The Office of Food and Nutrition Services provides a variety of nutritious choices for breakfast and lunch every day. Our menus are planned by a registered dietitian in accordance with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The Food and Nutrition Services department is a self-supporting $9.1 million business. Over 150 food service professionals take pride in serving 18,000 customers daily at 34 schools and satellite centers. The food service program, as an extension of the educational programs in the schools, is operated under the federally-funded National School Lunch Act and Child Nutrition Act.
P-EBT UPDATE
Dear Arlington Public School Families:
This is an update regarding questions we have received about summer Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits.
The Virginia Department of Social Services (VDSS) has recently made us aware that many households did not receive summer P-EBT benefits due to a card processing error. We have been informed that affected households will be issued a new P-EBT card and that all cards should be received no later than September 30.
If you recently received a P-EBT card that is not working, a replacement card is already on the way. You do not need to take any action to report your invalid card. VDSS has identified the households affected by this error. Please do not contact the P-EBT call center to order another card, as this may further delay the processing of your benefits.
We understand this delay has been frustrating and want to assure you that we are in communication with VDSS to ensure the issue is fixed as quickly as possible. Schools are not able to provide answers to your P-EBT questions. Please visit PEBTVA.com for the latest information and guidance concerning P-EBT.
Important Changes Coming for Next School Year 2022-2023
When schools began closing in March 2020 in response to the Covid 19 pandemic the USDA, which oversees national child nutrition programs, issued program flexibilities to make it easier to serve and access meals during the emergency. Some of the flexibilities included universal free meals, picking up meals for students to eat at home, weekend meals and expanded meal service to all children between the ages of 2-18.
As of March 2022, Congress has declined to provide USDA authorization to extend these flexibilities. Those waivers are set to expire on June 30 meaning that our programs will return to normal or traditional operations when school starts. The main change is that school lunch and breakfast will no longer be automatically served at no cost to all students. Students attending Barcroft, Drew, Carlin Springs, Randolph, and Barrett are the exception to this because these schools qualify for community eligibility provision.
In addition, all students will need to enter their PIN each time they have a school breakfast or lunch. Every student’s PIN is the same as their school identification number. Caregivers, please help your students get ready for this change by learning their PIN.
You can print out the “PIN pad play” to color in and practice.
Apply for free and reduced meals online here.
You can find paper applications here:
2022-2023 Household Application for Free and Reduced Price Meals
2022-2023 Solicitud de Hogar Para Comidas Escolares Gratis o Reducido
In accordance with Federal 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, religious creed, disability, age, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. To file a program discrimination complaint, a complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, which can be obtained online atwww.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/usda-programdiscrimination-complaint-form.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 Rights1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
Fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442;
Email: program.intake@usda.gov.
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
