Outlook: Nutrition programs

              www.isbe.net/nutrition – 1 – MAY 2005
The
OUTLOOK
Nutrition Programs
Illinois State Board of Education
MAY 2005
b u l l e t i n
b o a rd
Please note The Outlook newsletter is developed monthly, for the time period of August through
May. Current years as well as archived files of this newsletter are available on our website at
www.isbe.net/nutrition.
2006 Free and Reduced-Price Applications
Posted Online May 19
The Child Nutrition and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Reauthorization Act of 2004
(Public Law 108-265), enacted June 30, 2004, amended sections of the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (NSLA) affecting the eligibility determination process for free and
reduced-price benefits under the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, and
the Special Milk Program for children. As a result of these changes, we updated the prototype
Free and Reduced-Price Application (formerly Household Income Eligibility Application) and related
materials for school year 2005–2006. The Free and Reduced-Price Application and related
materials will be available on our website no later than May 19, 2005. All forms used in prior
years to create copies for distribution should be discarded. The new application form must be
used. As information changes regularly, please continue to monitor our website (www.isbe.net/
nutrition) for current information.
Frequency of
Income—Change to
Process for School
Year 2005-06
The United States Department of
Agriculture has recently issued updated
guidance with regard to income conversion.
Many households have different sources of
income at different frequencies, such as weekly
or bi-weekly wages and monthly social security
benefits. Past practice has been to convert all
income to a monthly amount; USDA
established a conversion factor of 4.33 for
weekly income and 2.15 for bi-weekly income.
However, use of these conversion factors has
resulted in some perceived inconsistencies in
the relationship between converted amounts
and the weekly, bi-weekly, bi-monthly, and
monthly income limits shown in the published
Income Eligibility Guidelines (IEGs), which
are established by dividing annual income
In this issue…
2006 Free and Reduced-Price Applications Posted Online
May 19 ................................................................................ 1
Frequency of Income—Change to Process for School Year
2005-06 ............................................................................... 1
School Breakfast Program Start-Up Incentive Grant
Funding Still Available .................................................... 2
See you in June at the WIN Workshops! ........................... 2
Basic Training—A Guide to School-Based Child
Nutrition Programs .......................................................... 2
Questions and Answers ........................................................ 3
School Year 2006 August Allocation .................................. 3
School Year 2007 Reprocessed Commodity Taste Tests ... 4
Sunflower Butter B-477 ....................................................... 4
Save the Date for KidsFest! ................................................ 4
Schedule a Free Field Trip to KidsFest Today! ................ 5
Orientation to Child Nutrition Management Seminar ... 5
Recipe Makeovers ................................................................. 5
The Illinois Nutrition Education Training Library
Link—Have You Seen It? ................................................ 5
New Items in Loan Library ................................................ 6
Making It Happen! School Nutrition Success Stories
Available Now! .................................................................. 6
Summer Food Service Program Week ............................... 6
Highlight Important Weeks on Your 2006 Calendar ....... 6
WIN Workshops, How to Register Online ........................ 7
The 2005 Outlook Index (August 2004 Through May
2005) ................................................................................... 8
Calendar of Events .............................................................. 12