food service
PLEASE NOTE: UNIVERSAL FREE MEAL PROGRAM HAS EXPIRED. PLEASE BE SURE TO SUBMIT FREE OR REDUCED MEAL APPLICATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE IF YOU BELIEVE YOUR FAMILY QUALIFIES. YOU WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COST OF ANY MEALS PURCHASED PRIOR TO THE PROCESSING OF YOUR APPLICATION.
Food Service Program
The goal of our food service program is to provide healthy, enjoyable meals to students that is part of and supports their learning. Balanced nutrition is a lifetime learning goal for children and adults. We strive to make all of our food options nutritious and fun.
At any time you have a question, please contact the Food Service Director by phone or e-mail. We’re looking forward to serving your students.
Michele Hicklin
Director of Food & Nutrition, East Lycoming S.D.
The Nutrition Group
Providing the Absolute Best in Food & Facility Management
Office: (570) 584-0194
Meal Prices
Ashkar, Renn, and Ferrell Elementary
Breakfast: Free for All Students
Lunch: $2.05 or Free for Qualified Reduced Students
Junior/Senior High School
Breakfast: Free for All Students
Lunch: $2.15 or Free for Qualified Reduced Students
Payments, Purchase Tracking, or Applying for Benefits
Also available in the App Store or Google Play.
We encourage all families to utilize SchoolCafe for the following free features:
- Apply for free or reduced meals
- Track your student’s account balance
- Track your student’s purchases
- Set low-balance reminders so that your student doesn’t run out of funds
If applying for FREE / REDUCED Meals, follow the link below for directions:
Other Payment Options
Payments in school:
Checks are preferred with the student name & PIN # on the memo line.
Cash deposits need to be placed in a sealed envelope with the student’s name and PIN # on the outside of the envelope.
We ask that Elementary students provide payments to their classroom teacher during morning homeroom rather than taking it through the lunch line. This will speed up the lunch line, which will give your student more time to eat.
Lunch Line Procedures
When your student goes through the line, they will be asked to pick options for a complete reimbursable meal. If they don’t take a full reimbursable meal, they will be charged for each component separately. Food service staff members will always encourage your student to take a full reimbursable meal. A full reimbursable meal is as follows:
When your student gets to the cashier, they will need to enter their 5 digit student ID and hit the “Enter” button. The keypad looks as follows. Please practice with your student so that they know their ID number!
Local Meal Charging Policy & Guidelines
Borrowing Guidelines
The parent or guardian is responsible for ensuring that his/her student has the appropriate form of exchange to pay for their meal.
The District will not deny a school food program meal to any student who requests one but does not have the money to pay for the meal at the time of service in his or her meal account. The District will only withhold meals from a student if they receive written direction from a parent or guardian.
Communication about a student’s school meal debt will be directed to the parent/guardian, not to the student.
Automated calls will be made daily when student has a negative balance.
When the student owes money for five or more meals, more formal communication attempts will be made. The District will make at least two attempts to reach the parent or guardian. Attempts may be made as follows:
The District may give a letter addressed to the parent or guardian in a sealed envelope that states “confidential – to be opened by addressee only” to the student to deliver home.
The District may also communicate meal debt information to the parent/guardian via text message, email, phone calls, or other digital means (such as Class Dojo app). The student will be allowed to continue to charge meals to their account regardless of the success in contacting the parent/guardian.
For students in grades 9-12, school food service personnel may direct communications regarding a low balance or money owed to the student if the communications are made individually to the student by appropriate school personnel and are made discreetly. This will be in addition to the communication to the parent.
The District will not publicly identify or stigmatize students because they have a school meal debt. Likewise, the student will not be made to do chores or other work to earn a school meal. The District will not direct a student to discard a meal that has been served to them because they cannot pay for it at the time of service or because they have an existing school meal debt.
The District may restrict privileges or activities of students who owe money for school meals in cases where those same restrictions apply to students who owe money for other school-related purposes.
A la carte items or “extras” are not part of the National School Lunch Program. A student, whose account is in a negative balance, will not be able to purchase a la carte items by charging their account or when they present cash at the point of sale (if the amount of cash is insufficient to cover the negative balance and the purchase of the a la carte item). Refusal of a la carte sales will be done discretely as to not identify a student with a negative account.
Summer Food Rocks Program
For more information about the Summer Food Rocks program, please visit: Find Meals for Kids When Schools are Closed | Food and Nutrition Service (usda.gov)
Collection Efforts
The District may institute a collection procedure for unpaid balances including, but not limited to, filing a claim with the District Magistrate or delinquent collection agencies. Parent/Guardian will be responsible to pay the amount due, as well as any and all fees assigned for collection of monies.
Meal Account Balances
Funds in the student’s meal account at the end of the school year will be carried over to the next school year.
Wellness
Nondiscrimination Statement and Complaint Procedures
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:
- mail:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or - fax:
(833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or - email:
Program.Intake@usda.gov
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.