School Food Authority

Students eating lunch

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

IleneAgustin@csi.state.co.us

___________

Maggie Necaise

School Nutrition Specialist

(720) 626-2648

maggienecaise@csi.state.co.us

___________

Maggie Smart

School Nutrition Specialist

(720) 765-8336

MaggieSmart@csi.state.co.us

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.

Public Release

This section is updated with required public releases.

 

New to SFA

If you are thinking about joining the SFA, here are some starting resources.

 

General Resources/Memorandum of Understanding

Use these resources to assist with compliance with the MOU. The CSI Wellness policy is a requirement of the National School Lunch Program that must be implemented.

 

Resources by Topic

Procurement

If you are equipment please reach out to CSI Director of Nutrition prior to purchase.

Civil Rights

These are the annual Civil Rights documents requirements.

Menu Planning

This section provides resources to ensure compliance with the NSB and NSLP meal patterns.

Healthy School Meals for All

Use this section for outreach to families related to All Kids eating for free.This is a state funded program that provides free breakfast and/or lunch to all students at participating schools.

Special Dietary Needs

Please ensure the letter to parents and Medical statement is communicated with families via website or other form of communication. Ensure medical statements are on file for all students with disabilities.

Smart Snacks and Fundraisers

Use these resources if offering ala carte or fundraisers. Each school needs to have the Non-Exempt fundraiser documentation on site annually.

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program

This section provides resources for parents and staff related to FFVP.

Free and Reduced Meal Eligibility

Families may be eligible for free or reduced priced meals that can assist with benefits outside of meals such as transportation fees and Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer (SEBT).  Use this section for additional resources.

Logs

Please use this link to find HACCP manual, monthly logs, professional development and other requirements for compliance.

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; or
  2. Fax:
    (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
  3. Email:
    program.intake@usda.gov

This institution is an equal opportunity provider. 

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