New procedure to inform parents of student lunch account balances

The Springfield School District is updating its school lunch program communications and procedures this fall after a social media blitz in May when some students could no longer charge lunches near the end of the 2015-2016 school year.

www.eagletimes.com    

2016-08-17 / Front Page New procedure to inform parents of student lunch account balances By Tory Jones Bonenfant toryb@eagletimes.com SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield School District is updating its school lunch program communications and procedures this fall after a social media blitz in May when some students could no longer charge lunches near the end of the 2015-2016 school year. “The real concern was about notification,” Springfield School Superintendent Zach McLaughlin said at a regular school board meeting on Monday, Aug. 15. McLaughlin said after an “upheaval” in May due to some parents and guardians being unaware of the approaching cut-off date for cafeteria charges, the school district investigated every instance of stories floating around social media and in the community of lunches being thrown out in district cafeterias, and found they were false. “That was not the reality of the situation,” he said, adding that there were “lots of embellishments.” However, the school will step up efforts this fall to ensure every student who has a low or negative balance on their lunch accounts is aware, or that parents and guardians are aware, before the student is blocked from accessing the charge program. McLaughlin said that some people may see the district’s increased efforts as the “carpet-bombing” of notification. “You should never not feed kids,” McLaughlin said. However, he acknowledged that if the district had “put the brakes on earlier” in the spring, the result may not have been so bad. “Kids need proper nutrition in order to be educated,” he said. He added that ultimately, it is the responsibility of the parent to either send food with their child or to apply for federal programs that will help with lunches. On May 9, with 20 days remaining in the 2015-2016 school year, the school district had stopped allowing students to charge meals to allow time to bring accounts up to date. This was regular procedure, and did not affect students who receive free and reduced lunches. Students who had money with them could still buy lunch that day, but the cut-off caught some parents and guardians unaware. That communication will improve this year. Changes will include a “robo-call” voice and text notification system of impending low balances, and a digital parent portal where parents, grandparents or guardians, and older students can log in with a student name and unique identification number to check account balances and add funds to the account. Student lunches can be paid through cash, check or online through a portal with a credit card, which would include a 4.9 percent convenience fee — charged by the software company, not the school — for those who wish to use it rather than sending in payment. McLaughlin said that some school districts partially or fully absorb that convenience fee for online payments, but left that decision to the board. School board member Stephen Karaffe said that he would not be willing to take taxpayers’ money for that fee because it is a convenience. Board members Laura Ryan, Jeanice Garfield and Chair Ed Caron agreed. Under the new, tiered system for charging meals for 2016-17, only students will be able to charge meals and not visitors or other non-student adults. They can only charge for full, hot meals, not a-la-carte or snack items. Overall charges will be limited to $20 for grades K-12, which will be the “cap” until the school receives additional payments, McLaughlin said. The new program also mentions cashier discussing payments. The cashiers will not discuss account balances with elementary school children, but the school would contact the parents. With the new communications, if a student has $5 or less in a positive balance, automated texts or calls will go out every two weeks to advise the parents to send additional funds, McLaughlin said. On the second tier, with a balance of negative $10, “home” will receive a daily notification. At the edge of the negative $20 cap, a new daily notice will replace the former notifications. McLaughlin said the school district wants to be sure the parents or household is getting the notifications, and that they should not be in duplicate with both $5 and $20 messages coming in at the same time, for example. Family or community members who want to pitch in can do so if they have access information from parents. For example, even grandparents can log in to add funds, if they have the student’s name and the ID number, McLaughlin said. The last piece of the new program is using the MealTime point-of-sale program that has people set up accounts to see balances and purchase history, along with the ability to add funds online. The POS system is now in place, and the school will phase in the “parent portal” this year, he said. “Parents should have a lot more real-time info, not just about what’s being spent, but what’s being bought,” he said. Twelve school districts in Vermont are using this system and server now, he said. Accounts are updated every five minutes with received payments. People without a computer at home or a smartphone can still call the school or older students can ask the cashier for a current balance, he said. At this time, school lunches cost an average of about $2.50, and up to about $2.75, depending on the student’s grade, according to Steve Hier, director of fiscal services for the district. McLaughlin said a copy of the plan will go out to parents, on the school’s website, and Facebook page so all parents, grandparents, guardians and interested community members can read about the new program.