Nutrition Services

Our school offers healthy meals each day. All students can get one breakfast and one lunch free of charge each day at school. Although no application is required to receive this free meal benefit, filling out the Application for Educational Benefits is still important! Your child(ren) may qualify for other benefits like reduced fees at school and reduced community education fees. Your application may also help the school qualify for education funds, discounts, and other meal programs.

To apply, complete the enclosed Application for Educational Benefits and return it to:
Dassel-Cokato District Office
Attn: Clare Uecker
4852 Reardon Ave, SW Suite 1700, Cokato, MN 55321

Who should complete this application? Children in households participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) or Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), and foster, homeless, migrant and runaway children qualify without reporting household income. Alternatively, children can qualify if their household income is within the maximum income shown for their household size on the instructions.

COMMON QUESTIONS:
I get WIC or Medical Assistance. Can my children qualify? Children in households participating in WIC or Medical Assistance do not automatically qualify. Children may be eligible depending on other household financial information. Please fill out an application. 

Who should I include as household members? Include yourself and all other people living in the household, related or not (such as grandparents, other relatives, or friends).

May I apply if someone in my household is not a U.S. citizen? Yes. You or your children do not have to be U.S. citizens for you to complete an application.

What if my income is not always the same? List the amount that you normally get. If you normally get overtime, include it, but not if you get overtime only sometimes. For seasonal work, write in the total annual income.

Will the income information or case number I give be checked? It may be. We may also ask you to send written proof.

How will the information be kept? Information you provide on the form, and your child’s approval, will be protected as private data. For more information, see the back page of the Application for Educational Benefits.

If I don’t qualify now, may I apply later? Yes. Please complete an application at any time if your income goes down, your household size goes up, or you start getting SNAP, MFIP or FDPIR benefits.

If you have other questions or need help, call (320)286-4100.

State law (Minnesota Statutes 124D.114)

Requires a Sponsoring Authority of school meal programs to provide one of these alternatives for a student with lactose intolerance if the parent has requested an alternative in writing:

• Lactose reduced milk, or
• Milk fortified with lactose in liquid, tablet, granular, or other form, or
• Milk to which lactobacillus acidophilus has been added

Family lunch accounts are created and accessed only by members of that family. Accounts are activated once money is deposited, online via Parent Portal. Students receive a five-digit number which is entered into the lunch-line computers. The computer will deduct the fee from the family lunch account.

Students will not be eligible to participate in the lunch program if the account balance goes to $0.  Please refer to Dassel-Cokato Public Schools ISD #466 - 543 Unpaid Meal Charges Policy.

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/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, 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:

1. mail:
   U.S. Department of Agriculture
   Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
   1400 Independence Avenue, SW
   Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
2. fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
3. email: Program.Intake@usda.gov