Chapter 10: Nutrition, Insurance, and Federal Programs

The State Department of Education has established a statewide program to provide nutritious meals and milk at school for pupils, and to provide free meals to the neediest children. In some instances, nominal cash payments may be required (Ed. Code, § 49510 et seq.).

California Universal Meals Beginning in School Year (SY) 2022-23, California became the first state to implement a statewide Universal Meals Program. Evergreen School District students will continue be able to receive a free breakfast and free lunch each school day, regardless of your income.

We applaud California’s effort to lessen food insecurity, reduce financial burdens on families, eliminate the stigma of the meal program, and ensure students have the necessary nutrition for their academic success. Evergreen School District participates in the federal program called Provision 2 Special Assistance Program available to schools as part of the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Provision 2 operates on a four year cycle. The first year, or base year, sets federal and state meal program reimbursement based on the percentages of free, reduced, and paid meals served during SY 2022-23. Child Nutrition Services will not make any new free or reduced price meal eligibility determinations in subsequent cycle years. As a result, households experience a reduction in burden as families will not be asked to complete a Free & Reduced Meal Application in non-base years. Evergreen School District however, may request that new or incoming transfer students complete an Education Benefit form. Education Benefit forms will not affect your student’s ability to receive two free meals a day. Completing the Education Benefit form is critical for the District to obtain the socio-economic data used to secure essential school funding in lieu of the Free & Reduced Price Meal Application. It may also make families eligible for discounted utilities and internet, college application fees, after-school programs and more. Learn more about Child Nutrition Services, the school meal program, Provision 2, and more at: https://www.eesd.org/departments/child-nutrition

Meal Charging Policy 

It is the full intent of the Evergreen School District that all households are made aware of the Meal Charging Policy. This, and more information about the meal program, can also be found on our website. Meals are FREE for all students during the school year. To obtain free meals, the student must take the minimum amount required of a “reimbursable meal” under the Offer vs. Serve meal pattern of the National School Lunch and National School Breakfast Program. If a student takes less than the minimum amount, they will be charged a la carte for the items they have taken. Payment for a la carte purchases and adult meals will still be required. Evergreen School District strongly encourages families to pay for al la carte purchases in advance. Pre-paying before meal service provides a simple way for you to manage your student's account and also helps lunch lines move more quickly, giving children more time to enjoy their meal. Households can pay for meals by: Paying Online: Visit www.myschoolbucks.com to make payments, set up low balance alert emails, and track transactions safely and securely anytime. Paying at your child’s school: Students may pay cash or check when they are in the cafeteria. Prepayments can also be left at the school office during normal business hours. Checks should be made payable to CNS and please include the student’s full name and room # when sending in a payment.

Meals on Credit

No charges will be placed on a student’s account if they choose a reimbursable meal at service time. Due to program limitations, our staff cannot force your student to take a reimbursable meal, however we will encourage them to take what is necessary to make it complete. No a la carte items can be purchased on credit. Please review menus in advance with your child so you can ensure they will be able to choose and eat the minimum reimbursable meal components. If not, it is the parent’s responsibility to make sure that money is in the account or a home prepared meal is sent to the school with their child. Any monies received from students with a negative account balance must first be used to satisfy the negative balance. No change will be given back to students with negative account balances and any extra monies will be deposited into the student’s account.

Repayment for Returned Checks

If a check is returned due to insufficient funds, a letter will be sent to the household. Returned checks will result in an additional $25/check fee and checks will not be accepted from the household until the balance is paid.

End of the Year Balances

At the end of the school year, any positive funds left in a student’s account will be carried over to the following school year. Students graduating out of Evergreen School District will be notified by mail with the balance amount. Parents have the option to request a refund, donate, or transfer the balance to a younger sibling. Instructions will be included. Federal guidelines prohibit the Food and Nutrition operation from writing off bad debts as a result of charged meals. If the student has graduated or moved out of the district with a negative lunch account balance, the unpaid meal charges will be considered bad debt and a file containing students' names and amounts owed will be turned over to the district's business office by June 30 of each school year. To protect family confidentiality, account balance information will only be monitored and dispersed by the Child Nutrition Services Department. Debt collection procedures will also only be initiated by Child Nutrition Services staff. Debt thresholds and delinquent payment definitions will be reviewed annually by the CBO and CNS Supervisor to ensure the purpose of the meal charging policy is not jeopardized by the diversions of staff time and effort to collect payment.  

Refunds and Balance Transfers

If your child is graduating or moving out of Evergreen School District with excess funds on their school lunch account, you can request a refund, transfer it to a younger sibling, or donate the balance to the Child Nutrition Services Department. Please be aware that balances DO NOT carry over to the high school level. If you are unsure of your student’s balance, please login to your MySchoolBucks account at myschoolbucks.com or contact Child Nutrition Services at (408) 223-4500. Refunds typically take up to 30 days to be processed and a check mailed to the address provided in your request. Due to the high volume of requests at the end of the school year, please be patient in receiving your refund. You can also complete a request form at https://www.eesd.org/departments/child-nutrition/payments or send a request by mail to 2828 Corda Drive, San Jose, CA 95122. Include in your request: your name, address, phone number, student name, school attended, and student ID number (if known). Please include sibling information if you are requesting a transfer of funds. If at any time households have questions about their student’s lunch account, current account balance, or are facing a financial hardship, they should contact Child Nutrition Services at (408) 223-4500.

Insurance underwritten by the National Union Fire Insurance Company is available to all students. More information about the benefits and the application form can be accessed via the Internet at www.studentinsuranceusa.com. On the left hand column of the home page, click on 'K12 Plans,' and then 'Benefits.' Claim forms can also be accessed from this site. You may also request a copy of the information from your school office. If you have questions about the various plans, a Student Insurance representative is available at (800) 367-5830. The application is mailed directly to Student Insurance at 11661 San Vicente Boulevard, Suite 200, Los Angeles, CA 90049.

Healthy Families is low cost insurance for children and teens. It provides health, dental and vision coverage to children who do not have insurance and do not qualify for free Medi-Cal. Eligibility for the program is determined by family income, number of people in the family, and age of children. For more information visit http://www.healthyfamilies.ca.gov.

The following applies only to programs directly funded by the U.S. Department of Education:

• All instructional materials, including teacher's manuals, films, tapes, or other supplementary material which will be used in connection with any survey, analysis, or evaluation shall be available for inspection by the parents or guardians of the children.
• No student shall be required, as part of any applicable U.S. Department of Education funded program, to submit to a survey, analysis, or evaluation that reveals information concerning:
  • political affiliations or beliefs of the student or student’s parents: mental and psychological problems of the student or his/her family; sex behavior or attitudes;
  • illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating or demeaning behavior;
  • critical appraisals of other individuals with whom respondents have close family relationships;
  • legally recognized privileged or analogous relationships, such as those of lawyers, physicians, and ministers;
  • religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or student’s parent; or
  • income (other than that required by law to determine eligibility for participation in a program or for receiving financial assistance under such program) without the prior consent of the student (if the student is an adult or emancipated minor), or in the case of an unemancipated minor, without the prior written consent of the parent. (Section 20 U.S.C. § 1232h)

PPRA affords parents certain rights regarding our conduct of surveys, collection and use of information for marketing purposes, and certain physical exams. These include the right to:

• Consent before students are required to submit a survey that concerns one or more of the following protected areas ('protected information survey') if the survey is funded in whole or in part by a program of the U.S. Department of Education (ED)--
  • Political affiliations or beliefs of the student or student’s parent;
  • Mental or psychological problems of the student or student’s family;
  • Sex behavior or attitudes;
  • Illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior;
  • Critical appraisals of others with whom respondents have close family relationships;
  • Legally recognized privileged relationships, such as with lawyers, doctors, or ministers;
  • Religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or parents; or
  • Income, other than as required by law to determine program eligibility.
• Receive notice and an opportunity to opt a student out of:
  • Any other protected information survey, regardless of funding;
  • Any non-emergency, invasive physical exam or screening required as a condition of attendance, administered by the school or its agent, and not necessary to protect the immediate health and safety of a student, except for hearing, vision, or scoliosis screening, or any physical exam or screening permitted or required under State law; and
  • Activities involving collection, disclosure, or use of personal information obtained from students for marketing or to sell or otherwise distribute the information to others.
• Inspect, upon request and before administration or use --
  • Protected information surveys of students;
  • Instruments used to collect personal information from students for any of the above marketing, sales, or other distribution purposes; and
  • Instructional material used as part of the education curriculum.
  • These rights transfer from the parents to a student who is 18 years old or an emancipated minor under State law. Evergreen School District has developed and adopted policies, in consultation with parents, regarding these rights, as well as arrangements to protect student privacy in the administration of protected surveys and the collection, disclosure, or use of personal information for marketing, sales, or other distribution purposes. Evergreen School District will directly notify parents of these policies at least annually at the start of each school year and after any substantive changes. Evergreen School District will also directly notify, such as through U.S. Mail or email, parents of students who are scheduled to participate in the specific activities or surveys noted below and will provide an opportunity for the parent to opt his or her child out of participation in the specific activity or survey. Evergreen School District will make this notification to parents at the beginning of the school year if the District has identified the specific or approximate dates of the activities or surveys at that time. For surveys and activities scheduled after the school year starts, parents will be provided reasonable notification of the planned activities and surveys listed below and be provided an opportunity to opt their child out of such activities and surveys. Parents will also be provided an opportunity to review any pertinent surveys. Following is a list of the specific activities and surveys covered under this requirement:
  • Collection, disclosure, or use of personal information for marketing, sales or other distribution.
  • Administration of any unprotected information survey not funded in whole or in part by the Department of Education.
  • Any non-emergency, invasive physical examination or screening as described above.
  • Parents/eligible students who believe their rights have been violated may file a complaint with:

Family Policy Compliance Office
U.S. Department of Education 400
Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20202-5920