Appendix C20. Study Objectives and Overview (Full and Limited Outlying Areas)

C20. STUDY OBJECTIVES AND OVERVIEW (FULL AND LIMITED
OUTLYING AREAS)

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School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study-II (SNMCS-II)

Outlying Areas Cost Study
About
the Study

The Outlying Areas Cost Study (OACS) will continue the long-standing commitment of the
Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to assess school meal programs. FNS is part of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture. Reimbursement rates for school meals sold in the contiguous
48 States and the District of Columbia are assessed periodically using a rigorous cost study
methodology. That cost study methodology has never been applied in outlying areas such as
Alaska, Guam, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The OACS, a sub-study of
the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study-II (SNMCS-II), will provide critical information
to FNS about the cost of producing school meals in the outlying areas.
The OACS will estimate the cost of producing reimbursable meals for the National School
Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program. It will also examine the ratios of revenues to
costs. This study is important because an accurate assessment of meal costs could eventually
be used to adjust per-meal reimbursement rates in these outlying areas.
FNS has contracted with Mathematica Policy Research to conduct the OACS about SY
2019-2020.

Participating
in the Study

Mathematica is selecting a sample of SFAs and schools needed to produce cost estimates
for each outlying area. It will collect data only from SFAs [, food service management
companies,] and schools necessary for the study’s success. The cooperation of selected States/
Territories, districts, schools, and contractors is required under Section 28 of the Richard
B. Russell National School Lunch Act. SFAs and schools will be asked to complete the
following activities:
A Menu Survey. This survey will collect detailed information on the foods offered and
served in reimbursable lunches and breakfasts [OA Full: during one school week; OA
Limited: (FILL MENU REQUEST DETAILS)].
[OA Full: SFA Director, School Nutrition Manager, and Principal Cost
Interviews. Interviewers will ask SFA directors/business managers, [food service
management company representatives,] school nutrition managers, and principals for
information about the cost to prepare and serve school meals.]
[OA Limited: SFA Director Cost Interviews. Interviewers will ask SFA directors/
business managers for information about the cost to prepare and serve school meals.]

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 2 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. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information,
including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy Support,
3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302, ATTN: PRA (0584-xxxx). Do not return the completed form to this address.

Timeline of Study Activities
Begin working
with SFA [OA Full:
and school] staff
to schedule data
collection.
Nov.

Dec.

Jan.

Feb.

Mar.

Apr.

May

Jun.

Jul.

2020

Aug.

Sep.

Oct.

Nov.

Dec.

Jan.

Feb.

Mar.

2021

Menu Survey and Cost
Interviews

Follow-up cost interviews with SFA directors[, food
service management company representatives,] and
district business managers

Protecting
Privacy

All information gathered from SFAs[, food service management companies,] and schools is
for research purposes only, and will not be used for auditing or monitoring. It will be kept
private to the fullest extent allowed by law. We will group responses with those of other study
participants. Study reports will not identify individual schools or respondents. Taking part in
the study will not affect Federal meal reimbursements or benefits to students participating in
the school meal programs.

Disseminating
the Findings

A final report on the OACS findings will be submitted to FNS in 2022.

About the
SNMCS-II
Research Team

Mathematica and its partners, Insight Policy Research and Agralytica, are among the nation’s
leading research companies. The team has over 25 years of experience in conducting research
for government agencies and studying child nutrition programs.

For More
Information

Mary Kay Fox
Project Director
Mathematica Policy Research
[email protected]
(XXX) XXX-XXXX

[FNS Representative]
[TITLE]
Food and Nutrition Service,
U.S. Department of Agriculture
[email protected]
(XXX) XXX-XXXX