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Food service fund remains dependent on state and federal reimbursements as temporary aid ends
Summary
Staff said the district’s food service fund depends on state and federal reimbursements and that one-time pandemic-era aid and supply-chain assistance supported positive net positions earlier in the decade; with that money gone the fund’s net position has declined and staff approved a new equipment grant to address aging kitchen equipment.
Cheltenham School District staff reported that the food service fund remains largely dependent on state and federal reimbursement for free and reduced meals and that the loss of pandemic-era supplemental aid has reduced the fund’s net position.
Mr. Swagger explained that the food service fund’s receipts reflect cash collected at registers, offset by operating expenditures for food, labor and equipment. “You can see our food service fund is entirely dependent on government subsidies function. Otherwise, we would have a passive deficit,” Mr. Swagger said.
The nut graf: post‑COVID supplemental funding and a $100,000 supply‑chain assistance payment in prior years temporarily improved net positions; with that money gone, the fund’s net position fell and staff are pursuing equipment replacement grants to sustain operations.
Staff presented historical net positions: about $152,000 in 2023, $201,000 in 2024, and a substantially smaller net position in 2025. The district received a new service-equipment grant approved last month to replace aging kitchen equipment at the high school and several elementary schools; staff noted typical equipment lives of seven to eight years and that some school equipment is now beyond that range.
No formal policy change was made at the meeting. Staff said they will continue to track food-service reimbursements and equipment needs and that the board will be updated on material changes to the fund balance.
