The Minisink Valley School District is amending its policy for serving meals for children served under the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program beginning in 2024-25 school year, which will now allow for students in all buildings to be served meals for FREE.

This implementation is a result of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) expanding access to the federal Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). CEP allows eligible schools participating in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs to offer school meals at no charge to all students.

cafeteria line of students This change will become effective Sept. 5, 2024 will be in place through June 30, 2029. There is no action required by parents/guardians in order for students to receive free meals.

It’s important to stress that this funding does not come from local school tax dollars. It comes from federal and state taxes based upon the number of breakfasts and lunches served.

“We encourage our families to show their support for our school food service program by taking advantage of this tremendous opportunity,” said Superintendent Brian Monahan. “We’re pleased the district met all the qualification requirements and to again emphasize, funding does not come from local school tax dollars.”

student on cafeteria line With the district’s CEP designation, all students attending in person can receive one “complete” breakfast and one “complete” lunch per school day at no cost, eliminating out-of-pocket expenses for families. According to New York State guidelines, in order to access the free meal benefit, a student must take what counts as a complete meal, which means choosing at least three of the five components (including a vegetable or fruit). Food Services staff will guide students in understanding what makes a complete meal.

A complete breakfast consists of four components to choose from:

Whole Grains: 2-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1)
Protein: 1-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1)
Fruit: 4-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1 or 2)
Milk: 8-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1)

Note: Students must choose at least three components offered with one of those being a fruit or an incomplete meal will be charged at à la carte prices.

A complete lunch consists of 5 components:

Whole Grains: 2-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1)
Protein: 2-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1)
Vegetable: 4-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1 or 2)
Fruit: 4-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1 or 2)
Milk: 8-ounce equivalent serving (choose 1)

Note: Students must choose at least three components offered with one of those being a vegetable or fruit or an incomplete meal will be charged at à la carte prices.

students with grilled cheese sandwiches “Our goal is to ensure that we serve well-balanced, healthy meals and that our students enjoy what they eat,” said Director of Food Service Cheryl Bellew. “Our Food Services team is dedicated to our students’ nutritional health and well-being. We know meal breaks are a critically important part of the school day, for both their nutritional and social-emotional importance.”

However, there’s no change to à la carte items purchases. Students must purchase these extra items. In addition, only the first breakfast and first lunch of the day are free. A second breakfast or second lunch would need to be purchased. Student accounts must have sufficient funds in their prepaid accounts for these purchases.

Monthly menus continue to be available for viewing on the district’s website. School meal programs, planned with student preferences in mind, offer breakfast and lunch meals that meet strict federal nutrition standards, aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

For additional information, please call the Food Services Department at 845-355-5116.

Athletics

District’s newly earned CEP designation allows for free meals for all students for the next five years beginning with 2024-25 school year