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Summer Food Service Program

The Summer Food Service Program is designed to fill the nutrition gap and make sure children can get the nutritious meals they need.

During the school year, many children receive free and reduced-price breakfast and lunch through the School Breakfast and National School Lunch Programs. What happens when school lets out? Hunger is one of the most severe roadblocks to the learning process. Lack of nutrition during the summer months may set up a cycle for poor performance once school begins again. Hunger also may make children more prone to illness and other health issues. The Summer Food Service Program is designed to fill the nutrition gap and make sure children can get the nutritious meals they need.

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Am I eligible to sponsor a program?

Organizations that can serve as sponsors must be:

  • A public school food authority
  • A public or nonprofit private residential summer camp
  • Units of a local, city, county, tribal or state government
  • A public or private nonprofit college or university that participates in the National Youth Sports Program
  • A private, non-profit (501(c)(3) organization

If my organization is eligible, what next?

  • Contact the Oklahoma State Department of Education Child Nutrition Programs’ (OSDE-CNP) office at 405-521-3327 and speak with the Summer Food Service Program Coordinator.
  • You must attend a state-mandated Summer Food Service Program training.
  • Ensure that your sites are located in an area in which at least 50 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches.  Your local school district or the OSDE-CNP office can help you with this. 

What else do I need to get started?

Kids
Children 18 years old and under, along with people up to 21 years old participating in state education programs for the mentally or physically disabled, can receive summer meals.

Meal Sites
Sites are usually parks, schools, playgrounds, gymnasiums, community centers, churches, apartment complexes, or day camps.  They will be approved as “eligible” during the application process. 

Staff
Employees are needed to manage meal sites, prepare meals, and administer the Summer Food Program.  Employees can be volunteers or paid with funds left over after food is purchased.  Among the employees needed is a bookkeeper to compile financial and administrative records, a manager to ensure the sites are well organized and easy to manage, and staff willing to coordinate and communicate with Summer Food Program staff to receive technical assistance and needed support. 

What other responsibilities do sponsors have?

For a sponsor, there are program regulations and policies (both at the federal and state agency level) to ensure the program is run accordingly.  The most important of these includes:

  • Serving meals that meet USDA standards as well as state policies and procedures,
  • Training all personnel working at a meal site,
  • Maintaining records related to meal production, meal counts, sponsor finances and nutrition education, and
  • Adhering to all contractual agreements made with the OSDE.  

Farm to Summer Resources

Content provided by the USDA to educate you on Farm to School, Tribal foods, and Local meat. For more information from the Food and Nutrition Service’s Office of Community Food Systems, please visit www.usda.gov/farmtoschool. Questions? Email us at farmtoschool@fns.usda.gov.

Public Notification
 

OK State Department of Education submitted a waiver request to USDA to waiver three processes in the operation of the Summer Food Service Programs. Approval of this wavier will provide the following benefits:

 

  • Waive requirement that closed enrolled sites determine eligibility based on documentation that at least half of the enrolled children at each site are eligible for free or reduced priced meals. 7 CFR 225.15(f)(1). 

  • Will allow returning site(s) that operated successfully during the previous summer (or other most recent period of operation) and had no serious deficiency findings and (b) SFSP sponsors in good standing in CACFP and NSLP, the requirement that sponsors shall visit each of their sites at least once during the first week of operation, 7 CFR 225.15(d)(2),  and sites operating one week or less, the requirement that sponsors shall visit each of their sites at least once during the first week of operation. 7 CFR 225.15(d)(2).

  • Waive requirement that three hours must elapse between the beginning of one meal service, including snacks, and the beginning of another, and requirement that the duration of the meal service shall be limited to two hours for lunch or supper and one hour for all other meals. 7 CFR 225.16(c)(2).

USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

 

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

 

To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
 

  1. Mail:
    U.S. Department of Agriculture
    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
    1400 Independence Avenue, SW
    Washington, D.C. 20250-9410
  2. Fax:
    (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442
  3. Email:
    program.intake@usda.gov


    This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Have Questions?

Contact:

Oklahoma State Department of Education
Child Nutrition Programs
2500 North Lincoln Boulevard
Oklahoma City, OK 73105-4599
405-521-3327

Last Modified on Feb 10, 2025
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