This webinar details guidance and best practices for incorporating integrity-oriented design features into web-based school meal applications.
The purpose of this memo is to clarify Smart Snacks standards for exempt foods that are paired together as a single snack.
To ensure program integrity, school districts must sample household applications certified for free or reduced-price meals, contact the households, and verify eligibility. This process (known as household verification) can be burdensome for both school officials and households. Direct verification uses information from certain other means-tested programs to verify eligibility without contacting applicants. Potential benefits include: less burden for households, less work for school officials, and fewer students with school meal benefits terminated because of nonresponse to verification requests.
Today’s unpredictable economy has made it important to consider accounting for the fluctuating costs of goods and services that are beyond the control of either the school food authority or the vendor.