Dear Parent/Guardian:
The cafeteria at your child’s school is using an automated cash register system. When students enroll in any of our district’s schools, they will be assigned a personal Keypad Number. It is important that each student memorize his/her Keypad Number as this number will be used daily in the cafeteria. Keypad Numbers are confidential; therefore the number should not be given to any other student. This number will remain with your student from year to year until they leave the school. If your child transfers to a new school within our district, a new Keypad Number will be issued at that school.
How the system works:
During lunchtime all students purchasing a lunch will “enter” their confidential Keypad Number on a keypad. The current money balance in the student’s meal account will be shown on the computer screen at the Point of Sale. The cashier will then handle each student’s transaction appropriately based on his or her balance.
All students, eligible for subsidized meals or not, are assigned a number to participate in the lunch program. This protects the anonymity of those students receiving Free or Reduced Meals.
Parents can always request a detailed report on their child’s account and meal transactions, at any time. Requests should be made to the Cafeteria Manager at your child’s school.
I would like to emphasize that the students are expected to pay for the meals daily or pay in advance for all the food purchases. Student meal accounts need to have money in it to be able to charge the meals. We understand that at times the students lose their money or forget the money so we allow them to charge for a day or two, but those meals need to be paid as soon as possible.
The balance of a student’s lunch account, whether it is in the positive or negative at the end of the year, will roll over to the next school year. For those students who transfer from one school to another school within the district, their lunch account balance (negative or positive) will be transferred to the new school, and will be available within a few days.
Students leaving the district can either transfer their account balance to a siblings account within the Benicia Unified School District or request a refund. Refunds can be requested up to the end of the following school year.
Price of the meals:
Elementary School – Breakfast $2.00 – Lunch $3.00
Middle and High School – Breakfast $2.00 – Lunch $3.50
Ala Carte – Milk $0.50
How to make deposits into your child’s account:
Prepayments are encouraged….Cash, checks or money orders will be accepted; please make check payable to BUSD Cafeteria. Prepayments may either be turned into your school secretary (at the elementary schools) or directly to the Cafeteria Leads at each site. Students paying cash for their lunch will pay at the point of sale while entering his/her Keypad Number.
Click MySchoolBucks to make payments online – http://www.myschoolbucks.com/
How to apply for Free/Reduced Price Meals
Click the button below to apply online!
http://www http://www.heartlandapps.com
Applications are also available at the Food & Nutrition Services Website, at the District Office and at each school site main office and cafeteria. Eligible students may receive meals free or at a reduced price of $0.40 for lunch and $0.30 for breakfast. Return completed and signed applications to your school site or District Office as soon as possible. Application can take up to 10 days to process and cannot be approved and may be returned if it contains incomplete eligibility information. A new application must be filled out each school year.
Borrowed Lunch Procedures:
The students are expected to pay for the meals daily or pay in advance for all the food purchases. Student meal accounts need to have money in it to be able to charge the meals. We understand that at times the students lose their money or forget the money so we allowed them to charge for a day or two, but those meals need to be paid as soon as possible. Please make sure to send your child with a lunch until is taken care.
Please read the following guidelines regarding borrowed lunches:
- All grade levels students will be told verbally when their lunch account is getting low and when they have used their last pre-paid lunch.
- At the Elementary Schools students may only borrow two lunches until their debt has been paid.
The cafeteria Lead will call or email the parent/guardian, to advise when a lunch has been borrowed.
- Your student with a negative balance will not be allowed to borrow a third lunch unless the parent contacts the Food Services Department for a special arrangement for special circumstances.
- Your student will be calling you at home for you to bring their lunch to school or pay their balances.
- Middle School and High School Students are not allowed to charge more than one meal.
- Parent will receive e-mails every week with the negative balances.
- Students are not allowed to borrow lunch during the month of May and June, which allows us time to collect on any outstanding debts before summer break.
- The balance of a student’s lunch account, positive or negative at the end of the year, will roll over to the next school year.
- Borrowed lunches should be paid back promptly.
Classroom Party and Celebrations:
Food served during celebrations (such birthdays or holidays) must meet the new Wellness Policy with the USDA Nutrition Guidelines.
We encourage parents to do Non-foods celebrations in consideration of other students that may be diabetic or have food items allergies such: milk, eggs, fish (e.g., bass, flounder, and cod), crustacean shellfish (e.g., crab, lobster, and shrimp), tree nuts (e.g., almonds, walnuts, and pecans), peanuts, wheat, and soybeans.
https://www.healthiergeneration.org/_asset/nvgd8g/13-6162_HSPHealthyCelebration.pdf
Before you plan any celebration you should check with your child’s School Office to follow that school’s protocol. And if you still want to celebrate with food items our department has several items available to make sure the District meets with all the regulations and guidelines such as: Birthday cupcakes, holiday cookies, frozen yogurt, ice pops, ice cream, pizza parties or any other specialty dish that you may have mind for a particular celebration.
Please contact us and let us know how we can make that event a special celebration.
If you have any questions, please contact us at:
Food & Nutrition Services Department
Phone: (707) 748-2758
Fax: (707)748-2603
Email: tcourtney@beniciaunified.org
Thank you,
Tania P. Courtney
Food & Nutrition Services Director
Benicia Unified School District
(707)748-2758
(707)748-2603