Summer Food Service Program Looks to Expand in North Dakota

Nearly 80,000 children eat lunch at school in North Dakota during the school year; about one-half of those lunches are served to children from families with low incomes.

Now that school is out for the summer, kids are at home or out in the community, and they still need to eat lunch.  There is a Summer Food Service Program that provides lunches to kids in the state, but only about 3,800 lunches per day are served.  That shows a big gap in the number of lunches served during the school year and those served during the summer. With increasing food costs and parents working throughout the day, the question is, “Where are kids eating?”

To help fill the gap, the search is on for organizations to sponsor Summer Food Service Programs (SFSP’s) in the state. Child Nutrition and Food Distribution Programs in the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction administers this federal child nutrition program of the USDA. The program provides reimbursement for meals served in low-income areas of a town or to those organizations that serve a high number of children from low-income families.  Sponsoring agencies can be school (public or private), government agencies, private nonprofit organizations, or others.

If you think you know of an organization who could sponsor, prepare and serve lunches, breakfasts and/or snacks to kids, look for more information at USDA's Summer Food Service Program or ND Department of Public Instruction's Child Nutrition and Food Distribution  or contact Kaye at Child Nutrition Food Distribution Programs, 701- 328-2275. 

Karen K. Ehrens, RD, LRD
Creating a Hunger Free North Dakota Coalition Coordinator

Head Start, Sequestration, and NO state support

North Dakota is one state in about 10 that has consistently provided no state dollars to supplement federal funding of Head Start.  Subsequently, Head Start in North Dakota is 100% federally funded with a requirement of raising $1 local match for every $4 federal funding.  Federal funding has not kept pace with the consumer price index. 

For the fourth straight legislative session, the North Dakota Head Start Association worked with legislative allies in presenting a funding bill to the North Dakota legislature.  This year HB1356 proposed providing $6,175,000 for the biennium to accommodate the large waiting lists and other funding gaps for low-income children.  HB1356 was hog housed in the House education committee and turned into a early childhood interim study to be conducted by the Department of Public Instruction with no funding. Through many twists and turns during the session, the bill was defeated in the House by a vote of 34-59. The session ended, once again, without any funding for Head Start. 

photo courtesy of National Head Start Association

Meanwhile, Federal sequestration was looming and took affect on March 1, 2013, and the first rounds of cuts for Head Start will occur on July 1, 2013. The effects of sequestration on Head Starts across ND will leave behind over 160 families who currently benefit from the program.

Head Start in the state is hurting which negatively impacts the most at risk children. North Dakotans need to speak up to change this negative impact. Tell Congress and the President to end sequestration NOW. 

Wins in the ND 2013 Legislative Session

The longest session in history ended May 3rd in the wee hours of the morning. Two moves on the part of the legislature show a little progress from the state in enacting policy for low and moderate income individuals in ND.


Medicaid Expansion passed and the Governor signed it into law. In North Dakota, there are currently 29,000 uninsured adults who will be eligible for Medicaid under the state expanded Medicaid program. Of these, 24,000 would be newly eligible for Medicaid with the expansion, while 5,000 are eligible for the program under current rules but are not enrolled. This expanded access to coverage is surely to improve the health of North Dakotans.




The state's child care assistance program was expanded to allow subsidies up to 85% of state median income, up from 49%. This gives ND among the most generous child care subsidies program in the nation. What this means for families is greater access to affordable child care which keeps parents in the work force. The dollar amount quickly translated means a family of three making around $60,000 or below would received subsidies and require a small co-pay based on a sliding fee scale.


NDESPA partners will follow the implementation of both to see the impact in the state.

Keep up with the blog as we post more reviews through the next few weeks.

Join us for A Place at the Table - 5:30 on May 9th at the Grand Theater

NDESPA and partners will host a viewing of A Place at the Table on May 9th at 5:30 at the Grand Theater in Bismarck. Join us for the film and a short discussion after.



Fifty million people in the U.S.—one in four children—don’t know where their next meal is coming from. Directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush examine the issue of hunger in America through the lens of three people struggling with food insecurity: Barbie, a single Philadelphia mother who grew up in poverty and is trying to provide a better life for her two kids; Rosie, a Colorado fifth-grader who often has to depend on friends and neighbors to feed her and has trouble concentrating in school; and Tremonica, a Mississippi second-grader whose asthma and health issues are exacerbated by the largely empty calories her hardworking mother can afford.

Ultimately, A Place at the Table shows us how hunger poses serious economic, social and cultural implications for our nation, and that it could be solved once and for all, if the American public decides — as they have in the past — that making healthy food available and affordable is in the best interest of us all.

Child Care Stabilization Passes the Legislature

Today the North Dakota House passed 1422 by a vote of 86-7 and the Senate followed by passing it unanimously. The bill raises eligibility for child care subsidies to 85% of State Median Income. The bill now goes to the Governor for signature. If the Governor signs the bill (which is expected), the action will make child care incredibly affordable for North Dakotans.

 

The change allows a single parent of two children to receive child care subsidies with an income of up to $60,000/year.

Will North Dakota Help with the Child Care Crisis?

The state legislature is still contemplating providing much needed financial support to the child care industry through HB 1422. But will they do it?

 

 

1422 will go to conference committee to work out the differences between the House and Senate versions. Contact the conference committee members to insist they accede to the Senate version with the current funding level.

 

 

Representative Kylie Oversen: koversen@nd.gov

Representative Roscoe Streyle: rstreyle@nd.gov

Representative Robin Weisz: rweisz@nd.gov

Senator Howard Anderson: hcanderson@nd.gov

Senator Tyler Axness: taxness@nd.gov

Senator Judy Lee: jlee@nd.gov

 



The Senate has voted to provide $6million to shore up the industry. It is a good start, but pressure is needed to keep that funding in place.

Child Care & Early Childhood Education

Cross posted with permission from Jessica's Jaunts.

by jesshaak on March 28, 2013
 
I have many passions. One of them that is close to the top of the list is child care and early childhood education. I don’t have children of my own. What I do have is a long work history of taking care of children. I taught swimming lessons for four summers and worked with students at the Anne Carlsen Center for nearly five years. I also get to see Tony’s girls and my nephew not nearly enough.

Through my job at North Dakota Farmers Union I have the pleasure of traveling across this great state. A common theme throughout the state is the need for affordable child care and early childhood education for all working families. It was a top concern at ND 2020 and ND 2.0 events. Rural communities throughout the state are in desperate need of child care. According to the latest data, North Dakota is only meeting 38% of the needs of child care demands, which means only 38% of the children who are at the age and need child care services are able to be placed in facilities. It has gotten to the point where economic development organization are saying child care needs are a top priority for economic development.

So what are we doing about this problem? The answer appears to be little is being done. My bill to remove nearly 1,000 low-income and at risk children from Head Start waiting lists and get them into a facility that would enhance their learning skills and abilities was turned into a study.

HB 1422 was a  bill that would have appropriated $15 million to provide assistance to stabilize child care operations, recruit and retain a qualified workforce, and advance quality child care practices through the implementation. This bill was stripped to $2 million to assist with technical assistance. It passed the House.

Today in the House we voted on SB 2244. This bill would have appropriated $300,000 to for early childhood services to provide assistance to special needs providers, who currently receive very limited funding. It would also have appropriated $400,000 to provide child care for children with disabilities or developmental delays and training for child care providers. In the House Education committee, all of the funds were removed and the bill was turned into a study. The study passed the House.

Another bill is SB 2229. This bill allows a school district to establish an early childhood education program, which would be a program if the local school decided they wanted to provide it. The terms would be up to the local school whether it’s all students, low-income, etc.  Support for that program could have come from four different revenues. The first was local tax revenues besides the necessary funds to support K-12 programs, state money appropriated for the program, federal funds for the program or gifts and grants. The amount put aside from the state was originally $4.6 million for the next two years. All of that money was stripped in the House Education committee, so there will be no matching funds.

Now the House did pass HB 1135 which sets aside $100,000 to provide dental care services, treatment, prevention and education to low-income students. This is great. However, this does not even begin to address the crisis that is happening all over the state.

With so many wonderful options, it is very frustrating to see many efforts to address this issue dismissed. I believe this should be a top priority, along with other infrastructure needs.

Very few bills remain, none regarding this issue.  It is important to continue to push. Whether we try to get money into the Human Services budget, the DPI budget or amend a bill to include child care and early childhood. It is important to keep working on this critical issue that so directly affects the future of North Dakota.