Lunch

A hot lunch program is available for all students; which includes milk. Pioneer Union Elementary School District uses the “offer verses serve” system for all students. This means that students may choose from any of the items available, taking what they wish. At the minimum, students must select an item from three of the five meal components. One of the components must be ½ cup of fruit and or a vegetable.

Breakfast

Breakfast is a Grab-N-Go meal served every morning before school at all school sites. A different item is offered each day along with fresh fruit, 100% fruit juice and a choice of milk. You will find breakfast items included above each day’s lunch menu on both the monthly menu and the weekly bulletin.

Lunch / Breakfast Meal Accounts

Prices for lunch and breakfast are included below in this packet. Each student is issued a cafeteria code number. When the code is entered in the cafeteria computer by the student, the cost of that meal is deducted from the student’s account. It is your responsibility to keep your child’s account current. A reminder phone call is generated to assist you when the balance in the student’s account falls below $5.00 or a negative balance is accrued.

Payments to your child’s meal account may be made on line through MyPaymentsPlus. MyPaymentPlus allows you to check the balance on your child’s account as well, without making a deposit to an account. If a payment envelope is needed, they are available in the cafeteria. Students should turn in any payments to their teacher first thing in the morning to expedite the lunch line. Payments are given to the Cafeteria Clerk every morning. Please include your child’s name on the envelope and or check.

Meal Charge and Remaining Balance Funds

Policy:

The National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs are integral in ensuring that students have access to nutritious meals to support their academic success.

Each school day, a nutritionally adequate breakfast and lunch shall be made available at no cost to any student who requests a meal, including a student enrolled in an independent study program on any school day in which the student is scheduled for in-person educational activates of two or more hours. A nutritionally adequate breakfast or lunch is one that qualifiers for reimbursement under the most current meal pattern for the Federal School Breakfast Program or National School Lunch Program.

After a student has been provided a school meal at no cost, the district may sell the student the entree from an additional nutritiously adequate meal that qualifies for federal reimbursement, from the same meal service. (Education Code 49431)

Ways That Payments May Be Made to a Child’s Account

Payments may be made by using MyPaymentsPlus, our online payment process.

Payments may be made directly to the school. A child may give the payment (cash or check) to

their teacher and the payment will be sent to the Cafeteria Clerk. The payment will be posted to

the child(ren)’s account.

Balances Remaining on Student’s Accounts

Full-Pay Student Accounts

  1. Parents/guardians of full pay students may request a refund, transfer funds to a sibling’s account, or donate the remaining balance at any time during the year.
  2. The Cafeteria Clerk will note on the withdrawal slip the amount of money remaining on the student’s cafeteria account when the student is exiting from the district.
  3. The Cafeteria Clerk, at the school site the student attends will run an active student report and will request a refund for the full-pay active students exiting the district monthly or graduating at the end of the school year.
  4. If the account balance of a full pay student who is exiting or graduating from the District is less than $5.00, the Cafeteria Clerk will attempt to contact the parent/guardian to see if they would like a refund, to transfer funds to a sibling’s account, or donate funds to the cafeteria. The Cafeteria Clerk will attempt to contact the parent/guardian twice and record the date, time, and name of the person contacted on the student account log. Should the parent not respond within five business days of the last phone call, the balance shall be transferred to the cafeteria fund as a donation.
  5. The Cafeteria Clerk will run a report at the end of each month for any active student on full pay status with a balance greater than $5.00 and will refund any amount. If the amount is over $5.00, but less than $1.00, contact the parent/guardian to see if they want to donate it to the cafeteria department before processing the refund.
  6. Prior to the end of the school year, the Cafeteria Clerk will run an active student report and any balance of $5.00 or less will remain in the student’s account and roll over to the next school year unless the parent/guardian requests a refund.

Free Student Accounts

  1. Parents/guardians of a free student may request a refund any time during the year.
  2. Any student exiting or graduating from the district will have their balance refunded, regardless of the amount in their account.
  3. The Cafeteria Clerk will note on the withdrawal slip the amount of money remaining on the student’s cafeteria account when the student is existing the district.
  4. The Cafeteria Clerk at the school site the student attends, will run an inactive student report and will request a refund of any balance on an existing free account. This balance will automatically be refunded monthly.
  5. The Cafeteria Clerk will run a report at the end of each month for any active student on free status with a balance greater than $5.00 and will refund any amount over $5.00 monthly.
  6. Prior to the end of the school year, the Cafeteria Clerk will run and active student report and any balance of $5.00 or less will remain in the students account and roll over to the next school year unless the parent /guardian requests a refund.

Reduced Student Accounts

  1. Parent/guardians of reduced pay students may request a refund or transfer to a sibling’s account at any time during the year.
  2. Any student exiting or graduating from the district will have their balance refunded, regardless of the amount in the account.
  3. The Cafeteria Clerk will note on the withdrawal slip the amount of money remaining on the student’s cafeteria account when the student is exiting from the district.
  4. The Cafeteria Clerk, at the school site the student attends will run an inactive student report and will request a refund of any balance on an existing reduced account. This balance will automatically be refunded monthly.
  5. The Cafeteria Clerk will run a report at the end of each month for any active student on reduced status with a balance greater than $5.00 and will refund any amount over $5.00 monthly.
  6. Prior to the end of the school year, the Cafeteria Clerk will run an active student report and any balance of $5.00 or less will remain in the student’s account and roll over to the next school year unless the parent/guardian requests a refund.

The refund, for both free and reduced-pay students, will be mailed to the last known address or forwarding address of the parent/guardian, if one was given.

Should a refund be returned as undeliverable, the district will attempt to call the parent/guardian at the phone number on record twice, once on two separate business days to obtain the current mailing address of the parent/guardian. When contacted by phone, parents may choose to donate any balance to the cafeteria fund. Should the parent/guardian not respond within 5 business days of the last phone call, the balance shall be transferred to the cafeteria fund.

Assistance to Households

Households with questions or needing assistance may contact the school office where their student attends to be properly directed.

Pioneer Elementary School – (559) 584-8831

Frontier Elementary School – (559) 585-2430

Pioneer Middle School – (559) 584-0112

Pupil Nutrition/Notice of Free and Reduced Meal Prices

(E.C. sections 49510-49520; 42 U.S.C. 1758 and 1773))

Your child may be eligible for free and reduced meal prices. The application form and related information will be distributed to all parents at the beginning of each school year and is available to students at all times during the school day.

Earned Income Tax Credit Information Act

Based on your annual earnings, you may be eligible to receive the Earned Income Tax Credit from the Federal Government (Federal EITC). The Federal EITC is a refundable federal income tax credit for low-income working individuals and families. For information regarding your eligibility to receive the Federal EITC, contact the IRS by calling 800-829-3676 or through its website at www.irs.gov.

You may also be eligible to receive the California Earned Income Tax Credit (California EITC). The California EITC is a refundable state income tax credit for low-income working individuals and families. For information on the availability of the credit eligibility requirements contact the Franchise Tax Board at 800-852-5711 or through its website at www.ftb.ca.gov.

USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its agencies, office, employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the state or local agency that administers the program or contact USDA through the Telecommunications Relay Service at 711 (voice and TTY). Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form,

AD- 3027(PDF), found online at How to File a Program Discrimination Complaint and at any USDA office or write a letter

addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the

complaint form, call 866-632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by:

Mail – U.S. Department of Agriculture – Office of the Asst. Secretary for Civil Rights

1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Mail Stop 9410

Washington, D.C. 20250-9410

FAX – 202-690-7442

Email – [email protected]

Services to Disabled Pupils

(E.C. sections 56020 et seq. and 56301)

If you have reason to believe that your child (ages 0 through 21 years) has a disability which requires special services or accommodations, notify your school principal. You may request an assessment for eligibility for special education instruction or services through the school principal after other interventions are utilized. Your child will be evaluated to determine whether he/she is eligible for special instruction or services.

Student Record Transfers

(E. C. sections 49068)

The pupil’s permanent record shall be transferred by the former district or private school upon a request from the district or private school where the pupil intends to enroll.