Request for Applications (RFA)

OMB Number: 0584-0512

Expiration Date: 09/30/2012

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Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Research and Analysis, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302.

Solicitation for State Agencies:

Summer 2011 SFSP Home Delivery and Food Backpacks

Demonstration Projects

Request for Applications

Date of Issuance

Critical Dates

September 2010 Request for Applications announced by FNS

September 2010 Webinar/conference call with interested State agencies

October 15, 2010 State Agency Letter of Intent deadline

December 6, 2010 State Agency Application Deadline

February 2011 Awards Announcement

CFDA # 10.579

An electronic version of this Request for Applications package is available at http://www.grants.gov and http://www.fns.usda.gov/ora/menu/DemoProjects/SummerFood/Announcement.htm

Pursuant to P. L. 109-282 Federal Funding Accounting and Transparency Act all primary grant recipients will be required to report sub-recipient reporting data to be released on USAspending.gov.  The specific terms and conditions for this new Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requirement will be captured in the grant award.

Table of Contents

Authorization ……………………………………………………………………………….…… 3

Purpose ……………………………………...…………………...…………….….............…….. .3

Project Descriptions .……………………………………..…………….…………………..….…3

Application Requirements ………………………….…………….……………..………………. 5

Eligible Entities

Letters of Commitment and Intent

Conditions of Participation ……………………………………………………….…….……….. 6

Funding and Duration

Allowable and Non-Allowable Costs

Project Data

Project Evaluation

Application Review and Selection Process …………………………………………………… 11

State Agency Applications

Individual Sponsor Proposals

Determination of Award Amounts

Award Notification and Issuance of Funds

Application Procedures …………………………………………………………………….…...14

Application Contents

Application Submission

Appendix 1: Prototype Proposals

Appendix 2: Budget Narrative Checklist

Authorization

The Summer Food for Children demonstration projects are being conducted under the authority and funding provided by the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-80). The Appropriations Act authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to develop and test alternative methods of providing access to food for low-income children in urban and rural areas during the summer months, when schools are not in regular session.

Purpose of the Summer Food for Children demonstration projects

The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) was created to provide nutrition benefits during the summer to children living in low-income areas. These children were thought to be at risk of hunger or nutritional deficiencies when they were not receiving free or reduced price meals in school. This has been further supported by research demonstrating that food insecurity among children increases during the summer months.

Though the SFSP aims to fill the nutrition gap that low-income children experience over the summer, the Program has been unable to achieve the same level of program participation as school meal programs achieve during the school year. While 19.4 million children receive free or reduced price meals through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), only about 3.2 million children receive meals during the summer. Because of this discrepancy, the purpose of the Summer Food for Children demonstrations is to develop and test new and innovative methods of improving food access during summer months. This includes enhancements to the existing SFSP, as well as demonstrations utilizing household-based models for providing nutrition assistance. In Summer 2010, an Extended Length of Operation demonstration project providing SFSP sponsors with an extra $0.50 per lunch reimbursement for operating 40 or more days, and an Activity Incentive demonstration project providing SFSP sponsors with funds to implement educational and recreational activities at sites were implemented in two States. In Summer 2011, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) will also conduct Household-Based Alternative Demonstrations to provide summer food benefits using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and WIC electronic benefit transfer (EBT) technology as the delivery mechanism, to give low-income families with children more resources to use at food stores during the summer.

The Summer 2011 Home Delivery and Food Backpacks demonstration projects under this Request for Applications will continue examining enhancements to the SFSP that are intended to increase program participation and childhood food security during the summer months.

Project Descriptions

For Summer 2011, two types of SFSP enhancement demonstration projects will be implemented and evaluated:

Home Delivery Demonstration Project:

SFSP sponsors in rural areas frequently struggle to achieve the level of participation needed at congregate feeding sites to earn enough reimbursement to continue offering meals, either because children cannot travel long distances to the site, or because there are simply not enough children in the area of a site. To address these challenges, the Home Delivery demonstration project will provide funding for approved sponsors in the selected State(s) to develop ways to deliver summer meals to eligible children in rural areas at a sustainable cost. This may include identification of and delivery to homes of children certified for free or reduced-price school meals, to drop-off sites where parents have been informed they or their eligible children can collect the meal for off-site consumption, or other methods of providing meals that are exempt from the congregate feeding requirement.

In accordance with 7 CFR 225.2, the definition of rural used in this Request for Applications (RFA) means: (a) any area in a county which is not a part of a Metropolitan Statistical Area or (b) any ``pocket'' within a Metropolitan Statistical Area which, at the option of the State agency and with FNS concurrence, is determined to be geographically isolated from urban areas.

This demonstration project is not intended to fund mobile feeding sites or transporting children to a congregate meal site, as these efforts are already allowable costs in the SFSP; the intent of this demonstration is to evaluate if non-congregate meal service will increase SFSP participation and ensure a more consistent level of food security among rural, low-income children at a sustainable cost.

Food Backpack Demonstration Project:

This demonstration will supplement the traditional SFSP by utilizing an additional method of meal delivery during the summer on days that meals are not available at SFSP sites. Most SFSP sites do not operate seven days a week and children may be at risk of hunger during the days that meals are not served. The demonstration project will provide funding for approved sponsors in the selected State(s) to provide eligible children with food backpacks to take home with meals to cover the days that SFSP meals are not available, typically on the weekends. Approved sponsors must operate a congregate meal site under the SFSP for a majority of the week and use the backpacks to supplement the traditional meal service. Backpacks are not intended to replace a congregate meal program nor reduce the number of days a congregate meal program operates. The goal of the Food Backpack demonstration project is to evaluate if providing a supply of nutritionally-balanced foods on the days that children do not receive meals through the congregate SFSP will help maintain the nutritional status children gain from participating in the NSLP during the school year.

For both Home Delivery and Food Backpack demonstration projects, the role of the State agency is to manage the approved sponsors’ participation in implementing the projects. The State agency will be responsible for compiling and screening acceptable individual sponsor proposals (see page 9), overseeing implementation of the demonstration by selected sponsors, providing data on project operations, enabling the FNS-selected evaluation contractor to interview demonstration participants by facilitating access to sponsor staff and parents/guardians of children receiving benefits, processing grant expense claims and distributing pass through funds. FNS will work closely with selected States to assist States in establishing operational details.

Application Requirements

Eligible Entities

All State agencies that administer the SFSP are eligible to apply for the Home Delivery and Food Backpacks demonstration projects. Although this RFA is limited to State agencies, most demonstration project funds will pass through selected State agencies to approved sponsors for implementation. If applying to both, a separate application must be submitted for each demonstration project. FNS anticipates selecting one to two States for each model, but no State will be selected for participation in both. Therefore, States applying for both Home Delivery and Food Backpacks demonstration projects should indicate which type of project they prefer to operate if both applications are competitive. Home Delivery Demonstration Projects may only operate in rural areas.

Individual proposals must be submitted for each sponsor identified in a State agency’s application. A model sponsor proposal is provided in Appendix 1, Prototype Proposal.

Any institution that meets the definition of sponsor in 7 CFR 225.2 is eligible to submit an individual proposal to their SFSP State agency, including:

• Public and private nonprofit school food authorities;

• Public and private nonprofit day camps;

• Units of local, municipal, county or State government; and

• Private, nonprofit organizations.

State agencies are responsible for conducting outreach to interested and eligible SFSP sponsors, and for collecting and screening individual sponsor proposals to ensure their adherence to the requirements of this RFA. The State agency should submit only eligible and acceptable proposals that meet these criteria, as well as a plan of operation (see page 12) outlining how the State agency intends to manage the demonstration project, in a single application package. State agencies wishing to apply for consideration under both demonstration projects must submit a separate application for each demonstration project.

All sponsors must commit to participate in the SFSP as Program sponsors during the demonstration project period to be eligible for sub-grants through a recipient State agency. Previous SFSP participation is not a requirement to participate in a Home Delivery Demonstration Project. However, only experienced sponsors who successfully operated the SFSP during summer 2010 may apply to conduct a Food Backpack Demonstration Project. FNS will select the State(s) that will participate in the demonstrations as well as the sponsors that will participate from among those included in the selected State(s) application. It is possible that not all sponsors for which a State agency submits an application will be selected to participate.

For backpack demonstration projects, children (ages 18 and younger) normally eligible to receive meals at SFSP sites are eligible to receive backpacks. For meal delivery demonstrations, only children identified by school districts as eligible for free and reduced-price school meals are eligible to receive delivered meals.

Letters of Intent

State agencies that are interested in applying for one or both demonstration projects should submit a Letter of Intent, on or before October 15, 2010. This letter does not commit a State agency to apply; it will assist FNS in planning workload requirements for the selection, award and implementation of demonstration projects. Letters of Intent must include the date, State agency’s name and address, the name, title and telephone number of the State agency’s authorized representative, which demonstration project(s) the State intends to apply for, and an estimate of the number of sponsors that would be part of the State agency’s application. State agencies must mail or deliver letters of intent to:

Dawn Washington, Grants Officer

Food and Nutrition Service, USDA

Grants & Fiscal Policy Division

Summer Demonstration Projects

3101 Park Center Dr., Room 738

Alexandria, VA 22302

Letters of Commitment

The State agency must submit, with its application, a signed “letter of commitment” that affirms its dedication to the project, describes its role and responsibility in the project and identifies each institution for which a proposal has been included.

Additionally, each institution named in the application must submit a signed “letter of commitment” that describes its role in the project and the amount of time it intends to commit to the project, and an affirmation that it will cooperate with the State agency in implementing the project, including cooperation with the evaluation component of the demonstration. Finally, for meal delivery demonstrations there must be letters of commitment from local schools that they will supply the demonstration operator with names/addresses of free and reduced-price certified children.

Conditions of Participation

Funding and Duration

Demonstration project funds will be awarded on a competitive basis to State agencies, for eligible sponsors selected by FNS. State operational and administrative costs will be determined based on the appropriateness and relevance to State implementation and administrative oversight for sponsors selected for these demonstration projects. Applications should anticipate a maximum funding amount of $1 million total over two summers for each of the Home Delivery and Food Backpacks demonstration projects. Some or all of the eligible sponsors included in the State agency’s application will be approved by FNS for participation in the demonstration. We anticipate selecting one to two States for each model, but no State will be selected for participation in both. USDA will require that the selected States continue to operate the demonstration project at least through Summer 2012. State selection for one of the projects under this Request for Applications will not preclude participation in other Summer Food for Children demonstration projects.

Allowable and Non-Allowable Costs

States selected to participate will be able to use demonstration funds for their own administrative costs related to operation and oversight of the demonstration project. States must provide an estimated budget using the Standard Forms 424 and 424A, as well as a budget justification narrative for any funding needed to administer the project. The budget should include travel expenses for State agency personnel to travel to the FNS National Office (Alexandria, Virginia) for two meetings.

Approved sponsors will be eligible for funds to operate the Home Delivery or Food Backpacks demonstration. An estimated budget for all costs related to the demonstration project must be included in each Individual Sponsor Proposal, including the cost of food and meal preparation.

• For the Home Delivery demonstration project, in addition to food, other allowable costs may include the contracting of vehicles to deliver meals, augmenting current transportation resources with refrigeration to enable safe delivery of meals, and appropriate packaging/supplies for meals to enable delivery. While meals have to be provided by the Sponsor they can be delivered through other means, such as a contract with the United States Postal Service. Allowable costs could also include postage if the sponsor chooses to contract with USPS to deliver meals.

• For the Food Backpacks demonstration project, in addition to food, other allowable costs may include the purchase of items such as backpacks or other appropriate packaging/supplies to enable the safe transport of food on days the site is not in operation during the summer.

Funds may also be used in part for any sponsor staff costs incurred from adding the project to their regular SFSP service. Funds must only be used for allowable costs associated with these activities and not for other costs associated with the conduct of the regular SFSP, or non-Program costs.

Operational Requirements

Approved sponsors must be eligible to participate in the SFSP in order to apply to participate in the demonstrations. Previous participation in SFSP is required for Food Backpack models, but not Meal Delivery models; however all selected sponsors are expected to operate the SFSP and the demonstration models at least through summer 2012. Both the Food Backpack and Meal Delivery models have unique operational considerations that sponsors must plan to address. Some of these operational considerations are described below.

Food Backpacks: Sponsors participating in the Food Backpack demonstration must provide backpacks – or other types of packages used to carry home food – only to children that attend an eligible SFSP meal site and only to cover the approved SFSP meal(s) that will not be provided when the site is closed, typically during a weekend or holiday. Backpacks may only be provided during the weeks of approved SFSP operation. Any child that attends an eligible site on the day Food Backpacks are distributed may potentially receive one. Sponsors must notify the parents or guardians of children who may receive Food Backpacks of the purpose of the Program and the days and content of meal(s) that will be sent home as well as request voluntary consent by the household to receive food in this manner and to participate in the demonstration evaluation, most likely through a follow-up survey. This will help ensure the safe transport, preparation and consumption of meals as well as provide contact information for the evaluation. For most sites, this is likely to be a flyer or similar communication provided to families with the meal(s) and collected when the child returns to the site. Enrolled sites may provide the notification and collect the consent through the enrollment process. Parents may decline to receive Food Backpacks or to participate in the evaluation.

Food provided in the backpacks must be appropriately packaged and portioned to allow children to carry the food from the SFSP site to their home. Food safety is a critical concern and should be addressed through food selection and packaging, as well as through instructions on storage and preparation that accompany the food. As with regular SFSP meal service, sponsors must ensure backpacks meet State and local health and safety requirements. Backpack meals must comply with the SFSP meal pattern or a healthful, nutritionally-balanced alternative must be proposed. The food does not have to be provided in unitized meals. However, the food must be comprised of items that can be assembled into a meal for the child with minimum preparation and with few or, preferably, no additional ingredients contributed by the household. If meals are not unitized, sponsors must provide a menu so participating households know which food items, in combination, comprise a nutritionally-balanced meal. More than one meal may be sent home with the child. However, the food provided is only intended to replace the meal(s) that would be served if the site was open. The Food Backpacks are not intended to supply the entire food needs for the child during the time between the receipt of the Food Backpack and the next meal service at the site. For example, a site approved to serve lunch Monday through Friday may only provide two lunches in Food Backpacks handed out to children on a Friday.

Meal Delivery: Sponsors participating in the Meal Delivery demonstration must deliver meals to children who cannot attend an SFSP meal site in a rural area either because the children are unable to travel to the meal site, or because the sponsor cannot provide meals to widely disbursed children in a way that allows supervised consumption. Meal delivery demonstrations require working with local schools to identify children certified for free or reduced-price school meals. Once eligible children are identified, meals may be delivered to individual homes or to locations where a group of participating children can assemble to pick up meals. Meal Delivery must be made only to children in households that have been certified eligible for free or reduced price meals and enrolled to participate in the Meal Delivery. Household eligibility may be determined using the immediate preceding school year’s free and reduced price meal certification from a child’s school. Although the SFSP serves pre-school children, pre-school children do not receive school meals during the year and are therefore not eligible to be enrolled in the meal delivery demonstration. Because eligibility is based on each child’s certification for free or reduced price meals, the Meal Delivery model does not require that a service area be “area eligible”, meaning 50 percent or more of the children in the area are eligible for free or reduced price school meals.

Parents or guardians must consent to participate in the Meal Delivery before meals are delivered to a household. When meals are provided at a pick-up location, the sponsor may allow children to pick-up meals one time, if meals are available, prior to obtaining household eligibility and consent. No additional meals may be provided until the household information is obtained. Sponsors must notify the participating households of the purpose of the Program, the days of delivery/pick-up and the content of meals (menu). Participating households must be notified that they may be asked to participate in a follow-up survey regarding their participation in the Meal Delivery.

Meals may be delivered any day of the week during the summer, when school is closed. Meals may be delivered daily or less frequently. Not more than two meals per child per day may be provided. Sponsors may deliver more than one day’s worth of meals, but not more than four days at one time. Food safety is a critical concern and should be addressed through food selection and packaging, as well as through instructions on storage and preparation that accompany the food. Meals must comply with the SFSP meal pattern or a healthful, nutritionally-balanced alternative must be proposed. It seems feasible that home delivered meals could easily be unitized and meet the current SFSP meal pattern requirements. If meals are not unitized, sponsors must provide a menu so participating households know which food items, in combination, comprise a nutritionally-balanced meal. We are willing to consider other models, as long as the food provided is comprised of items that can be assembled into a meal for the child with minimum preparation and without additional ingredients contributed by the household. The food must also be selected to provide a positive contribution to the nutritional needs of children. Food delivered to a pick-up location must be appropriately packaged and portioned to allow children to carry the food from the SFSP site to their home. Food delivered to a pick-up location may be collected by one member of the household, rather than requiring that all children in the household be present at the pick-up site.

State agencies and sponsors must ensure that outreach strategies and service provision does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex.

Project Data

For this demonstration project, at a minimum, USDA will need sponsor meal delivery count data for each day for each sponsor participating in the demonstration, as well as site level participation data for all SFSP sites in the State. The State agency will be responsible for collecting the data necessary for the demonstration and providing it to USDA or its evaluation contractor. This may require the State agency to establish additional reporting procedures for participating sponsors. In addition to administrative data, the evaluation will rely on surveys of participating families. Therefore, sponsors must consider how they will gather and provide USDA with contact information for families willing to participate in the evaluation.

It is anticipated that most of the administrative data needed for the evaluation will come from the existing program recordkeeping requirements for SFSP and NSLP. The State agency shall send the data described below in electronic form to FNS. Awardees will be required to submit financial data to FNS electronically using the Food Programs Reporting System (http://www.fprs.fns.usda.gov) to complete the SF-425 (Federal Financial Report) and the SF-425A (Federal Financial Report Attachment). The required data elements are ones that support the filing of forms FNS-418 (Report of the Summer Food Service Program for Children), SF-425 (Federal Financial Report), as well as data normally collected by sponsors and sites, specifically:

a. State level:

1. Number of authorized SFSP sponsors in the State

2. NSLP and SBP enrollment: number of students approved for free meals, number of students approved for reduced price meals, total number of students enrolled, and the average daily participation for each of free meals, reduced price meals, and paid meals; provide the statewide totals and subtotals for each school district

1. For each SFSP Sponsoring organization in the State:

   1. Type of sponsor (school, government, residential camp, national youth sports program, private non-profit sponsor)

   2. Number of summer meal sites

   3. For each of the sponsor’s meal sites, obtain from the sponsor:

      1. Total number of operating days site had meal service during the summer. (If available from Sponsor: number of operating days in each of May, June, July, August, and September.)

      2. Address of meal site

      3. Number of breakfasts, lunches, suppers, and supplements prepared. If available from sponsor: numbers for each of May, June, July, August, September

      4. Number of breakfasts, lunches, suppers, and supplements served to eligible children (firsts, seconds and total for each meal type). If available: by month.

      5. Average daily attendance. If available: by month

      6. Operating Costs – food, labor, other, and total

      7. Administrative costs

      8. All non-USDA income received for food service

2. For each SFSP Sponsor participating in the demonstration:

Home Delivery

1. Delivery route details for each delivery route including:

   1. Number and location of stops on the route

   2. Parent or guardian name, address and phone (if available) for households consenting to participate in meal delivery

   3. Frequency of meal delivery

   4. Content of meals delivered (daily menus)

   5. Daily number of meals delivered

   6. Number of days for which meals are intended to provide food

2. All operating and administrative costs related to the demonstration

3. All non-USDA funding used to cover demonstration costs

Food Backpack

1. Total participation on Food Backpack distribution days by site each month

2. Number of children given backpacks by site each month, if possible, unique children and number of times they received subsequent Food Backpacks each month

3. Parent or guardian name, address and phone (if available) for households consenting to receive food backpacks

4. Content of Food Backpacks (menus)

1. Number of meals delivered

5. All operating and administrative costs related to the demonstration

6. All non-USDA funding used to cover demonstration costs

Project Evaluation

An evaluation will be incorporated into the demonstration project to assess how effective these SFSP modifications are at increasing food security and participation in the SFSP. All evaluation components will be designed and led by USDA or its contractors. The evaluator will conduct interviews with State staff, sponsor staff, and the parents/guardians of households with a child receiving benefits under the demonstration. The State agency should submit signed letters of commitment from sponsors agreeing to participate in evaluation.

Application Review and Selection Process

An FNS panel will evaluate the viability and merits of the applications received by November 19, 2010. FNS presumes the State agencies currently administering the SFSP have the capacity to manage the program, and therefore will be considering the State agency proposal primarily on the proposed capacity to add the demonstration activities to current responsibilities and ability to compile necessary data for the evaluation. FNS will review each of the sponsor applications to determine which sponsors best meet the demonstration requirements including quality of the program design, management capacity, and other criteria as described below.

In order to apply for consideration to be selected for the Home Delivery or Food Backpacks demonstration project, interested and eligible State agencies must submit a plan of operation that describes how they will implement the project if chosen. Plans should be brief but must include sufficient detail to provide assurances to FNS that the demonstration project will be successful.

The following information must be submitted:

1. Description of the need for the demonstration in the State and how the State agency will manage the demonstration project, including the following:

• Oversight/monitoring of project activities

• Financial responsibilities

• Reporting and cooperation with evaluation

2. A proposed plan for how the State agency will disburse the funds to selected sponsors, and how the State agency will ensure that the money is spent appropriately.

3. Staffing: How the State agency will staff the project, including the position titles and experience of the key staff members that will have responsibilities under the project, the proportion of their time that will be devoted to the demonstration project, and a summary of each individual’s roles and responsibilities.

4. Signed Letters of Commitment: (1) A signed letter of commitment from the State Commissioner or equivalent position expressing that the State will follow-through with participating in the demonstration project, including the evaluation component, and commit sufficient State effort to ensure effective operation in 2011 and 2012 if selected by USDA. (2) Signed letters of commitment from each sponsor describing its role in the project, the amount of time it intends to commit to the project, and an affirmation that it will cooperate with the State agency in implementing the project, including cooperation with the evaluation component of the demonstration.

5. Budget: The State agency must include Standard Forms 424 and 424A to prepare an estimated budget for the project. Applicants should provide a detailed budget narrative for all administrative funds requested on Standard Form 424A and describe how those costs relate to the project objectives. The budget should include travel expenses for State agency personnel to travel to the FNS National Office (Alexandria, Virginia) for two meetings.

State agency Plans of Operation should not exceed five (5) pages, and should be single-spaced, and in 12 point Times New Roman font. State Agency plans will be reviewed by FNS using the following criteria:

Proposal Quality and Effectiveness

• Demonstrates a clear understanding of the goals and purpose of the demonstration project.

• Identifies the need and potential impact of the demonstration project.

• Identifies appropriate administrative activities designed to achieve demonstration goals.

• Includes high-quality individual sponsor proposals that have been appropriately screened for inclusion in the State’s application.

State Agency Management

• Describes in detail the management functions of the State Agency for this demonstration project and how the funds will be dispersed to sponsors.

• Describes how the State will provide administrative oversight for the project.

• Demonstrates that there will be a sufficient number of staff members with appropriate qualifications for managing the project, and that participation in the demonstration project will not negatively impact normal SFSP operations by the State agency.

• Includes a letter of commitment by the State Commissioner or equivalent position.

• If administrative funds are requested, adequately justifies the need for and use of those funds.

State Agency’s Ability to Contribute to the Evaluation Component

• Understands the purpose and value of the evaluation component of the demonstration project, and is committed to assisting with this.

• Has the capability to separate and report the required demonstration project data to USDA.

• Demonstrates that the SA will bear the responsibility for ensuring that USDA receives any necessary data, and will minimize the burden on sponsors or other local level staff.

Budget Appropriateness and Economic Efficiency

• Budget: The proposal includes a line item budget that describes the appropriate use of demonstration project funds and justifies Program costs for Summer 2011 and 2012.

• Efficiency: The anticipated results identified in the proposal are commensurate with the cost of the project.

Individual Sponsor Proposals

Individual proposals must be submitted by the State agency for each sponsor wishing to participate in the demonstration. A prototype proposal form is provided in Appendix 1, Prototype Proposal. The panel will numerically score each individual sponsor proposal, contained in each State agency application, using the following evaluation criteria:

1. Merit of Project Design (40 points)

• Identifies a significant need for the demonstration project in the community, and describes how implementation of the demonstration will address that need.

• Describes clearly how the project will be implemented by the sponsor.

• Identifies who will receive meals and how meals will be distributed, including how food safety will be addressed. Describes outreach efforts and community partnerships.

2. Organizational Experience and Management / Staff Capability (30 points)

• Experience: Describes the expertise of the organization and key personnel in managing the SFSP or similar programs, and provides a contingency plan for the loss of key personnel. If applying for the Meal Delivery demonstration, experience in delivery operations, especially food delivery, should be described.

• Timeline: Provides a proposed project timeline that allows sufficient time for proposed tasks and justifies the proposed time commitments of key personnel

• Oversight and Evaluation: Describes a plan for oversight of project implementation, effective communication with the State agency, and cooperation with the evaluation component of the demonstration project.

3. Budget Appropriateness and Economic Efficiency (30 points)

• Budget: The proposal includes a line item budget that describes the appropriate use of demonstration project funds and justifies Program costs for Summer 2011 and 2012.

• Efficiency: The anticipated results identified in the proposal are commensurate with the cost of the project.

Each individual sponsor proposal should not exceed four (4) pages, and should be single-spaced, and in 12 point Times New Roman font.

Determination of Award Amounts

If an application is selected and approved for funding, is realistically and appropriately budgeted, and has technical merit, the application may be funded at the requested amount. However, FNS reserves the right to:

• Fund some, all, or none of the Sponsor proposals submitted in a State agency application.

• Award a grant at less than the total amount requested, if:

  • Federal funding is not sufficient to fully fund all applications that merit awards;

  • It judges that one, or more proposals could be implemented with less funding; or

  • It elects to consider other factors, e.g., geographic, demographic, or socioeconomic diversity, other agency priorities.

• Fund applications outside of numerical ranking for the reasons listed above.

Award Notification and Issuance of Funds

FNS will notify selected State agencies in writing in February 2011 and issue funds as promptly as possible thereafter, subject to the availability of funding.

Application Procedures

The completed application package must be received on or before November 19, 2010. Applications will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time) on this date. FNS will not accept applications sent by data fax or email. Late applications, and additions or revisions to an application after it is received will not be considered.

Application Contents

Each application must contain the following elements to be eligible for consideration:

• Plan of Operation from the State agency, including budget narrative and Standard Forms 424 and 424A

• Eligible Sponsors’ Proposals

• Signed letters of Commitment—must be submitted by both the State agency and from each individual sponsor applying to participate. Sponsors applying for the Meal Delivery demonstration must also include signed letters of commitment from the local schools from which they will obtain names and addresses of children certified for free and reduced-price meals.

• Assurance and Disclosures – the following must be included:

  • Assurance- Non-Construction programs, SF 424B;

  • Disclosures of Lobbying Activities, SF LLL.

• Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, and other

Responsibility Matters, AD-1047

• Certification Regarding Drug-Free Workplace Requirements, State and State Agencies, AD-1052

Application Submission

All required materials should be mailed to the following address:

Dawn Washington, Grants Officer

Food and Nutrition Service, USDA

Grants & Fiscal Policy Division

Summer Demonstration Projects

3101 Park Center Dr., Room 738

Alexandria, VA 22302

OR

Submitted electronically via http://www.grants.gov

Critical Dates

September 2010 Request for Applications announced by FNS

September 2010 Webinar/conference call with interested State agencies

October 15, 2010 State agency Letters of Intent are due to FNS

November 19, 2010 State agency Applications are due to FNS

February 2011 States selected to participate are announced

Appendix 1: Prototype Proposals

For USDA STAFF ONLY

Sponsor Name		Name and Title of SFSP Contact
Mailing Address (Street or P.O. Box, City, State, ZIP)		Telephone of Contact Person (include Area Code)
Street Address (if different)		Name and Title of Institution Administrator
Estimated # of Total Children to be Served via Demo Project		Estimated # of NEW Children to be Served via Demo Project (i.e., children to be served who were not served in summer 2010)
Total # 2011 SFSP Operating Days		Total # Backpack Demo Operating Days
# of Years as a SFSP Sponsor	2010 # of SFSP Sites		2010 # ADA at SFSP Sites

USDA Food and Nutrition Service
Summer Food Service Program
Food Backpacks Demonstration Project Proposal

SECTION I – SPONSOR INFORMATION

SECTION II – MERIT of PROJECT DESIGN

1. NEED TO BE ADDRESSED
   Please describe the need for take home food in addition to SFSP service at the meal site(s).

Sponsor Name	Name of SFSP Contact Person

2. PROJECT DESIGN
   Describe the project design, outreach efforts, and community partnerships for implementing the demonstration (potential questions to be addressed: Who will receive the backpacks? How will Sponsor ensure only those eligible to receive meals are served? How many children will be served? How and when will they be distributed? How will the Sponsor promote the backpack program in the community?)

3. OUTREACH
   Describe the process for notifying families of eligible children and obtaining consent to participate.

4. NUTRITIONAL INTEGRITY
   What will be in the backpacks? Describe the expected content of backpacks (e.g., types of food provided, form of food, variety). How will the sponsor ensure food safety?

Sponsor Name	Name of SFSP Contact Person

SECTION III – ORGANIZATIONAL EXPERIENCE and MANAGEMENT CAPABILITY

5. EXPERIENCE
   Describe the expertise of organization in managing the SFSP, the experience of key personnel in managing and administering government programs, and the contingency plan for the loss of key personnel.

6. OVERSIGHT AND EVALUATION
   Describe the plan for oversight of project implementation, effective communication with the State agency, and cooperation with the evaluation component.

7. TIME LINE
   Provide a project timeline with benchmarks for implementation of the demonstration project in Summer 2011 & 2012.

Sponsor Name	Name of SFSP Contact Person

SECTION IV – BUDGET APPROPRIATENESS and ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY

8. EFFICIENCY
   Describe the anticipated results in relation to the cost of project (i.e., estimated number of children served, number of meals provided, and the reasonableness of the related per child/per meal costs of implementing the project).

9. BUDGET
   Attach a proposed budget estimating all costs that will be associated with the project during Fiscal Years 2011 and 2012 (October 1 – September 30). This includes operational costs (i.e., food and non-food supplies, operational labor, utilities, etc), and administrative costs. Please include a description and examples of each cost in sufficient detail to determine the proposed budget is necessary and reasonable for the implementation of the demonstration project.

CHECKLIST FOR SUBMISSION

• Completed Application Form

• Budget and Narrative

• Letter of Commitment

• The letter should describe the Sponsor’s role in the demonstration project and the amount of time it intends to commit to the project, and an affirmation that it will cooperate with the State agency in implementation of the demonstration.

Please submit materials to your State Agency, to be included with the State’s application to the Demonstration Project.

USDA Food and Nutrition Service
Summer Food Service Program
Home Delivery Demonstration Project Proposal

For USDA STAFF ONLY

Sponsor Name		Name and Title of SFSP Contact
Mailing Address (Street or P.O. Box, City, State, ZIP)		Telephone of Contact Person (include Area Code)
Street Address (if different)		Name and Title of Institution Administrator
Estimated # of Total Children to be Served via Demo Project		Estimated # of NEW Children to be Served via Demo Project (i.e., children to be served who were not served in summer 2010)
Total # Home Delivery Demo Operating Days		Rural Areas to be Served
Previous SFSP Sponsor? If yes, provide # of Years.	2010 # of SFSP Sites		2010 # ADA at SFSP Sites

SECTION I – SPONSOR INFORMATION

SECTION II – MERIT of PROJECT DESIGN

1. NEED TO BE ADDRESSED
   Please describe the need for SFSP meal delivery to children in rural areas.

Sponsor Name	Name of SFSP Contact Person

2. PROJECT DESIGN
   Describe the project design, outreach efforts, and community partnerships for implementing the demonstration (potential questions to be addressed: Who will receive the meals? How will Sponsor ensure only those eligible to receive meals are served? How many children will be served? What is the delivery method and frequency of delivery? How will the Sponsor promote the home deliver program in the community?)

3. OUTREACH

Describe the process for notifying families of eligible children and obtaining consent to participate.

4. COLLABORATION
   Describe how Sponsor coordinated with school food authorities to prepare this proposal.

5. NUTRITIONAL INTEGRITY
   Describe the expected content of meals (e.g., types of food provided, form of food, variety). How will the sponsor ensure food safety?

Sponsor Name	Name of SFSP Contact Person

SECTION III – ORGANIZATIONAL EXPERIENCE and MANAGEMENT CAPABILITY

6. EXPERIENCE
   Describe the expertise of organization in managing the SFSP (if applicable), the experience of key personnel in managing and administering government programs, experience in delivery operations (especially food delivery), and the contingency plan for the loss of key personnel.

7. OVERSIGHT AND EVALUATION
   Describe the plan for oversight of project implementation, effective communication with the State agency, and cooperation with the evaluation component.

8. TIME LINE
   Provide a project timeline with benchmarks for implementation of the demonstration project in Summer 2011 & 2012.

Sponsor Name	Name of SFSP Contact Person

SECTION IV – BUDGET APPROPRIATENESS and ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY

9. EFFICIENCY
   Describe the anticipated results in relation to the cost of project (i.e., estimated number of children served, number of meals provided, and the reasonableness of the related per child/per meal costs of implementing the project).

10. BUDGET
    Attach a proposed budget estimating all costs that will be associated with the project during Fiscal Years 2011 and 2012 (October 1 – September 30). This includes operational costs (i.e., food and non-food supplies, operational labor, utilities, etc), and administrative costs. Please include a description and examples of each cost in sufficient detail to determine the proposed budget is necessary and reasonable for the implementation of the demonstration project.

CHECKLIST FOR SUBMISSION

• Completed Application Form

• Budget and Narrative

• Letter of Commitment

• The letter should describe the Sponsor’s role in the demonstration project and the amount of time it intends to commit to the project, and an affirmation that it will cooperate with the State agency in implementation of the demonstration

Please submit materials to your State Agency, to be included with the State’s application to the Demonstration Project.

Appendix 2: Budget Narrative Checklist – This checklist will assist you in completing the budget narrative portion of the application. Please review the checklist to ensure the applicable items below are addressed in the budget narrative. NOTE: The proposed project description (statement of work) must capture a bona fide need. The budget and budget narrative must be in line with the proposed project description. FNS reserves the right to request information not clearly addressed.

FOR GRANT APPLICANT USE ONLY. DO NOT RETURN THIS FORM WITH THE APPLICATION.

	YES	NO
Personnel
Did you include all key employees paid for by this grant under this heading?
Are employees of the applicant’s organization identified by name and position title?
Did you reflect the current yearly salary as a percentage of time to be devoted to the project?
Fringe Benefits
Did you include your organization’s fringe benefit amount along with the basis for the computation?
Did you list the type of fringe benefits to be covered with Federal funds?
Travel
Are travel expenses itemized? For example origination/destination points, number and purpose of trips, number of staff traveling, mode of transportation and cost of each trip.
Are the Attendee Objectives and travel justifications included in the narrative?
Is the basis for the lodging estimates identified in the budget? For example include excerpt from travel regulations.
Equipment
Is the need for the equipment justified in the narrative?
Are the types of equipment, unit costs, and the number of items to be purchased listed in the budget?
Is the basis for the cost per item or other basis of computation stated in the budget?
Supplies
Are the types of supplies, unit costs, and the number of items to be purchased reflected in the budget?
Is the basis for the cost per item or other basis of computation stated?
Contractual: (FNS reserves the right to request information on all contractual awards and costs after the award of contract.)
Has the bona fide need been clearly identified in the project description to justify the cost for a contract or sub-grant expense(s) shown on the budget?
A justification for all Sole-source contracts must be provided in the budget narrative prior to approving this identified cost.
Other
Consultant Services. – Has the bona fide need been clearly identified in the project description to justify the cost shown on the budget. The following information must be provided in the justification: description of service, the Consultant’s name, and itemized list of all direct cost and fees. The cost of salaries and wages must have; number of personnel includes the position title (specialty and specialized qualifications as appropriate to the costs), Number of estimated hours X hourly wages, and all expenses and fees directly related to the proposed services to be rendered to the project.
For all other line items listed under the “Other” heading, list all items to be covered under this heading along with the methodology on how the applicant derived the costs to be charged to the program.
Indirect Costs
Is the amount requested based upon a rate approved by a Federal Agency? If yes, a copy of the negotiated rate agreement must be provided along with the application.
If no negotiated indirect cost agreement exists, the application should show this cost as a direct cost to the budget.

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