PUBLIC NOTICE
Town of Wellesley
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Wellesley Public Schools – Food & Nutrition Services
The Wellesley Public Schools is happy to announce its policy for determining free meals/milk and reduced price meals served under the National School Lunch Program. Free and Reduced Meal Benefits are available to qualifying families. Applications for Free and Reduced Price Meals are sent home via email to each household at the beginning of the school year. Applications are also available on the school website at www.wellesleyps.org, as well as in the administrative building and main office at any of the schools. You may apply for Free and Reduced Price Meals at any time during the school year. Your children may qualify for Free or Reduced Price Meals if your household income falls within the limits on the Federal Poverty Guidelines chart on https://wellesleyps.org/students-families/food-services/#federal-guidelines
The Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines for July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023 are as follows:
If anyone in your household participates in any of the following assistance programs, your children are eligible for free school meals: The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or MA SNAP, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or MA TANF, or The Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR)
For up to 30 operating days into the new school year, eligibility from the previous year will continue. When the carry-over period ends, unless the household is notified their children are directly certified* or the household submits an application that is approved, the children must pay full price for school meals.
*No application is required if the district directly certifies a child through the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Service’s Virtual Gateway as receiving MA SNAP, MA TAFDC, Medicaid or is a foster child. This electronic match process is required by Federal Regulation. (The Virtual Gateway is an internet portal designed by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services to provide the general public, medical providers, community-based organizations and EOHHS staff with online access to health and human services). All children in these households are eligible for free or reduced meal benefits. If you receive a notice of Direct Certification for your child to receive free school meals and there are other children in your household that are not listed, you may contact Wellesley Public Schools at 781-446-6210 ext. 5612 to have the benefit extended to them. Households notified of their children’s eligibility must contact Wellesley Public Schools at 781-446-6210 ext. 5612 or submit in writing if they want to decline the free meal benefits.
Students who are homeless, migrant, runaway or enrolled in an eligible Head Start or pre-kindergarten class are also eligible for benefits.
If children or households receive benefits under Assistance Programs or Other Source Categorically Eligible Programs and are not notified by the school of their free or reduced price meal benefits, the parent or guardian should contact Wellesley Public Schools at 781-446-6210 ext. 5612.
Foster children that are under the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court, are categorically eligible for free meals. A foster child may be included as a member of the foster family if the foster family chooses to also apply for benefits. If a foster family is not eligible for free or reduced price meal benefits, it does not prevent the foster child from receiving free meal benefits. Note however, that a foster child’s free eligibility does not automatically extend to all students in the household.
Application forms for all other households must list the names of all household members, all household income with the amount, source and frequency of the income received by each household member. An adult signature is required along with the last 4 digits of the adult’s Social Security Number or the box checked that applicant does not have a Social Security Number. Completed applications should be submitted to Wellesley Public Schools, ATTN: Purchasing Coordinator, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481. Under the provisions of the policy for determining eligibility for free and reduced-price meals, the Accounting Coordinator for Purchasing will review applications and determine eligibility. If a parent is dissatisfied with the ruling of the determining official, he/she may wish to discuss the decision with the determining official on an informal basis by calling 781-446-6210 ext. 5612. If he/she wishes to make a formal appeal, a request either orally or in writing may be made to Cynthia Mahr, Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481.
If a household member becomes unemployed or if household size changes at any time, the family can file a new application.
In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/oascr/filing-program-discrimination-complaint-usda-customer, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
- Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
- Fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
- Email: program.intake@usda.gov
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.