Food Service News

USDA MEAL PATTERN & NUTRITIONAL STANDARDS

First Lady Michelle Obama announced the USDA School Meal Pattern and Nutritional Standards.  These standards require that school lunches provide more fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat and fat-free milk, and reduce the sodium and fat content of meals, all within a set number of calories.

The new requirements include:

• Larger servings of fruits and vegetables

• Emphasis on dark green, orange, and red vegetable sub groups

• Reduction of sodium in meals over time

• Minimum and maximum calorie ranges

• Half the grains served must be from a whole grain source

• All products served will be free of trans fat

• Weekly requirements for beans and legumes

We are proud to say that we are steps ahead and have already implemented a majority of these changes.

When your child comes through the cafeteria line this fall, a fruit or vegetable must be on their tray as part of the new meal pattern.  Throughout the year, we will be celebrating these changes with fun promotions to encourage children to eat healthier!

GUIDELINES AT A GLANCE:

• Student must have 3 of 5 food components on lunch tray (milk, protein, fruit, vegetable, grains)

• Milk, protein and grains are optional choices for students; for example, a tray can have water over milk on it

• Fruit and/or vegetables are mandated; K-12 students must have at least 1/2 cup fruit or 1/2 cup vegetable or 1/2 cup of fruit and vegetable combination

• Food groups have very rigid minimum and maximum limits concerning calories, protein, breads, sodium

• Saturated fat must be less than 10% of total calories / 0 grams of trans fatty acids.

Summer Food Service Program
Good nutrition and healthy meals should not stop when school ends. Ashwaubenon School District believes offering nutritious meals to children during the summer months is so important to the educational success that they will have a Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) from June 10, 2025 – August 15, 2025 (with no meal service on Friday, July 4th in observance of Independence Day). 

The following locations will be serving the free meals this summer: 

Parkview Middle School, 955 Willard Dr., Lunch pick up available from 12:00 – 12:30 pm June 10th - August 15th,

For summer school students at Cormier Early Learning, Parkview Middle School, & Ashwaubenon High School from June 10th - July 3rd. 

For current menu please click on the links below:

July/August Menu - Parkview pick-up

Meals are provided to children regardless of race, color, national origin, age, gender or disability and there will be no discrimination in the course of meal service.

Do you need help to find a summer meal program near you? Use this helpful USDA website to locate a program near you!

USDA's Summer Meal Locator Tool or wisummerfood.org or call the National Hunger Hotline at 866-348-6479/ 877-842-6273 or Call: 211 for meals near you. 

Summer EBT Program

If your child gets free or reduced price meals at our school, they automatically qualify for Summer EBT for Summer 2025. If you move or need to change your contact information before benefits start to be issued in May 2025, you should use the Department of Health Services’ Benefit Management Tool at summerebt.wi.gov/s/SummerBenefitInfo to let the state know.

If your child does not get free or reduced price meals, there are actions you can take to see if they can qualify before Summer EBT benefits are sent out for Summer 2025.

• You can apply for free or reduced price meals at the Ashwaubenon School District for your child. You can apply online at https://ashwaubenon.familyportal.cloud/. If they are approved anytime during the 2024-25 school year, they will automatically qualify for Summer EBT.
• You can apply to participate in another qualifying state benefit program. Your child will automatically qualify for Summer EBT if your household gets FoodShare, W-2 Cash Benefits, or Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) benefits, or participates in certain income-based Medicaid programs.
  If you apply and are approved for one of these programs before the end of Summer 2025, then your child who attends the Ashwaubenon School District will be eligible for Summer EBT for 2025. To learn more about applying for any of these state benefits you can call 211, visit access.wi.gov, or contact your local or tribal agency. Visit dhs.wi.gov/forwardhealth/imagency/index.htm to find the agency based on where you live who will help you apply or enroll for programs.
• You can apply directly for Summer EBT. You can apply on https://wisconsin.summerebtapp.com for Summer EBT. When applying for Summer EBT for your child(ren) who attend the Ashwaubenon School District, you will need to show that your household meets the income requirements for the program. The Summer EBT webpage at dhs.wi.gov/sebt has more information on what these income requirements are.

Note: This information is for children that attend the Ashwaubenon School District. If you have another child that goes to a different school, the steps here might not be the right ones for them to qualify for Summer EBT, and they may get a different letter explaining how they would qualify. You can visit dhs.wi.gov/sebt to learn more.

Getting Summer EBT does not affect whether your child can get other benefits, such as meals offered through the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) or Seamless Summer Option (SSO). To learn more about SFSP or SSO meal sites near you, visit https://dpi.wi.gov/community-nutrition/sfsp/find-summer-meals-site or call 211. You can also text ‘food’ to 304-304. Getting Summer EBT also does not affect your child’s or family’s immigration status.

If you have other questions about the Summer EBT program, please visit the Summer EBT webpage at dhs.wi.gov/sebt. You can also email your questions to dhssebtsupport@wi.gov or please call the Summer EBT team at 833-431-2224.

S-EBT Letter - English

S-EBT Letter - Spanish

USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

In accordance with federal civil rights 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 (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.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:

1. mail:
   U.S. Department of Agriculture
   Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
   1400 Independence Avenue, SW
   Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or

2. fax:
   (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or

3. Email: program.intake@usda.gov

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.