The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) is a federally funded meal program operating in public and nonprofit private schools. It provides nutritionally balanced, low-cost, or free lunches to children each school day.
In order to participate in the National School Lunch, National School Breakfast, or Afterschool Snack program, schools will need to be under a School Food Authority (SFA). Colorado Charter School Institute (CSI) School Food Authority can help you accomplish this goal.
CSI is also excited to announce that our schools under CSI will be participating in Healthy School Meals of All program for the school year 2024-2025.
Contact
Ilene Agustin
Director of School Nutrition
(720) 765-2981
___________
Maggie Necaise
School Nutrition Specialist
(720) 626-2648
___________
Maggie Smart
School Nutrition Specialist
(720) 765-8336
Why CSI?
- Federal Funding. Receive Federal Funding based upon the number of meals you serve. With CSI SFA, your school keeps its federal reimbursement for the meals served to your students.
- Autonomy. Autonomy in menu planning and operations. With the CSI SFA, your school can choose which service model you would like to use and how you would like to operate your kitchen.
- Cost Effective. With the CSI SFA, we keep the costs down. CSI charges a small fee of $0.14 per student breakfast, $0.22 per student lunch, and $0.09 per snack to help run your Nutrition program. For schools that are non-CSI schools we do charge an annual administrative overhead fee of $5,500.
- Grant opportunities. CSI SFA will notify you of any grant opportunities and assist you in applying for the numerous grant opportunities available to help fund your program.
- Extensive support. CSI SFA oversees processing of meal applications including meal application verification, reviews/submit claims for reimbursement, provides school nutrition staff training, assist with problems related to foodservice operations, ensures compliance with NSLP regulations, stays up to date on opportunities for schools to take advantage of, and provides guidance on school set up/maintain foodservice operations compliant with NSLP regulations.
- Titan and LINQ Nutrition software. With the CSI SFA, parents will have access to our user-friendly Parent LINQ Portal. This portal allows parents to see school menus (including food allergens), manage their child’s account, and apply for meal benefits right from the comfort of their home computer or cell phone. CSI SFA also provides technical support with schools and families.
- Unparalleled School Nutrition Experience. With the CSI SFA, school nutrition staff receive the training to help with processing meal applications, running direct certification for students throughout the year, completing school applications, processing claims, and understanding the regulations that must be followed to run a compliant food program. Our CSI School Nutrition Program Manager and our School Nutrition specialist are Registered Dietitians with over 20 years of combined experience working in the field of nutrition.
Communications
- Summer Feeding Resources [pdf]
- Public Release – English [docx] | Spanish [docx]
- School Food Authority Key Dates 24-25 [docx]
- Mid-Year CEP Letter to Households – English [pdf] | Spanish [pdf]
- FRL Application Instructions – English [pdf] | Spanish [pdf]
- CEP Public Release – Coming Soon
General Resources
- CSI School Food Authority Handbook [docx]
- CSI Wellness Policy
- Wellness Committee [pdf]
- Wellness Policy [docx]
- Triennial Report [zip]
- CDE Nutrition Resources
- FRL Eligility
- FRAC Building Strong School Nutrition Programs
- Team Nutrition
- Farm to School Program
- Wellness Policy Toolkit
- Child Nutrition Recruitment Tools
Resources by Topic
Procurement
Civil Rights
- Civil Rights Self-Study Guide for Child Nutrition Programs – English [pdf] | Spanish [pdf]
- Civil Rights Annual Training [pptx]
- Civil Rights Complaint Procedure [docx]
- Civil Rights Training Sign In Sheet [docx]
- USDA Non-discrimination Statement – English [docx] | Spanish [docx]
Menu Planning
- Breakfast Meal Pattern
- Exhibit A: School Lunch and Breakfast
- Fruits and Vegetables Guide to Crediting
- Grains Guide to Crediting
- Lunch Meal Pattern
- Acceptable Product Documentation for Meal Pattern Requirements
- Meat/Meat Alternate Guide to Crediting
- USDA Food Buying Guide
- Back to School Resources
- Offering Meat/Meat Alternatives at Breakfast
Healthy School Meals for All
Special Dietary Needs
- Accommodating Children with Disabilities
- Discontinuation of Site Meal Modifications – English [docx] | Spanish [docx]
- Medical Statement for Meal Modification – English [docx] | Spanish [docx]
- Dietary Preference Form for Meal Modification – English [docx] | Spanish [docx]
- Letter to Parents – English [docx] | Spanish [docx]
Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
Food Assistance
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:
- Mail:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or - Fax:
(833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or - Email:
program.intake@usda.gov
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.