Traditionally, child care centers should be participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), which is administered in New York State by the New York State Department of Health.  Head Start programs are generally deemed to be child care rather than "school."

    Head Start programs are increasingly collaborating with early childhood programs in schools.  These programs provide a variety of components and services to children between ages three and five. One of the requirements is to share a meal daily.  Because of this nutrition component, some schools have been asked to provide meals to the Head Start children.

    In an effort to reduce administrative burdens upon local education agencies, the United States Department of Agriculture will enable child care situations to be claimed under the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) in the following scenario:

            The Head Start or child care centers are located in and operated by a school. The centers must be directly connected to the school; in other words, the school must maintain final administrative control over the center.

            If the center is operated by an entity other than the school, the center must continue to apply to CACFP.  If the Head Start or child care center is in a separate building (whether a school or not), the site must be claimed under CACFP.  If the Head Start is leasing space in the school building, they should be in CACFP.  If the Head Start is not sponsored by the school, the school may vend meals to the children, but they may not be claimed by the school under the NSLP.

    The following are frequently asked questions/answers regarding Head Start:

Are the meals served to Head Start children reimbursable?

    It depends.

• If the Head Start program is located in your school building or in a complex of buildings where there are other educational programs that are recognized by the State Education Department, then it is considered a part of your school.  Meals served to these children are eligible for reimbursement under the NSLP and the SBP as long as there are applications or direct certification letters to document eligibility; otherwise, students are claimed for paid reimbursement.  The meals must be counted at the point of service.
• If the Head Start program is located in a school building, but there are no children above pre-K in that building, the site should participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), not in the NSLP or SBP.
• If the Head Start site is not in a school building, you cannot claim the meals under a currently approved recipient agency (RA).  Meal counts for an RA must only reflect meals served to children housed in that particular site.

How do I claim meals?

        The Head Start program director must provide documentation of the eligibility of children with direct certification letters or applications with approval for free or reduced price meals to the school food service director; otherwise, students are claimed for paid reimbursement.  The daily meal counts must be recorded by category at the point of service and forwarded for claiming.

What if the Head Start Program is not in my building?

        Head Start programs that are not located in a public school building can receive meals; however, they are not reimbursable under the NSLP or SBP.   The food service department of the public school may vend the meals at a fixed rate and generate extra revenue for their program. The Head Start program could receive reimbursement through the CACFP.  For more information, contact the Department of Health at (518) 402-7103 or 1-800-942-3858. 

What if the Head Start Program is also a Universal Pre-K?

        Since the State Education Department must approve the Universal Pre-K programs, they may operate in a separate building and may participate in the NSLP and SBP.  The meals served to these children may be claimed for reimbursement as long as there is documentation of the eligibility of the children with direct certification letters or applications with approval for free or reduced priced meals; otherwise, meals should be claimed in the paid category.

        In any of the above-mentioned programs, the meals may not be claimed under the NSLP or SBP if they are already being claimed under the CACFP.