Team Nutrition Grants
Published on AidPage by
IDILOGIC on Jun 24, 2005
Purpose of this program:
Team Nutrition Training Grants for Healthy School Meals have been identified in USDA's national Strategic Plan for Training and Technical Assistance as one of the anchor delivery systems for supporting the implementation of USDA's nutrition requirements and the Dietary Guideline for Americans in school meals. Team Nutrition's (TN) goal is to improve children's lifelong eating and physical activity habits by using the principles of the dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Food Guide Pyramid. TN Training Grants offer funding to state agencies to establish or enhance sustainable infrastructures for implementing TN using three behavior-focused strategies: 1) provide training and technical assistance to child nutrition food service professionals to enable them to prepare and serve nutritious meals that appeal to students; 2) promote nutrition curriculum and education in schools through multiple communication channels (i.e., food services initiatives, classroom activities, school wide events, home activities, community programs and events, and media events and coverage) to reinforce positive nutrition messages and encourage students to make healthy food physical activity choices as part of a healthy lifestyle; 3) build school and community support for creating healthy school environments that are conducive to healthy eating and physical activity.
Possible uses and use restrictions...
Team Nutrition Training Grants provide start-up money to deliver training programs based on one or more of TN's three behavior-oriented strategies. States may award sub-grants to local school districts and/or schools based on 2 pm established criteria oversight procedures.
Who is eligible to apply...
State agencies that administer the National School Lunch Program and/or Child and Adult Care Food Program may apply for a TN Training Grant. States may apply individually, or apply as a coalition within their State if there is an alternate State agency, or may establish a network and apply as a coalition of States.
Credentials/Documentation
State agencies must administer the National School Lunch Program and/or Child and Adult Care Food Program. Applicants must prove ability to provide a competent experienced staff and other resources to assure adequate development, supervision and execution of TN Training Grant activities. In addition, applicants are required to submit a written proposal which includes a description of the training issue or issues to be addressed, the proposed project approach, the rationale for it, specific program objectives, activities and budget. A properly executed Federal/State Agreement between the Food and Nutrition Service and the State agency is necessary before funds can be allocated.
Note:This is a brief description of the credentials or documentation required prior to, or along with, an application for assistance.
About this section:
This section indicates who can apply to the Federal government for assistance and the criteria the potential applicant must satisfy.
For example, individuals may be eligible for research grants, and the criteria to be satisfied may be that they have a professional or scientific degree,
3 years of research experience, and be a citizen of the United States. Universities, medical schools, hospitals, or State and local governments may also be eligible.
Where State governments are eligible, the type of State agency will be indicated (State welfare agency or State agency on aging) and the criteria that they
must satisfy.
Certain federal programs (e.g., the Pell Grant program which provides grants to students) involve intermediate levels of application processing, i.e., applications
are transmitted through colleges or universities that are neither the direct applicant nor the ultimate beneficiary. For these programs,
the criteria that the intermediaries must satisfy are also indicated, along with intermediaries who are not eligible.
How to apply...
Application Procedure:
Applicants must submit a complete application to the Food and Nutrition Service by the deadline specified.
Note: Each program will indicate whether applications are to be submitted to the Federal headquarters, regional or local office, or to a State or local government office.
Award Procedure:
All applications that meet the published deadline for submission will be screened for completeness and conformity to the requirements as announced in the RFA's packaged. Grants are awarded by a competitive process via a review panel composed of Food and Nutrition Service staff which convenes to determine the technical merit of each grant application, provide a numerical score and make final recommendations.
Note: Grant payments may be made by a letter of credit, advance by Treasury check, or reimbursement by Treasury check.
Awards may be made by the headquarters office directly to the applicant, an agency field office, a regional office,
or by an authorized county office. The assistance may pass through the initial applicant for further distribution by
intermediate level applicants to groups or individuals in the private sector.
Deadlines and process...
Deadlines
The deadlines for the TN Training Grants are specified in the Request for Applications package.
Note:
When available, this section indicates the deadlines for applications to the funding agency which will
be stated in terms of the date(s) or between what dates the application should be received.
When not available, applicants should contact the funding agency for deadline information.
Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
Once the application is received from the State agency it is approximately 3 months before announcement of the TN Training Grant awards.
Preapplication Coordination
State agencies are furnished with a copy of the Request for Applications (RFA) package on how to apply for a TN Training Grant. Additionally the complete RFA is posted on the FNS web site. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.
Note:
This section indicates whether any prior coordination or approval is required with governmental or nongovernmental units
prior to the submission of a formal application to the federal funding agency.
Appeals
None.
Note:
In some cases, there are no provisions for appeal. Where applicable, this section discusses appeal procedures or allowable rework time for resubmission
of applications to be processed by the funding agency. Appeal procedures vary with individual programs and are either listed in this section or
applicants are referred to appeal procedures documented in the relevant Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
Renewals
Fiscal Year 2002 TN Training Grants have been mandated by Congress.
Note:
In some instances, renewal procedures may be the same as for the application procedure, e.g., for projects of a non-continuing nature renewals will be treated as new, competing applications; for projects of an ongoing nature, renewals may be given annually.
Who can benefit...
School and child care decision makers and caregivers, school child care food service staff and children, parents & teachers.
Beneficiaries
About this section:
This section lists the ultimate beneficiaries of a program, the criteria they must satisfy and who specifically is not eligible. The applicant and beneficiary will generally be the same for programs that provide assistance directly from a Federal agency. However, financial assistance that passes through State or local governments will have different applicants and beneficiaries since the assistance is transmitted to private sector beneficiaries who are not obligated to request or apply for the assistance.
What types of assistance...
Project Grants
The funding, for fixed or known periods, of specific projects. Project grants can include fellowships, scholarships, research grants, training grants, traineeships, experimental and demonstration grants, evaluation grants, planning grants, technical assistance grants, survey grants, and construction grants.
How much financial aid...
Range and Average of Financial Assistance
$78,541 to $200,000; $189,631.
Note:
This section lists the representative range (smallest to largest) of the amount of financial assistance available. These figures are based upon funds awarded in the past fiscal year and the current fiscal year to date. Also indicated is an approximate average amount of awards which were made in the past and current fiscal years.
Obligations
(Grants) FY 02 $4,751,789; FY 03 $4,025,387; and FY 04 est $4,000,000.
Note:
The dollar amounts listed in this section represent obligations for the past fiscal year (PY), estimates for the current fiscal year (CY), and estimates for the budget fiscal year (BY) as reported by the Federal agencies. Obligations for non-financial assistance programs indicate the administrative expenses involved in the operation of a program.
Account Identification
12-3539-0-1-605.
Note:
Note: This 11-digit budget account identification code represents the account which funds a particular program.
This code should be consistent with the code given for the program area as specified in Appendix III of the Budget of the United States Government.
Examples of funded projects...
The 1998 and 1999 TN Training Grants produced innovative projects such as the development of an interactive nutrition education and training web site that is accessible to students, teachers, school food service personnel and parents; development of training curricula for teachers to incorporate nutrition education activities into their lessons; and providing training for school districts on integrating TN with school health programs. The 1999 TN Demonstration Projects were awarded two-year funding to help FNS develop models of firmly established TN initiatives that will be appealing and helpful to States across the country. The 2000 grantees were awarded one-year funding to provide training to school and child care decision makers on The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2000. The 2001 grantees were awarded funding to focus all or part of the two- year grant on improving the school nutrition environment, using USDA's resource kit, "Changing the Scene: Improving the School Nutrition Environment: A Guide to Local Action." The 2002 Grants was also two-year grants and allow states to continue to implement the three team nutrition strategies and to continue efforts to improve the school nutrition environment. The 2003 Grants were recently awarded funding to focus on preventing childhood obesity by improving healthy eating and physical activity in schools, childcare centers, home and community through collaboration efforts with existing state and local organizations and partners.
About this section
This section indicates the different types of projects which have been funded in the past. Only projects funded under Project Grants or Direct Payments for Specified Use should be listed here. The examples give potential applicants an idea of the types of projects that may be accepted for funding. The agency should list at least five examples of the most recently funded projects.
Program accomplishments...
The TN Training Grants were first awarded in 1995. Through these grants, States have conducted over 2,500 workshops, training over 98,000 food service staff with an impact on more than 7 million children. In 2003, 36 applications were received and 21 State agencies were selected for funding totaling $4,025,387.
Criteria for selecting proposals...
Technical Review Criteria, which are furnished to all applicants in the Request for Applications package are used by the review panel to score and rank TN Training Grant applications.
Assistance considerations...
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
1999 Grants: August 31, 1999 - August 31, 2001; 2000 Grants: September 1, 2000 - December 31, 2001; 2001 Grants: September 2001 - September 30, 2003; 2002 Grants: September 1, 2002 - September 30, 2004. 2003 Grants - September 30, 2003 - September 30, 2005.
Formula and Matching Requirements
If selected for funding State agencies will be funded at the level requested after approval of the budget. There are no matching requirements.
Note:
A formula may be based on population, per capita income, and other statistical factors. Applicants are informed whether there are any matching requirements to be met when participating in the cost of a project. In general, the matching share represents that portion of the project costs not borne by the Federal government. Attachment F of OMB Circular No. A-102 (Office of Management and Budget) sets forth the criteria and procedures for the evaluation of matching share requirements which may be cash or in-kind contributions made by State and local governments or other agencies, institutions, private organizations, or individuals to satisfy matching requirements of Federal grants or loans.
Cash contributions represent the grantees' cash outlay, including the outlay of money contributed to the grantee by other public agencies, institutions, private organizations, or individuals. When authorized by Federal regulation, Federal funds received from other grants may be considered as the grantees' cash contribution.
In-kind contributions represent the value of noncash contributions provided by the grantee, other public agencies and institutions, private organizations or individuals. In-kind contributions may consist of charges for real property and equipment, and value of goods and services directly benefiting and specifically identifiable to the grant program. When authorized by Federal legislation, property purchased with Federal funds may be considered as grantees' in-kind contribution.
Maintenance of effort (MOE) is a requirement contained in certain legislation, regulations, or administrative policies stating that a grantee must maintain a specified level of financial effort in a specific area in order to receive Federal grant funds, and that the Federal grant funds may be used only to supplement, not supplant, the level of grantee funds.
Post assistance requirements...
Reports
Specified progress and financial status reports and a final project report are to be submitted to the Food and Nutrition Service as stated in the Federal/State TN Training Grant Agreement.
Note:
This section indicates whether program reports, expenditure reports, cash reports or performance monitoring are required by the Federal funding agency, and specifies at what time intervals (monthly, annually, etc.) this must be accomplished.
Audits
In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A- 133, "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Nonprofit Organizations," State governments that expend Federal financial assistance of $300,000 or more within any fiscal year shall have either a single audit or (in certain cases) a program specific audit made for that year. Audits may be conducted less frequently under conditions specified in A-133.
Note:
This section discusses audits required by the Federal agency.
The procedures and requirements for State and local governments and nonprofit entities are set forth in OMB Circular No. A-133.
These requirements pertain to awards made within the respective State's fiscal year - not the Federal fiscal year,
as some State and local governments may use the calendar year or other variation of time span designated as the fiscal year period,
rather than that commonly known as the Federal fiscal year (from October 1st through September 30th).
Records
State agencies must maintain records as necessary to support the use of TN Training Grant funds in accordance with the Grant Agreement. Such records must be retained for a period of 3 years after the date of submission of the final report for the fiscal year to which the records pertain, except that if audit findings have not been resolved, the records shall be retained beyond the three year period as long as required for the resolution of the issues raised by the audit.
Note:
This section indicates the record retention requirements and the type of records the Federal agency may require.
Not included are the normally imposed requirements of the General Accounting Office.
For programs falling under the purview of OMB Circular No. A-102, record retention is set forth in Attachment C.
For other programs, record retention is governed by the funding agency's requirements.
Regulations...
Authorization
National School Lunch Act, Section 6(a)(3) Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 1996; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 1997, Public Law 104-280; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 1998, Public Law 105-86; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 1999, Public Law 105-277; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2000, Public Law 106-78; Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2001, Public Law 106-387. Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2002, Public Law 107-229 for 2003.
Note:
This section lists the legal authority upon which a program is based (acts, amendments to acts, Public Law numbers, titles, sections, Statute Codes, citations to the U.S. Code, Executive Orders, Presidential Reorganization Plans, and Memoranda from an agency head).
Regulations, Guidelines, And Literature
7 CFR Part 3016, 7 CFR Part 3017, 7 CFR Part 3018.