District says catering price will be $4.25 after paperwork dispute with St. John's; parents received differing notices

Administrators told the board they discovered a paperwork discrepancy with St. John’s School regarding which DPI agreement template was filed. Staff said St. John’s had initially discussed using a joint‑agreement template that allows participating schools to use subsidized meal pricing; the district later learned an alternate authority agreement had been submitted that would have made the district fully responsible as the School Food Authority, a status staff said was not the district’s intent.

Because the alternate paperwork was not the agreed joint template, staff said the district had to treat meal service as catering under DPI rules. That triggers a higher per‑meal charge; the district said the lowest feasible catering price is $4.25 per meal. Administrators said the district had agreed, as a gesture of goodwill, to hold the price at $3 through the end of November but will move to $4.25 beginning Dec. 1.

Administrators also said a letter from St. John's to parents indicated a $5 per‑meal price; the district said that higher figure reflected communication between St. John's and parents and was not the district’s stated price. The district said it will send a written catering contract to St. John’s with a Dec. 1 due date; if the contract is not signed and returned, staff said they could not commit to continued meal service.

The board discussed the situation and the need to clarify agreements and communications. Administrators said they are not seeking to profit and have tried to be cooperative, but that DPI forms and program rules determine what pricing and contracting options are available.

Next steps staff described included sending the meal-service contract, documenting the agreed price of $4.25 beginning Dec. 1, and asking the parochial school to return a signed agreement by that date to continue service.