Food and Nutrition Programs

Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) Technical Assistance Sessions for School Districts Newly Eligible for CEP

To:	National School Lunch Program Directors
From:	Robert M. Leshin, Acting Director Office for Nutrition, Health and Safety Programs
Date:	February 24, 2016

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's Office for Nutrition, Health and Safety Programs is providing follow up technical assistance opportunities for districts interested in applying to participate in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). School Nutrition Directors that have attended previous CEP trainings and would like additional assistance can attend one or both of the following sessions:

The first is the opportunity for hands on Technical Assistance Sessions with ESE staff focused on helping districts build the master roster needed to apply for CEP as well as providing tips for vetting partial match results from direct certification, and
The second is a CEP Application Webinar that will provide step by step instructions on completing the CEP application process in the ESE security portal.

The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA), amended section 11(a) (1) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42.U.S.C.1759a (a) (1)), requires the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide an alternative to household eligibility applications for free and reduced price meal eligibility in high poverty local educational agencies (LEAs). This initiative is referred to as the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) and is available to all LEAs that have eligible sites. CEP can help schools achieve their educational goals by ensuring that children in low-income communities have access to healthy meals at school so they are ready to learn. In this program, schools agree to offer breakfast and lunch at no charge to all students. Designed to ease the burden of administering a high volume of applications for free and reduced price meals, CEP is a powerful tool to both increase universal access to child nutrition programs and reduce paperwork at the district, school, and household levels.

Technical Assistance Sessions:

Date/ Time	Location
Thursday, March 3,2016 Session One: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon Session Two: 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm	Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Malden, MA: Room 327
Tuesday, March 8, 2016 Session One: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon Session Two: 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm	Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Malden, MA: Room 327
Monday, March 14, 2016 Session One: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon Session Two: 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm	Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Malden, MA: Room 327
Wednesday, March 30, 2016 Session One: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon Session Two: 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm	Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Malden, MA: Room 327

Important Registration Information Space is limited. To register and for directions for the "Technical Assistance Sessions", please go to Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) Technical Assistance Sessions. Participants need to bring electronic copies of the following:

Current school district eligibility roster (on a flash drive),
Current school district enrollment roster (on a flash drive), and
Virtual Gateway login and password.

CEP Application Webinar:

Date/ Time	Location
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm	Webinar

Important Registration Information Log on instructions for the webinar will be sent to registrants the week before the webinar. To register for the "CEP Application Webinar", please go to CEP Application Webinar.

For Assistance
Please contact the Kerry Callahan at 781-338-6461 or by email at kcallahan@doe.mass.edu if you have any questions related to the training(s). For registration assistance, please contact Marisol Montes at 781-338-6494 or by email at mmontes@doe.mass.edu. Snow Policy
If school is cancelled in the city/town where the meeting is being held, then the meeting is cancelled and will be rescheduled. Additional Information
Temperature conditions are beyond our control. Please come prepared with a light sweater or jacket if necessary. We look forward to seeing you at this important training session, as the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's Office for Nutrition, Health and Safety Programs strive to enhance the efficiency and quality of Child Nutrition Programs across the Commonwealth.

Last Updated: February 23, 2016