Appendix B2 Invitation Letter to State Agency Child Nutrition Directors/Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)/Web Survey Information

APPENDIX B2

Invitation Letter to State Agency Child Nutrition Directors

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

and

Web Survey Information Sheet

XX/XX/2017

Dear [FIRST NAME] [LAST NAME]:

2M Research Services and its partner, Mathematica Policy Research, are conducting a national survey for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), as part of a study called the Child Nutrition Program Operations Study II (CN-OPS II). The CN-OPS II is in its second year of data collection and is being conducted to understand and address the current policy issues related to Child Nutrition Program (CNP) operations.

The goal of this study is to improve the implementation of the Child Nutrition Programs by examining:

• data on the Child Nutrition Program (CNP) characteristics to help FNS respond to questions about CN programs in schools;

• data related to program administration for designing and revising program regulations, managing resources, and reporting requirements; and

• data related to program operations to help FNS develop and provide training and technical assistance for School Food Authorities and State Agencies responsible for administering the CN programs.

The CN-OPS II is easy to complete on the web. The survey is designed to be completed by the CN Director or designated members of your staff and should take about 2 hours to complete. We included a hardcopy of the survey with this letter for planning purposes. We encourage you to circulate the survey among appropriate staff, if necessary, to obtain all responses. We have also included frequently asked questions and a web survey information sheet to assist you.

Please note that your cooperation in this study is encouraged under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. Section 305 of that Act states that “States, State educational agencies, local educational agencies, schools, institutions, facilities, and contractors participating in programs authorized under this Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C 1771 et seq.) shall cooperate with officials and contractors acting on behalf of the Secretary, in the conduct of evaluations and studies under those Acts.”

Therefore, let me encourage you to complete the study by XX. The information you provide about yourself and other individuals in your organizations will be kept private to the extent allowed by law. This means that your personal information will not be associated with any of your responses about your agency’s operations. The responses you provide about operations may be tabulated by State so that the public will be able to determine how your survey responses compare with those of other State agencies.

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 0584-0607. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 3 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.

To access the survey, please log on to http://www.2mresearch.com/cnops2state. You will be asked for your Login Identification and Password, which are indicated below.

Login Identification: [Username]

Password: [Password]

We thank you in advance for your important contribution to this research. If you have questions or concerns about this study, please contact the support team directly by email at [email protected] or by calling our survey helpline at 1-866-465-7738.

Sincerely,

Jim Murdoch, Project Director

Enclosed: CN-OPS II Web Survey Information Sheet, Frequently Asked Questions, and CN Director Survey.

Child Nutrition Program Operations Study II (CN-OPS II)

Frequently Asked Questions

Q	Why is FNS conducting a survey of State Child Nutrition Directors?
A	This survey is being conducted to provide nationally representative information about Child Nutrition programs and programs available in public school districts. The goal of the CN-OPS II is to understand the policy and operational issues surrounding the Child Nutrition Programs. Specifically, survey topics include the preparation of program budget, development and implementation of program policy and regulations, and identification of areas for provision of technical assistance and training.
Q	Who is invited to participate in CN-OPS II?
A	This is a survey of 55 State Child Nutrition Program Directors and 2,188 School Food Authority Directors.
Q	Why is participation by your State important?
A	The study requires national estimates. All States need to respond to preserve the validity of the study. Furthermore, this study is authorized under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 and your cooperation in the study is encouraged. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. Section 305 of that Act states that “States, State educational agencies, local educational agencies, schools, institutions, facilities, and contractors participating in programs authorized under this Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C 1771 et seq.) shall cooperate with officials and contractors acting on behalf of the Secretary, in the conduct of evaluations and studies under those Acts.” There is no requirement to complete a survey to continue participation in the CN programs or to receive any Federal benefits.
Q	How long is the data collection period?
A	Because of the time sensitive nature of data that are being collected, we expect to receive all completed surveys within 10 weeks.
Q	How does FNS protect the privacy of the information that I provide?
A	Your answers about operations may be used for descriptive purposes, including tabulations by State. Any personal information you provide about yourself or specific individuals in your agency (name, telephone number education, etc.) may not be disclosed or used in identifiable form unless otherwise compelled by law. The federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved the survey (OMB Number: 0584-0607. Expiration Date:xx/xx/20xx).
Q	What types of information should I be prepared to provide in this survey?
A	You should be prepared to provide the following information for the schools in your state: the number of schools enrolled in the Community Eligibility Provision and the duration of their enrollment, the number of schools enrolled in nutritional assistance programs such as NSLP and SBP, the number of charter schools in your State, the number of charter schools enrolled in NSLP and SBP, the number of State agency staff responsible for monitoring school meal operations and the percentage of hours that are devoted to monitoring school meal operations, subsidies and resources your State provides to SFAs, State Administrative Expense (SAE) funds your State received during the Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, procurement practices, use of computer-based reporting systems and software used to conduct nutrient analysis of menus, state prototype applications for free and reduced price (F/RP) meals, grants received from the USDA (Team Nutrition Training Grants, Administrative Review and Training (ART) Grants, and Direct Certification Improvement Grants), general information about the training offered to the SFA personnel at your schools and any challenges associated with the training, hiring standards for the schools in your State and some background information on yourself.
Q	Who should I contact if I have questions about the study or the survey?
A	If you have any questions about this survey, please contact the Help Desk at 1-866-465-7738 or email the help desk at [email protected].

W eb Survey Information Sheet

Getting Started with Your Child Nutrition Director Survey

Step 1: Go to the web browser on any computer with Internet access and enter the web site address below in the address bar to access the study’s data collection site. Do not enter the address into a search engine.

Survey address: http://www.2mresearch.com/cnops2state

Login Identification: Username

Password: Password

Step 2: Click on the survey link to reach the login page.

Step 3: Look at the letter you received with this instruction sheet to find your user login and password. Enter this information into the corresponding boxes and click the login button to access your account, where you will see the introduction page of your district survey. All staff responding to the survey will need to use the same user login and password.

Step 4: The first time you log into the survey you will be directed to the Menu page, which lists each survey section.

Step 5: Prior to responding to the web survey, we recommend that you review the hardcopy of the survey to get a general sense of the survey content and to help identify which individuals are in the best position to complete survey sections. You can also access a PDF copy of the survey by clicking the link labeled “PDF Version of the Survey” in the survey header (which appears on every page after you log in).

We also recommend that you review the Frequently Asked Questions document before responding to the survey. You can access this document by clicking the link labeled “Frequently Asked Questions” in the survey header.

Step 6: Once you have completed all sections of the Child Nutrition Director Survey, click on the "Submit Survey" button (on the Menu page).

Questions about the completing the survey?

Toll-free Helpline: 1-866-465-7738

Email Helpdesk: [email protected]