Q: Who can get free or reduced price meals?
A: All children in households receiving benefits from Food Stamps or TCA, foster and homeless children, and children in household’s with gross income at or below the reduced price limits on the Federal Income Guideline.
Q: I get WIC. Can my child(ren) get free meals?
A: Children
may be eligible. Please fill out and turn in ONE application per household.Q: What happens if a family does not submit a Meal Benefits Application?
A: Children pay full price for breakfast and lunch unless categorical eligibility is determined.
Q: My child(ren) received free or reduced lunch last year. Will they automatically get the same status eligibility for the upcoming school year?
A:
No! Each year households must complete ONE new 2011-2012 school year Meal Benefits Application form – ONLY ONE PER HOUSEHOLD. If a new application is not submitted and processed, you will have to pay the full price for school meals.Q: How long does it take to get approved?
A: Applications are approved or denied within 10 business days of receipt in the Food and Nutrition Services office. Applications are denied if they are missing needed information. Notification letters are sent home with students indicating the status of the application submitted and processed.
Q: Where can I get an application?
A: New applications are sent home with each student at the beginning of the school year, or they will be available in school offices and the Food and Nutrition Services office. BUT ONLY FILL OUT ONE APPLICATION PER HOUSEHOLD!!!
Q: Why would a child’s status change from free/reduced at the beginning of the year to full pay?
A: This can occur for different reasons:
No application was submitted and processed.
The family completed an application reporting NO income (you MUST list some type of income - see below for 'types').
The family was selected for verification/audit and did not return the required paperwork.
The application is missing required information and cannot be processed.Q: Can I fax application to Food and Nutrition Services?
A:
No! All applications are scanned by an automated process and read by computer software.Q: If I move to Wicomico County Public Schools from another school district where my children received free or reduced meal benefits, do I have to reapply here?
A:
YES! BUT, if you moved after the start of the 2011-2012 school year, and can provide your new 2011-2012 school year 'proof of eligibility' letter from the other school district, we can accept a copy. Call 410-677-4419 if unsure.Q: What income do I need to list on the application?
A: Income is any money received on an ongoing, regular basis. List the
gross income each person earned from work. Gross income is all money earned before any taxes or other deductions. If the hours you work vary from week to week, take two of your paychecks and average them together to get your total income for the period. If you are a 10 month WCBOE employee, list your YEARLY income. Income includes: cash withdrawn from savings, regular contributions from persons not living in household, wages, salaries, tips, child support, alimony, TCA payments, pensions, retirement, Social Security, disability benefits, interest, dividends, income from estates, trusts, investments, net royalties, annuities, net rental income, strike benefits, unemployment compensation, workers compensation, net income from self-owned business or farm, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Veterans benefits (VA).Q: What if more than one family lives in the house?
A: All members of the household and their income should be included on the application, even if more than one family lives in the same household. Call 410-677-4419 if you have questions.
Q: Do I need to list the income of an adult that lives in the home, but is not a parent to one of the children?
A:
Yes, any income received by any adult in the house must be listed.Q: Will the information I give be checked?
A:
Yes, and we may also require you to provide proof.Q: We are in the military. Do we include our housing allowance as income?
A: If you get an off-base housing allowance, yes, include as income. However, if your housing is part of the Military Housing Privatization Initiative, do not include this type of income.
Q: My spouse is deployed to a combat zone. Is their combat pay counted as income?
A: No, if the combat pay is received in addition to their basic pay because of their deployment and it wasn’t received before they were deployed, combat pay is not counted as income.
Q: Should I fill out an application if I receive a letter this school year saying my children are approved for free meals?
A:
No! Please read the letter carefully. Follow the instructions. Call the Food and Nutrition Services office at 410-677-4419 if you have any questions.Q: I am enrolling another child in our household and my other children
are already free/reduced. Do I fill out another application?
A: No! Call our office and we will add the student to your household
and they may receive the same eligibility as your other children.Wicomico County Board of Education
FOOD & NUTRITION SERVICES
101 Long Ave., P.O. Box 1538, Salisbury, MD 21802
410
‐1538‐677‐4419 x4819~ FAX 410‐677‐5804 x4878
