About the Outreach Toolkits

Our common goal is to increase participation in the Food Stamp Program (FSP). Our purpose is to ensure that those going through difficult times can feed their families healthy, nutritious food. By working as a team, we can accomplish these goals.

Most of you probably wear several hats. Doing outreach is just one aspect of your job. Having a variety of templates and practical “nuts and bolts” tips makes it easier for you to do your job, helps you learn from others and establish relationships with like-minded partners. These toolkits provide those resources and will save you time and money.

Feel free to copy pages from the toolkits to share with partners and colleagues. The toolkits are in the public domain and may be copied without permission.

Limited quantities of hard copy toolkits were printed. If you received a hard copy, it includes a complete set of resource CDs containing outreach resources and templates. Use the CDs to customize the outreach resources and templates with your organization’s name and contact information. If you make such changes, please remove the USDA logo. The electronic files on the resource CDs are in Quark Xpress, Adobe Illustrator, or Adobe InDesign so you may need the assistance of a graphic artist or professional printer to make such modifications. The templates are also available in Word on this web page.

What Toolkits are Available?

There are TWO toolkits, developed with you in mind.

	State/Local Food Stamp Agencies Outreach Toolkit Intended for State or local Food Stamp Program offices, this toolkit has in-depth information on how to develop and maintain collaborative partnerships and offers information on how to submit promising practices.
	Community Partner Outreach Toolkit Intended for community and faith-based organizations, this toolkit includes an in-depth section on how to conduct media relations and develop partnerships with other community organizations as well as with State/local FSP offices.

Both toolkits include a DVD of “Community Hunger Champions: Eating Right When Money’s Tight.”

Both toolkits also contain a number of ready-to-use templates that you can customize for your outreach activities.

How is my Toolkit Updated?

Keeping your toolkit up-to-date is important. Since facts and figures change and new ideas crop up often, your toolkit is designed to be upgraded. There is no formal schedule of when the updates will be made, please check this website at least once a year. The hard copy toolkits are designed for 3-ring binders, so you can add new sections with ease.

Need More Information?

Do you have questions about your toolkit? Is there a section that requires further clarification? Are there additional topics you would like to see included? Don’t hesitate to ask us for help or technical assistance. Please send an email to fspoutreach@fns.usda.gov.


 

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