note that no further ordering of DoD will be allocated.
- TDA sent a SmartSheet to everyone to collect contact information. This was NOT a phishing email. If you have not already completed, TDA will send it again.
- TDA will begin the no-usage exercise on Monday, December 4. If you are found not to have used an appropriate amount of your USDA foods, you will receive a CAD for how you plan to use the products by the end of the school year. TDA will determine appropriate usage based on 10% usage per month.
- If you have not received user account information for WBSCM, the last file was sent to USDA on December 1. Starting on December 4, RAs will submit FND 136 to make changes to the User Manager, who will be able to set up other users. 2 User Managers are now allowed per district.
- The timeline for allocating commodity dollars in WBSCM will be the same as TX-UNPS. Please wait for TDA to open the process in January.
- TDA is beginning to send out reimbursement payments for USDA Foods delivery fees. There was not enough money to pay all fees this year, so only delivery fees will be reimbursed. You can view your amount on the spreadsheet HERE.
Training
TDA has been working very hard on updating their online training. You can find the Online Education and Self Study HERE.
Verification
The Verification Report was due November 28. If you did not complete one or were late submitting it, you will be receiving a CAD.
Administrative Review (AR)/Procurement Review (PR) Common Findings to Date
Certification and Benefit Issuance
- Timeline not met
- Missing information on letters
- Not using the correct Income Eligibility Guidelines
- Updating benefit issuance lists from Direct Certification (DC)
Meal Components and Quantities
- Insufficient components for meal pattern
- insufficient vegetable subgroups
Meal Counting and Claiming
- Edit checks don't match claim — 1 meal per student
- Not claiming at correct eligibility
- Overt identification
- Claim completed incorrectly
PR: FSMC invoices are not being reviewed for correctness and completeness
- Does the number of meals match the claim?
- Non-program foods?
- Are you being charged correctly?
Financial Report
The financial report will open on January 1, 2024, and be due on April 1. The submission method will be announced soon, and the report will be for the 2022-2023 fiscal period.
You can watch the recording HERE.
View the slides:
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GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
Supporting Community Agriculture and Local Education Systems (Project SCALES)
Led by the Center for School and Community Partnerships at Boise State University, these projects will increase the procurement of locally sourced foods by developing innovative partnerships between schools and producers, growers, and processors. In addition, schools will be supported in the preparation of the foods and promoting them to students. Project SCALES was awarded $16.1 million and will provide two cohorts with sub-grants of up to $150,000 each (70 total). Two informational webinars on this grant opportunity will be held on December 6, 2023 (English) and December 13, 2023 (Spanish). Applications for the first cohort will close on January 26, 2024. Applications for the second cohort will open in 2025.
Find more information HERE.
Partnerships for Local Agriculture & Nutrition Transformation in Schools (PLANTS)
Led by the Chef Ann Foundation, these projects will support regional efforts to expand scratch-cooked meal programs, increase equity, foster a resilient supply chain, and create scalable and sustainable change for school districts across the country. Chef Ann Foundation's PLANTS was awarded $7.8 million and will provide sub-grants of $500,000-$600,000 to each of the eight awardees. These grants will increase opportunities for regional small- and mid-scale producers, aggregators, and processors to become part of the K-12 school food market. Applications will close on January 22, 2024.
Find more information HERE.
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4th ROUND SUPPLY CHAIN ASSISTANCE GRANT
TDA is distributing Round 4 Supply Chain Assistance (SCA) funds to eligible CEs. These funds are to exclusively purchase unprocessed or minimally processed domestic food products where CEs have experienced unanticipated cancelation of food and supply contracts, reduced availability of certain foods, unexpected substitution of certain products, unpredictable increases in food and supply prices, and other obstacles related to pricing and/or availability. USDA expects that these funds, in addition to any unspent funds from the previous allocations, will support operations in the school year 2023-24.
Public, charter, private nonprofit schools, and Resident Child Care Institutions (RCCIs) are eligible for SCA funding if they meet the following criteria:
- Currently operate the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and/or School Breakfast Program (SBP)
- Have claim data for the month of May 2023
- Encountered supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 public health emergency
- Faced financial difficulties because of those supply chain disruptions
TDA understands that many district situations have improved. As such, many have declined subsequent rounds of SCA funding. Therefore, to most efficiently identify recipients and allocate remaining funds, TDA requests that eligible CEs submit the required attestation form to certify eligibility and attest to understanding and adhering to the funding requirements by December 18, 2023.
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USDA FOODS UPDATES
WHY CHANGE? EVERYTHING'S FINE!
TIMELINE
We have now completed the training phase of the WBSCM Transition and are preparing for the statewide launch!
NEXT STEPS
TDA has planned weekly labs to assist CE's with the ordering process. There will be three to four one-hour sessions each day for six weeks. Each week will focus on a different WBSCM ordering topic. Please check out the information below and register for sessions that could help you out! When registering, be sure to select that you are an RA. If RA spots have been filled, you can select the "more options" button to see available dates and times.
REMIX
WBSCM TRAINING SCHEDULE
WEEK 1 • JANUARY 8-12
WBSCM Prep Activities with TDA
WEEK 2 • JANUARY 16-22
Create draft Fruit and Vegetable Requisitions with TDA
WEEK 3 • JANUARY 23-26
Create all other draft Direct Delivery Requisitions with TDA
WEEK 4 • JANUARY 29-FEBRUARY 2
QA WBSCM Direct Delivery Requisitions & Submit
WEEK 5 • FEBRUARY 5-9
Week off
WEEK 6 • FEBRUARY 12-16
Create draft Processing Requisitions with TDA
WEEK 7 • FEBRUARY 20-26
QA WBSCM Processing Diversion Requisitions & Submit
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DEAR ROSIE,
I have several students who require meal accommodations for special dietary needs. In the past, I was able to manage my special diets through my regular menu, but this year I have more complicated diets and am having to offer special items to certain students. Do I record this on my production record, and how?
Sincerely,
Confused
Hi Confused,
Special diets are a bit of a conundrum! First, you have to figure out what your student can or cannot eat. Then, you have to know how to record it. When special diets are managed through the regular menu, no notation on the production record is required. However, if special items are prepared, they must be recorded on the production record. The menu planner can include the items on the planned production record, or the kitchen manager or staff can write the items in.
For more information on accommodating students with special diets, please visit Section 25 of the ARM.
You can also reach out to your ESC specialist.
Sincerely,
ROSIE
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TURN UP THE VOLUME: DEADLINES APPROACHING
DECEMBER 18
4th Round SCA Grant Attestation Due
JANUARY 1
Financial Report Opens
JANUARY 31
Summer Mandate Due in TX-UNPS
FEBRUARY 1
On-Site Reviews Complete
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RESOURCES AND LINKS
- Administrative Review Resources on our website
- SNA 2023-24 Promotional Calendar
- 2023-24 Breakfast and Lunch Meal Pattern Chart
- The ICN On-Demand Training
- SNA Recipe Library
- A Yummy Curriculum
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REQUEST TIME: REGISTER FOR A CLASS
DECEMBER 6
WBSCM Fundamentals
JANUARY 25
The Monthly Rewind Webinar (virtual)
FEBRUARY 28
NSLP Financial Coding and Reporting Requirements
FEBRUARY 29
The Monthly Rewind Webinar (virtual)
MARCH 20
Local Wellness Policy/ Smart Snacks
MARCH 28
The Monthly Rewind Webinar
APRIL 10
Food Production Records
APRIL 17-19
Financial Management: A Course for SNP Directors and Procurement of Foods (co-Ops)
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ESC REGION 11 CHILD NUTRITION
Email: padams@esc11.net
Website: https://www.esc11.net/childnutrition
Location: 1451 South Cherry Lane, White Settlement, TX, USA
Phone: 817-740-7545
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ESC11ChildNutrition