Food and Nutrition Programs

School Meals Communication Plan for School Year 2025-2026

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's Office for Food and Nutrition Programs (FNP) aims to clearly support Child Nutrition Program operators through consistent communication and shared best practices. FNP offers various learning opportunities for School Food Authorities (SFAs) operating all Child Nutrition Programs. Register for Tuesdays at 2 to stay informed and connected.

Tuesdays at 2

DESE as a Partner — In Person Workshops

These workshops are project based and provide an opportunity to network with members of FNP and other School Nutrition Professionals who have shared goals. Participants may be required to complete the prescribed eLearning before attending in person.

New Regional Collaborations

New this year is the option for DESE to come to you for an in-person workshop! The workshops are available on request and will be offered on Thursdays from 10:00am-1:00pm. Workshops are available at no cost.

• DESE will conduct a workshop at a host school
• Must have a commitment from at least three Food Service Directors to book
• Training Topics for Regional Requests include:
  • Cycle Menu Workshop — Participants will be led through an activity of building a cycle menu! Hands on support will make your goal of having a cycle menu a reality.
  • *Coming in 2026* Managing Meal Modifications — Participants will leave more confident in their process for communicating, managing, and operationalizing meal modifications.

Workshop Wednesdays

• All events are at no cost and are held at DESE's Office at 135 Santilli Highway, Everett MA.
• There is ample parking available along with a cafeteria with working space for those who wish to avoid traveling in high traffic times.
• Public Wi-Fi will be available, and bringing your own laptops is encouraged. (laptops are not available onsite)

Request Registration for individual events:

• October 29^th, Program Integrity Intensive (Invite Only): An invitation only opportunity for districts to receive custom support around school meal program operations. Learn in a small group setting ways to overcome common barriers to compliance and brainstorm opportunities to make your program shine!
• November 5^th, Farm to School : Open to any district or CACFP operator interested in farm to school and food literacy.
• December 3^rd, Food Service Management Company Template : Opportunity for district staff to discuss the procurement process for Food Service Management Companies.
• January 28^th, Managing Meal Modifications Open to any district who would like to understand a school's responsibility for communicating, managing, and operationalizing meal modifications.
• March 4^th, USDA Foods Entitlement Orders : Open to any district who would like support making entitlement selections and entering orders into the security portal.
• April 29^th, New to District Orientation : Open to any Food Service Director or Business Manager who is new to their role or changed districts in the past 5 years.

Nuts and Bolts of School Nutrition Programs

Summer Nuts and Bolts of School Nutrition Programs

The Warren Conference Center, 529 Chestnut St, Ashland, MA 01721
August 5^th & 6^th 7:30am–3:15pm

The Nuts & Bolts of School Nutrition Programs 2025 Summer Conference provides an opportunity for School Nutrition Directors, Assistant Directors, and Business Managers to gather with Educational Specialists at DESE to network and learn about core regulatory concepts in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program. This year's conference has a strong focus on the future of school meals and orienting participants to resources that can help them make decisions to optimize their compliant program operations. Networking opportunities will be structured into the day to allow participants to connect with fellow School Nutrition Professionals, DESE staff and partners. There is a cost to register as Breakfast and Lunch will be provided. Agenda Includes:

August 5^th: Administration and Finance:

• Setting you up for success for this school year
• Innovations to FNP support
• Procurement Best Practices for Everyday Purchases
• Financial Management
• Implementing Child Nutrition Program Civil Rights Requirements

August 6^th: Nutrition and Operations:

• Massachusetts School Meals, the Path Forward
• Menu Strategy Matrix, a Tool for Program Progression.
• Using USDA Foods in Recipe Development
• Buy American — Tracking Food Purchasing with Purpose
• Documenting Lunch Menu Compliance

Nuts and Bolts of School Nutrition Programs OnDemand

Compliance-Focused eLearning

Through our partnership with the John C Stalker Institute, we are expanding and improving our eLearning catalog on program compliance, outlined below. We have a growing suite of courses in Nuts and Bolts of School Nutrition Programs On-Demand. These courses have been created for use by a variety of roles in School Nutrition Programs. You can sort for courses that are targeted at School Nutrition Directors vs Front Line staff. These courses will be available in the Training Toolbox to make documenting professional standards easy. New and updated courses will be released every August and January so stay tuned for future releases.

Nutrition:

• Introduction to Child Nutrition Program Meal Patterns
  • Food Component: Fruit
  • Food Component: Fluid Milk
  • Food Components: Vegetables
• Division of Responsibility with Meal Modifications
  • Communicating Modified Meals to Families
  • Ensuring Dietary Inclusivity for Religious Observance

Administration:

• Civil Rights in Child Nutrition Programs
• Introduction to CEP
  • CEP Application Process
  • Completing the April Report
• Guide to Operating the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
• Operating the Summer Food Service Program

Operations:

• Introduction to USDA Foods
  • USDA Foods: Brown Box Entitlement
    • USDA Foods: Ordering Brown Box from the Warehouse
  • USDA Foods: Processing Entitlement
  • USDA Foods: DoD Entitlement
• Food Safety Series: Introduction to Food Safety
  • Food Safety Series: Cross Contamination
  • Food Safety Series: Time & Temperature
  • Food Allergies in Schools (also available in Spanish)
• Introduction to Procurement in Child Nutrition Programs
  • Informal Procurement
  • Introduction to Local Foods in CACFP
  • Buy American Provision

For any questions related to these resources please contact Denise Courtney at 781-338-6467 or by email at Denise.Courtney@mass.gov . You will receive confirmation of your registration via email and will be prompted to save the events in an electronic calendar for easy access to login.