City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: MAY 8, 2019
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
FROM: MARK B. JINKS, CITY MANAGER /s/
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Consideration of a Grant Application to the Virginia Department of Education for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Summer Food Service Program for Children.
BODY
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ISSUE: Submission of a grant application for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) funding from the Summer Food Service Program for Children administered since 2018 by the Virginia Department of Education for Virginia program sponsors.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council:
1. Approve the submission of the grant application (due May 24, 2019) to the Virginia Department of Education for United States Department of Agriculture for continued funding and an estimated reimbursement amount of $100,000 for program expenses; and
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required.
BACKGROUND: The Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities (RPCA) has administered the Summer Food Service Program since 1979. In order to participate, program sites must meet the criteria established by the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program of USDA. The site must be "located in a geographical area served by a school or center in which 50 percent or more of the enrolled children are eligible for free or reduce priced meals." Eligible programs will be able to serve up to two of the following meals; breakfast, morning snack, lunch or afternoon snack, at no cost to the participants. The meal program will commence on June 24, 2019, and will operate Monday through Friday, excluding the July 4 holiday and end August 30, 2019.
As with the USDA After School Snack Program, the RPCA will contract with the Alexandria City Public Schools School Nutrition Services to prepare and deliver meals to 16 Summer programs. The locations of these programs are: Charles Barrett, Charles Houston, Leonard Armstrong, Mt. Vernon, Nannie J. Lee, Patrick Henry and William Ramsay Recreation Centers; Power-Up Program at George Washington Middle School; RPCA John Adams/Polk @ F.T. Day School, and MacArthur Playgrounds; Therapeutic Recreation at Lee Center; Campagna Kids at Lyles Crouch and Patrick Henry; Campagna Center Headstart at G.W. Middle School Annex building; ARHA Ruby Tucker Center; ARHA Wythe Street (Youth Employment participants) and Burke Library. Other City based youth serving organizations may participate under RPCA sponsorship upon request and in accordance with the program requirements.
The Recreation Services Division provides meals to the summer participants in the Power-On and Power-Up Programs, Camp Adventure and Therapeutic Recreation Out of School Time Programs which operate Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. for eight weeks at neighborhood recreation centers and school facilities throughout the City. This year, ACPS Food Services has agreed to provide meals through the end of the summer at RPCA’s Extra Fun Weeks at Charles Houston, Leonard “Chick” Armstrong and Patrick Henry Recreation Centers from August 19 to 30. The Out of School Time Programs provide recreational activities, enrichment opportunities, field trips, physical fitness and social interaction for 1300 youth ages six to fourteen years. In addition, another 400 youth participate in the program through City youth serving agencies and non-profit organizations under the RPCA sponsorship. The Summer Food Service Program continues the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program to ensure that youth have nutritious meals during the school vacation period.
The 2018 summer program provided 4,570 breakfasts, 12,105 lunches, and 15,470 afternoon snacks to youth. This is the second year that programs held in ACPS summer school and K-prep locations will receive meals in the school cafeteria during the four weeks of summer school and one week of K-prep under the ACPS Summer Food Service Program sponsorship. Since these meals were counted in the ACPS claim for reimbursement, the numbers claimed by RPCA are lower than in past years. ACPS and RPCA are coordinating the summer meals again this year to provide hot meals to youth when summer school and K-prep are in operation.
RENEWAL GRANT PERIOD: October 1, 2018 to September 30, 2019.
FISCAL IMPACT: The meals must be served free of charge in order to receive reimbursement from USDA. There is no requirement for the City to provide either cash or an in-kind match for this program. However, the City is responsible for the normal administrative costs associated with this grant. These costs include financial and reporting oversight provided by the administering agency (Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities), as well as by the Office of Management and Budget and by the Finance Department.
STAFF:
Debra Collins, Deputy City Manager
James B. Spengler, Director, Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities
Margaret Orlando, Division Chief/Recreation Services, Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities
Faye Maslaki, Division Chief/Finance, Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities