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KUSD staff propose scaling back districtwide free-meal coverage as food-service reserves near exhaustion
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Summary
Food-service officials told the committee that districtwide Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) coverage has been sustained by Fund 50 reserves but that those reserves are projected to be depleted; staff proposed reverting lower-ISP schools to traditional free/reduced status to reduce Fund 50 pressure by about $250,000 per month.
Food-service staff told the Kenosha Unified School District joint committee that keeping every school on districtwide Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) is no longer financially sustainable. The district’s food-service fund (Fund 50) has been supplementing USDA reimbursements, and presenters said reserves are projected to be spent down by the end of the fiscal year.
Food-service presenters explained CEP is a USDA reimbursement option that uses data from other assistance programs (SNAP/FoodShare, Wisconsin Works, Head Start, McKinney-Vento) to compute an identified student percentage (ISP) and a claiming rate. District-wide claiming currently equates to about a 73% free-rate claiming, they said; in one month (March) staff reported providing roughly 181,000 lunches.
Staff proposed adjusting participation so that a pool of roughly 14 higher-ISP schools would remain fully covered while about 17 lower-ISP schools would revert to the traditional free/reduced application process. Presenters said that reversion would remove about $250,000 per month of pressure on Fund 50 and avoid the fund going negative; state accounting requirements prevent Fund 50 from carrying a negative balance.
Board members and committee participants raised several operational concerns: reduced CEP coverage could lower Title I-derived allocations because families stop filing meal applications; staff stressed the importance of strong communications and outreach so families complete online or paper applications, and noted direct-certified families (those already enrolled in qualifying programs) would continue to qualify without an application.
Presenters also emphasized federal nutrition standards and said the food-service team will relay concerns about menu nutrition to the district nutritionist. The committee did not take action; staff will gather committee feedback and report to the full board.
What’s next: Staff will provide outreach materials and a timeline for application periods (noting July 1 and annual claiming cycles) as they refine the proposal; the committee encouraged early messaging to families, principals and Title I coordinators.
