The San Diego Hunger Coalition partners with school districts across the County to bring more food to families and more dollars to schools through CalFresh!

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Short on time but want to learn more? View our 2-minute CalFresh in Schools highlight reel!

On January 27, 2022, the San Diego Hunger Coalition, in partnership with No Kid Hungry, kicked off a campaign to support school districts in bringing more federal dollars to school meal programs by enrolling eligible students in CalFresh.

WHAT IS CALFRESH?

CalFresh, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as it’s known federally, provides money for groceries on an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card every month.

This campaign was launched with a county-wide conversation geared towards school district leaders on what CalFresh is and how the program can help their schools prepare for California’s implementation of School Meals for All. Joining the Hunger Coalition were presenters from the County of San Diego Office of Education and Health and Human Service Agency, Vista, Borrego Springs and San Diego Unified School District leadership, community-based application assistors from Feeding San Diego and Chula Vista Community Collaborative, and national child nutrition advocates from No Kid Hungry. The kickoff was well attended, with representatives from 28 school districts, 42 community organizations and 8 government offices to share the need for outreach and opportunities for collaboration.

Participants learned:

  • Why CalFresh is good for kids, schools, and nutrition program, and how increasing CalFresh enrollment supports schools’ general operating and nutrition services budgets.

  • Basics on the CalFresh program, including who is eligible and how to apply.

  • Easy ways to get the word out to parents and offer help to families applying.

Visit www.sdhunger.org/calfreshinschools  for resources to help strengthen CalFresh in your school.

Why CalFresh Outreach is Good for Students

When kids are enrolled in CalFresh, they get the food they need to succeed both at home and school. California families with children receive an average of $373 a month to help parents afford groceries, pre-COVID. During the pandemic, a family of four receives $835 a month. When students consistently get the food they need, it leads to lower rates of chronic absenteeism, stronger test scores, fewer trips to the nurse and fewer disruptions caused by hungry behavior.

Why CalFresh Outreach is Good for Schools

Students enrolled in CalFresh are automatically certified for free school meals. That means fewer school meal applications to process. CalFresh also improves a school’s ability to operate free summer and afterschool meal programs and to adopt the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), federal funding to serve free meals to all students during the school day. Learn more about CEP by reading our issue brief.

Why CalFresh Outreach is Good for Nutrition Programs

School nutrition programs are getting ready to undergo a transformational change, and CalFresh can help. To prepare for the implementation of Universal Meals for All, new legislation that will require all schools across the state of California to offer free meals to all students in the 2022/2023 school year, increasing CalFresh enrollment and adopting CEP will provide critical federal funding for school meal programs. Cathy Paredes, the Nutrition Services Director at Borrego Springs Unified School District, explained that CEP enrollment is a win-win-win. Students get an increased variety of foods available at no cost to them, and nutrition departments spend less time doing paperwork allowing for more time to meal prep and menu plan.

Get involved!

“When we impact one school district, one child, one community, collectively we impact the entire state and the entire nation.” Cipriano Vargas, Vista Unified School District School Board President

Visit www.sdhunger.org/calfreshinschools  for resources to help strengthen CalFresh in your school. Resources available include:

  • Full recording of the CalFresh in Schools Launch

  • Toolkit with social media content, robo-call, text message and email scripts to support parent outreach

  • Recommendations on how to connect with a CalFresh application assistor near your school.             

Help your team better connect nutrition insecure San Diegans to available food assistance. Register for one of our upcoming Hunger Free Navigator trainings where you and your team will gain knowledge to better understand and connect to food assistance resources across the county.