Grant Allocations & Awards: FY2018
Fund Code: 722
School Nutrition Equipment Assistance Grant for High Need Districts
| Funds Allocated: | $373,998 (Federal) |
| Funds Requested: | $1,421,571 |
| Purpose: The purpose of the School Nutrition Equipment Assistance Grant for High Need Districts is to encourage eligible schools to increase their capacity to serve healthier meals that meet the 2017-2018 USDA meal pattern as part of participating in the National School Lunch Program. Grants are recommended to school districts for specific schools. The school districts must have participated in the National School Lunch Program during the 2016-2017 school year and be in good standing with the Child Nutrition Program reporting requirements, including being in compliance with the new meal pattern regulations. Priority was given to schools that have 50 percent or more students eligible for free and reduced- priced meals and did not receive a School Nutrition Equipment Assistance for High Need Districts grant in 2010 (ARRA), 2011 (USDA), or FY14, FY15, FY16, FY 17 (USDA). The Office for Food and Nutrition Programs received forty-three grant proposals (representing 86 schools); a total of twenty-six grants for $373,998 are recommended. | |
| Number of Proposals Received: | 43 |
| Number of Proposals Recommended: | 25 |
| Number of Proposals Not Recommended: | Schools and districts that we not funded scored lower than those that were funded, most commonly because the school had received a prior School Nutrition Equipment Assistance for High Need Districts grant in 2010 (ARRA), 2011 (USDA), or FY14, FY15, FY16, FY17 (USDA) or requested funds for items deemed ineligible by the USDA. There were seventeen such proposals. |
| Result of Funding: Twenty-five school districts representing thirty-six schools are recommended for grants ranging in amounts from $3,094 to $20,000. In general, the funds may be used for purchasing equipment for the implementation of the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in (and only in) the specific school requesting the grant. Examples include equipment for heating, cooking, holding, serving, and refrigeration of foods used in the NSLP. The grant funds can be used for installation and delivery costs of the equipment purchased. If the equipment purchased for the school is ever sold, the proceeds must be returned to the School's Nutrition Program Account. All equipment purchased with these grant funds must be tagged with a label identifying it as being purchased with FY18 USDA School Nutrition Assistance Grant Funds. The goal of the competitive grant is to enhance and improve the school breakfast and national school lunch programs so that all students will receive the nutrition they need to achieve in school. Equipment such as a refrigerator or freezer increases the capacity of schools to store and offer a wider variety of fruits and vegetables from which the students can choose. Investing in cooking equipment such as tilt skillets, steamers, and convection ovens enhances the quality, safety, and appeal of meals offered to students by improving cooking methods, such as batch cooking closer to when the meal is served. The equipment also helps the school meet the USDA meal pattern requirements. Schools with fewer hungry students benefit from students that are more engaged in learning; visit the school nurse less for hunger pains; and have improved attendance. Reducing these barriers to learning and increasing the overall health of students supports the effectiveness of the school. | |
| Recipients | Amounts |
|---|---|
| Brookline Public Schools | $17,291 |
| Cape Cod Technical School | 7,208 |
| Chicopee Public Schools | 48,818 |
| CREST | 6,629 |
| Cristo Rey Boston High School | 6,833 |
| Crystal Springs | 14,903 |
| Farmington River Regional SD | 8,748 |
| Gardner Public Schools | 16,862 |
| Gil Montague | 6,471 |
| Greater New Bedford RVTHS | 5,257 |
| Hamilton-Wenham RSD | 6,611 |
| Latham Centers | 9,842 |
| Leominster Public Schools | 6,600 |
| MA Dept. of Youth Services | 7,569 |
| Newburyport Public Schools | 20,000 |
| North Adams Public School | 7,376 |
| Old Rochester Regional School District | 7,880 |
| Quabbin Regional School District | 6,500 |
| Saugus Public Schools | 13,461 |
| Schools for Children | 20,000 |
| South Middlesex Regional Vocational Technical (Keefe Regional Technical School) | 12,820 |
| Southbridge Public Schools | 57,952 |
| Springfield Public Schools | 41,159 |
| Webster Public Schools | 10,000 |
| Wellfleet School Committee | 7,208 |
| Total Federal Funds | $373,998 |