FFVP-CFD_Appendix_E1a1_Parent_Consent_Implied_Eng

Evaluation of the Canned, Frozen, or Dried Fruits and Vegetables Pilot Project in the FFVP

Appendix E.1a1. Letter - Study Introduction, Survey Invitation- Parent (English)

Rhoda Cohen P.O. Box 2393

Senior Survey Researcher and Princeton, NJ 08543-2393

Survey Director for the FFVP-CFD Study Telephone (609) 799-3535

Fax (609) 799-0005

www.mathematica-mpr.com

(800) 232-8024

OMB Control No: 0584-XXXX

Expiration date: XX/XX/XXXX

Fall 2014

Parent/Guardian: <StudentFirstName> <StudentLastName>

Student of <TeacherLastName><TeacherFirstInitial>

<ClassRoomName>

<School>

Your child’s school and school district are participating in a study of the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service, that is taking place in elementary schools across the country. Your school and district have given Mathematica Policy Research permission to conduct this study, and we are asking for your permission to include your child in the study.

If your child participates in the study, he or she will be asked to complete a brief survey about how well he or she likes the fruit and vegetable snacks offered at school. Some students will be asked to complete a food diary of what they ate during a school day and a short dietary interview. Students completing the food diary and dietary interview during school hours will receive a $5 gift card. The data will be analyzed by the study team to learn about your school’s fruit and vegetable snacks, but no information that directly identifies your child will be shared outside the study team.

We take confidentiality and security of data very seriously. Information we collect will be kept strictly confidential. Mathematica has strict procedures to store data securely and ensure the confidentiality of your child’s information by removing any of your child’s identifiers (such as name) before data are analyzed.

Participation in the study is voluntary and your child can stop participating at any time. If you do not want your child to take part in the study, it will not affect the instruction or other services your child receives at school.

Again, there are no potential risks to your child. However, if you do not want your child to be included in the study, please call my staff toll-free at (800) 232-8024 or email us at Fruitand [email protected]. We will need to know your child’s name, his or her teacher’s name, the name of the school, and the school’s location (city and state). Otherwise, you need not do anything.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns. For more information about the study please visit the study website at www.xxxxxx. Thank you in advance for your help with this important study

Sincerely,

Rhoda Cohen

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-XXXX. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 10 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Information about the Study for Parents and Students

What is the Purpose of the Study?

As mandated by Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is funding a study to learn how schools’ implementation of the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program affects students’ diets and satisfaction with the free fruit and vegetable snacks. The USDA FNS has contracted Mathematica Policy Research, an independent research firm, to conduct the study.

What does it mean to participate in the study?

Students will be asked to fill out a short diary to keep track of the foods they eat in school for one day. We will choose up to 12 students per classroom to fill out the food diary. If chosen, each student will be given instructions orally and in writing by a member of the Mathematica study team on how to fill out the food diary for all foods eaten during the school day.

Also, students will be asked to complete a brief survey that will ask some questions about themselves and about how often they eat the free fruit and vegetable snacks offered at school what they like or dislike about them. The student interview will take about 20 minutes to complete. Mathematica staff will also observe the distribution of fruit and vegetable snacks during the school day.

Parents will be asked to answer some brief questions about the free fruit and vegetable snacks provided at school and what they like or dislike about the program. The parent questionnaire will take no more than 10 minutes to complete. Parents will receive a $5 gift card for completing and returning the brief survey. Students that completed food diaries will receive a $5 gift card as reimbursement for the time associated with being in the study. A small number of students will be asked to record their food and beverage intake for a second day and be given another $5 gift card for a completed food diary/dietary interview.

What are the Risks and Benefits?

Completing the questionnaires is voluntary. There are no penalties for refusing to participate. Students are not required to be in the study in order to continue to be in any school program. Being part of this study will not hurt students or parents in any way. If any parent or student feels uncomfortable at any time during the study, they may decide not to participate.

Will it be Confidential?

Mathematica has strict procedures to store data securely and to ensure the confidentiality of the names of students and parents by removing names before data are analyzed. Names will not be written in any report or given to anyone other than the study team. Teachers, school staff, program staff and parents will not be allowed to see any of the information from the questionnaires.

What if I Have Questions? If you have any questions about the study, please contact Rhoda Cohen, Mathematica Survey Director or her staff at (800) 232-8024 or email at [email protected].

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We would like your permission for your child and you to fill the study questionnaires and ask that you complete and sign the Parent Permission form (found on the other side of this paper).

An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer

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