Once approved for free/reduced price benefits, a household will remain eligible through September

30  of  the next school  year or  when  a new eligibility  determination is made  in the new school  year whichever comes first.

EligibilityProcess

The  online  Direct Certification  Matching  Process (DCMP)  offered  by NYSED  must be used by school  officials  to determine  eligibility  for free/reduced  meals and milk. DCMP  is a dataset  of those children and families already enrolled in the Food Stamp  program and Temporary  Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). Students enrolled in these programs are automatically qualified for free/reduced meals and milk.

1)      The online dataset provides confidential information to approved District officials, which includes:

case name, student's full name, date of birth, age, and address (street, city, state and zip).

2)      The online process allows users to search by a number of variables to insure that as many students as  possible  are enrolled.  School  staff are advised  to keep a record  of the zip codes  within their school district to use during the certification process.

3)      Schools  will need to carefully  review the data to ensure  they capture  children  whose  names are spelled differently, have moved, use nicknames, or have siblings with different last names.

4)      District users must certify that this direct certification data will remain confidential, in compliance with federal disclosure requirements. Districts that use software to assist in the match or as part of their meal charge program must insure that the student data is not available to vendors, IT staff or any others not authorized to view the confidential records.

5)      The DCMP  process must be completed  three (3) times per school year in August, November  and February.

6)      Schools  must  send  a  letter  to households  of  directly  certified  students,  notifying  them  of  their children's free eligibility status. Parents can opt out of the free lunch program if they choose, by responding  to the notification  letter. Parents can also use the letter to notify the District of other children in the family who may have been missed in the certification process.

7)      Once a student is certified, they retain their eligibility for the school year.

 Public Announcement

Letter to Parents/Guardians

The Marcus Whitman Central School District will announce this policy on or about the beginning of each school year,and during the school year if there is a change in the policy, by transmitting the reduced price income scale, parent letter, and application to all parents/guardians. Any parent/guardian enrolling a student in a school for the first time at any time during the school year shall be supplied with such documents. This letter and subsequent information provided to parents will be clear and understandable,and to the maximum extent practicable, provided in a language the parents can understand.

Public Release

On or about the beginning of each school year, and during the school year if there is a change in the policy,a public release containing the same information supplied to parents/guardians as well as the free eligibility criteria will be made available to the local news media, the local unemployment office, and any major employers contemplating large layoffs in the areas from which the school draws its attendance. Documentation must be kept with the policy booklet for three years plus the current year identifying where the public release was sent. Copies of this policy may be obtained by any interested party at the District Office.

Application  Procedure

1)     At the beginning of each school year the Marcus Whitman Central School District will send a letter to the parents/guardians of each student, together with a Family Income Scale and a form on which to make application for consideration of eligibility of their children for free/reduced price meals.

2)     Parents/guardians will be required to complete the application and return the form for review. Only one "household" application is required for all children in the household attending schools in the District. Families may instead provide a "Direct Certification" letter from the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA). Such applications and records of action taken will be maintained by the School District. Upon approval or disapproval, notification will be given to the parent/guardianor student.

 3)     In certain circumstances where households obviously at an economic disadvantage have failed to apply for free/reduced price meals for their students, the District will use the administrative prerogative to complete the application for the student. This judgmental option acknowledges that families may fail to apply due to lack of understanding, fear of authority, alien status, substance abuse, etc. The application will be completed based upon the best information available regarding family size and income and will be excluded from the verification process. However, exhaustive prior efforts to obtain a completed application from the parent/guardian must be made and documented.