IDEA Public Schools Offers Free Meals through Community Eligibility Provision

RIO GRANDE VALLEY (July 27, 2017) –The Child Nutrition Program (CNP) at IDEA Public Schools recently announced a change to its policy for serving meals to children served under the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program for the 2017-2018 school year for qualifying schools. Schools qualifying to operate the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) provide breakfast and lunch to all children at no charge and eliminate the collection of meal applications for free, reduced-price, and paid student meals.

“Through the Community Eligibility Provision, we can ensure that more students will receive nutritious meals every day without burdening our families and school administrators,” said Dalia Pena, director of the Child Nutrition Program at IDEA Public Schools. “Free meals for more students means that they will have the energy they need to get through each school day as they progress on the road to and through college.”  

Given the recent tools, economic data, and formulas provided by Texas Department of Agriculture to help school districts identify students receiving benefits from the state, the IDEA CNP department was able to identify schools for the upcoming school year.  

The 26 IDEA qualifying schools for CEP in 2017-2018 are:

Families who attend a campus that is not on this list are asked to complete the free-and-reduced-lunch (FARM) application online at: https://schoolcafe.com/ or fill out the proper form and drop it off at their campus before the first day of school.

For additional information about the Community Eligibility Program (CEP), please contact the following person:

IDEA Public Schools

Attention:  Dalia Peña, CNP Director of Finance and Nutrition

Child Nutrition Program

IDEA Headquarters

2115 W. Pike Blvd., Weslaco, TX 78596

956-377-8000

dalia.pena@ideapublicschools.org

To learn more about IDEA Public Schools, please contact Kisella Cardenas at Kisella.cardenas@ideapublicschools.org, or (956) 998-9120.

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About IDEA Public Schools

IDEA Public Schools believes that each and every child can go to college. Since 2001, IDEA Public Schools has grown from a small school with 150 students to the fastest-growing network of tuition-free, Pre-K-12 public charter schools in the United States. Currently, the network serves nearly 36,000 college-bound students in 61 schools across three Texas regions. Additionally, IDEA boasts national rankings on The Washington Post and U.S. News & World Report’s top high schools lists and is on-track to maintain its legacy of sending 100% of its graduates to college.

In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter 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: (202) 690-7442; or (3) email: program.intake@usda.gov.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.