June Announcements

School Nutrition Program

Let the summer begin!

Please review the TXUNPS SSO Site Applications. If you have any that are pending or approved that will not be operating then cancel or delete them.

Site Application Status: Pending = Delete or Approved = Cancel

Seamless Summer Option Resources

Important Dates

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Virtual Directors Day ~ June 12
SY 24-25 CEP Application ~ Due June 30
Run Year-to-Date DC Report ~ During June 5-26
DC database closed for maintenance ~ June 27
SY 24-25 SNP Application ~ Due July 1
Attachment B Uploads module opens in TX-UNPS ~ July 1
National School Lunch Week resource order form opens ~ July 1
FSMC New Contracts and Renewals must be signed and executed. Signed and executed must be submitted to TDA ~ July 1
WBSCM Users transition eAuth to Login.gov ~ Due September
June 30, 2023 SNP fund balance required for PLE Exemption
PY Ends June 30 ~ If you have a Sole Source such as the POS system submit the

Emergency/Sole Source Procurement Request

FSMC may attend Summer Workshop

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List of Sessions

Food Service Management Company staff are allowed to attend the ESC6 Summer Workshop. This does not include Consultants.

Dates: July 9-11

Summer workshops are a valuable tool for continuing education for district staff operating

child nutrition programs. There are no restrictions on attendance for district-employed staff.

Each district will be permitted to take one food service management company (FSMC)

employee, who may attend these sessions if accompanied by the district staff person

responsible for contract management and oversight. FSMC attendees must pay a $50

participation fee to attend and may not charge the cost to the nonprofit school lunch

program or use federal nutrition funds for the expense.

The following are clarifications for FSMC attendance:

• FSMC representatives are to be accompanied by a CE representative but may attend

a different class. It is the responsibility of the CE representative to handle the

oversight of the information gained, which is usually a district liaison.

*Please do not register through online registration. The cost for attending will include $12 a day for lunch.

Instructions for FSMC Staff:

Email all: tholcombe@esc6.net;jasmith@esc6.net;cscott@esc6.net;dherrick@esc6.net
Provide your name and the name of the district-employed staff attending the summer workshop.
Provide the session number(s) you plan to attend. A list of sessions is attached to this email.
Provide a PO for the payment. 1 Day = $62, 2 Days = $74 or 3 Days = $86. If paying with a credit card, please notify us in the email. Tona Holcombe will contact you with instructions.

For registration, you must have an ESC6 account. For assistance please contact our Staff Development department at (936) 435-8295 or send an email to kcook@esc6.net.

Kathy Cook

Staff Development Registrar

kcook@esc6.net

936-435-8295

Announcements!

June 20: Expanded Geographic Preference Option Webinar

Partners Webinar on the Expanded Geographic Preference Option in the Final Rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans

On Thursday, June 20, from 2:00 – 3:00 PM EDT, USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Patrick Leahy Farm to School Team (USDA Farm to School Team) will host a webinar for farm to school partners, including Child Nutrition Program (CNP) operators, on the expanded geographic preference option in the final rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The final rule includes a small yet significant expansion of the geographic preference provision. Beginning July 1, 2024, the provision will permit CNP operators to use local as a specification when procuring unprocessed agricultural products. The USDA Farm to School Team will provide an overview to help farm to school partners share and learn about the expanded geographic preference option.

The registration link for the webinar can be found at: https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_qHl2cI11THCBXLblzVc0iA

Non-Congregate Waiver: Extreme Heat/Poor Air Quality

TDA has released the new Waiver Request to Serve Summer Non-Congregate Meals in Cases of Extreme Heat/Poor Air Quality. This form must be used to report non-congregate meals served at outdoor SFSP or SSO sites when one or both of the following has occurred in the area where the site is located:

· The National Weather Service (NWS) issues a Heat Advisory, Excessive Heat Warning, or Excessive Heat Watch (https://www.weather.gov/safety/heat-ww)

· The Environmental Protection Agency has issued a purple flag or higher air quality warning for the area (https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/)

Summer operators can access the form in TX-UNPS by going to either the SFSP or SSO module, select Applications, and then Download Forms (Form SFSP-009 for SFSP and Form SNP-009 for SSO). Note that the form can also be accessed from the waiver portal located in SNP-000.

SY 24-25 PLE Tool

The new Paid Lunch Equity tool for the upcoming 2024-2025 School Year has been posted to the NSLP Administration/Forms page:

https://squaremeals.org/Programs/National-School-Lunch-Program/Administration-Forms

NSLP/SBP Household Applications

The following SNP-related forms have been released and posted. All below documents can be found in the Forms table at: https://squaremeals.org/Programs/NationalSchoolLunchProgram/NSLPAdministrationamp;Forms.aspx

· School Meal Applications

· 2024-2025 Standard (Multi-Child) Application for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals (English and Spanish versions)

· 2024-2025 Multi-Use Application for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals (English and Spanish versions)

· 2024-2025 Multi-Child Application for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals (Nonpublic School Version) (English and Spanish versions)

· 2024-2025 Application Directions (English and Spanish versions)

· 2024-2025 Application Letter to the Household for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals (English and Spanish versions)

(NOTE: The documents listed above can also be accessed at: https://squaremeals.org/Programs/NationalSchoolLunchProgram/EligibilityandVerification/HouseholdApplications.aspx

Additionally, the following Special Milk Program documents have been released and posted at: http://squaremeals.org/Programs/SpecialMilkProgram/SMPAdministrationamp;Forms.aspx

· 2024-2025 Multi-Child Application for Free Milk (English and Spanish versions)

· 2024-2025 Application Directions (English and Spanish versions)

· 2024-2025 Application Letter to the Household for Free Milk (English and Spanish versions)

Revised Onsite Food Production Record

TDA has released a revised Daily Food Production Record suite for the School Nutrition Programs. The Onsite Kitchen Production Record along with associated instructions have been updated so that school districts can better document both the amounts planned for each food/menu item as well as the number of portions of each food/menu item served. Additional functional improvements were also added to the Onsite Form.

Note that the Central Kitchen and Receiving Kitchen forms have not changed from the last version and will be updated at a later date.

This form is available on the NSLP Administration/Forms page.

Presidentially Declared Disaster Areas

This information was sent yesterday regarding the Declared Disaster in Houston in case you received any questions. Please see the email below that was sent to the schools in the Houston area that may be acting as shelters and utilizing USDA commodities.

Here is the link in Squaremeals that has the information for the schools.

https://squaremeals.org/Programs/Food-Assistance-for-Disaster-Relief

As of 5/15/2024, the following (7) counties in the Houston Region have been presidentially declared disaster areas: Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, Polk, San Jacinto, Trinity, and Walker counties.

If your organization is acting as a shelter and/or utilizing NSLP/USDA Foods commodities to support disaster relief efforts in any of these counties, you will soon receive a link from the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) to complete important documentation. In the forthcoming communication from TDA, you will receive detailed procedures that you must follow regarding the utilization of NSLP/USDA Foods commodities for disaster relief purposes.

Your cooperation in completing the required documentation and adhering to the outlined procedures is crucial for effective disaster response and ensuring that resources are distributed efficiently to those in need.

Farewell TXUNPS - Welcome TANS

At MegaCon, TDA announced the development of a new nutritional system called the Texas Automated Nutrition System (TANS). TANS is a web-based system that brings current technology, modern software and simplifies the user experience. TANS will be directly managed by TDA which will allow for the flexibility to adapt to regulatory changes more easily.

Beginning with program year 2026, program sponsors, ESC users, and TDA staff will administer nutrition programs through TANS. Management of applications, claims, monitoring and compliance, reporting and other administrative functions will be in TANS for the following programs:

School Nutrition Programs
Child and Adult Care Food Program
Summer Meal Programs
Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
Special Milk Program
Food Distribution Program

Updates, guidance, and resources related to the transition can be found on SquareMeals/TANS, in upcoming newsletters, and through program sponsor calls.