School Nutrition Professionals are our heroes! Have you heard? The School Nutrition Foundation (SNF) has created a national fundraising campaign that will help all school nutrition operators with their emergency feeding needs during the COVID-19 crisis. SNF wants America to know that SN operators have joined the frontline with other first responders and need their own unique assistance in feeding the millions of children who are out of school. SNF will fund purchases of food and packaging for grab and go meals, mobile carts and kiosks for curbside service, supplies, personal protection equipment and many other items that the districts need.

SNF established the GoFundMe campaign Help Feed School Kids Now! that will reach across the country and be shared beyond the school nutrition population.  We have been watching and have already seen the incredible work these heroes have done. We may all be in this crisis for a long time, which is why it’s imperative that we help school nutrition operators feed as many children as possible.
“On a typical school day, 30 million students depend on school meals as a key source of nutrition, and school nutrition professionals have been working around the clock to ensure vulnerable students don’t go hungry during COVID-19 school closures,” said SNF Board Chair Julia Bauscher, SNS, who also serves as Director of School and Community Nutrition Services at Jefferson County Public Schools, KY.

To help us reach our fundraising goal-we’re asking you to  share ! While you’re social distancing, take to social media and share the link and the message with those in your circle:  You need their support.

Because school meal programs operate on extremely tight budgets, funded by cafeteria sales and reimbursements for meals served, SNF wants to help school nutrition programs feed hungry school kids now. With revenue declines due to closures, many school meal programs lack critical funds to purchase necessary equipment and supplies or cover transportation, temporary staffing and other costs associated with COVID-19 feeding programs.

Ask your friends and family to make a difference in the lives of your students during this unprecedented time of crisis. Asking them to make a donation—no matter how large or how small—to SNF’s Help Feed School Kids Now! Campaign will help us raise these critical funds more quickly. The application period for funds opened on Monday, April 13, 2020.

In the application, you must supply SNF with basic information about yourself, your school district, and your school districts top needs. In order to be eligible to apply, you must submit your business entities operating EIN. This application is open to both SNA members and non-members.

If your school district is interested in applying, follow this link to submit your grant application today!

We hope you will consider sharing our GoFundMe campaign Help Feed School Kids Now ! Our sincerest hope is that you and your families are staying safe and healthy!

Sincerely,
SNF Staff
Important Announcements
School Nutrition Heroes Receive Equipment Grants During COVID-19 Crisis

The School Nutrition Foundation (SNF) delivered some fantastic news to four tireless, dedicated school nutrition directors while they were busy on the front lines feeding vulnerable children due to school closures. Four equipment grants, each totaling up to $65,000, were awarded to districts that serve thousands of children with more than half of those students receiving free or reduced-priced school meals. Their needs have never been greater and SNF responded by expanding its 2020 equipment grant program in order to help more school nutrition professionals feed more children. This happy news brought some much-need sunshine to these four school districts during these challenging, uncertain days.

The four recipients are:

  • Winston Equipment Grant Recipient – Tiffany Eckenrod, Beaumont ISD, TX
  • Vulcan/Hobart Equipment Grant Recipient – Carla Tuttle, Milford Public Schools, MA
  • Collection Grant Recipient – Pauline Welch, Bensalem Township School District, PA
  • Collection Grant Recipient – Ernest Koschmieder, Groton Public Schools, CT

Mike Burke, K-12 Ambassador at Vulcan, explains why his company wanted to do this for SNA members, “ On behalf of the men and women of ITW Food Equipment Group, we extend gratitude for the work they are doing during these unprecedented times…. We are proud to support them with these equipment grants and trust that they make a difference during good times and hard times. We are here to provide them a helping hand any way we can.”

Corey Ainsworth, Regional Sales Manager for Winston Foodservice sums up the dedication SNA Industry members have for school nutrition operators when he said, “I’ve been lucky enough to work for a company like Winston that shares my passion for child nutrition. For the past 10 years, we’ve shown our appreciation to the customers that have supported us for so long by offering the Winston Equipment Grant… Child Nutrition is a very close-knit family, we take care of each other, and I’m honored to be a part of it!”

SNF, the 501(c)3, sister organization of the School Nutrition Association, awards grants and scholarships to the men and women who feed the nation’s school children.  The 2020 SNF Equipment Grants are made possible by the generous contributions of ITW/FEG/, Winston Foodservice, CMA Dish Machines, Cooler Management, Eloma North America, Innoseal Systems, Jackson Warewashing Systems, Inc., Sterno Delivery, Unox, and Unified Brands.
The School Nutrition Foundation Announces the 2020 Professional Development Scholarship Winners!

The School Nutrition Foundation is still providing resources for SNA members by awarding twenty-three (23) Professional Development scholarships for the 2020-2021 school year. Every year the School Nutrition Foundation provides education scholarships for SNA members with funding for tuition and books for the following school year.
A special thank you to our partners at Schwan’s Foodservice, Inc. for helping us support our members educational dreams and goals. Since 1983, Schwan’s Food Service, Inc., has made an annual donation to offer multiple scholarships of up to $2,500 each. The Nancy Curry Scholarship is funded by Handgards, Inc., and friends of Nancy. One scholarship of $500 is awarded each year. The 2020 Nancy Curry scholarship award winner is Breanna Gustafson, Marketing Supervisor from Lee County School District, FL. Congratulations Breanna!

Congratulations to the following recipients:
Michelle Babin, MA
Brittany Coleman, DE
Katie Cossette, CO
Laura Cuevas, MS
Sherry DeHaven, WV
Matthew Franklin, VA
Teresa Gamble, SC
Bonnie Gassett, VA
Jon Gatewood, FL
Breanna Gustafson, FL
Tammy Hutchinson, TN
Mellanie Kibel, VA
Stacie Light, IN
Jamie Nees, AR
Tandy Norris, AL
Jessica Pena, MN
Nelson Reames, MD
We are proud to support such hard-working and deserving members. If you are interested in going back to school to earn your degree, we encourage you to apply next year! Applications will open in the fall of 2021. Would you like to further your education in the School Nutrition Field? For questions, email scholarships@schoolnutrition.org .
Thank You For Your Support
 
We would like to take a moment to thank all the generous donors who support the Foundation. Each year, our patron members make a donation of $1,500 to the Foundation to help us fund our scholarships and programs. SNF would also like to thank all of our individual donors from 2019 . With your help, the Foundation was able to expand and improve programs that serve the school nutrition community. We could not accomplish as much as we do without your support. Your willingness to help the men and women in the school nutrition profession makes all the difference for the children they are feeding! Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts!
Programs and Projects

In light of the COVID-19 shift in priorities, SNF is refocusing our grant supported work and partnerships to better support school nutrition professionals and their changing needs in this new environment. We are altering timelines and budgets of current projects, working with our funders, and generating new project ideas.
Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom

SNF, along with the Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom are sharing their tools, resources, and videos in a newly launched website that is easier to navigate. Check it out if you are looking to expand your breakfast program! We have a lot of great info and insight to share. The Partners have been granting for a decade to With the generous support of the Walmart Foundation, Partners for BIC has provided technical assistance and over $11 million in funding to support the implementation of breakfast after the bell models in more than 500 schools in 70 districts, leading to over 100,000 additional children eating a healthy school breakfast since 2010.
L.E.A.D. to Succeed Training Grant

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service has awarded SNF a nearly $2 million grant to develop a training program for school nutrition professionals. SNF’s L.E.A.D (Learn, Educate, Advance, Develop) to Succeed initiative will examine and address professional and workforce development needs of school nutrition professionals in the areas of Personnel Management and Communication, Marketing and Customer Service. We are ready to roll out our first training module for pilot testing of the online training in the next few months. We are excited to be developing this content and will have more to share in the coming months.

In closing, be on the lookout for our quarterly Foundation Focus and please pass the message along to anyone you feel might be interested in hearing more about the School Nutrition Foundation. If you have any questions, please reach out to SNF@schoolnutrition.org.