Revised - Business - Preparation for the Launch of the Summer Meals Study

OMB Control No: 0584-0606 Expiration Date: 03/31/2019

APPENDIX C-2. Site Supervisor Qualitative Interview

INTERVIEWER: Review data collected from quantitative survey and keep on hand when conducting this qualitative interview.

DATE OF INTERVIEW: [MM/DD/YYYY]

INTERVIEW START TIME:_________ INTERVIEW END TIME: ____________

INTERVIEWER ID:_______ NOTE TAKER ID: _______

INTRODUCTION (3 MINS)

Hello, I am [NAME] from Westat, and I am calling about the Summer Meals Study. May I speak with:

Name of site supervisor

R available 11

R lives here – needs appointment 12

R lives at another number or address 13

Never heard of R 14

Phone company recording 15

Answering machine 16

Retry dialing 17

REFUSED 77

DON'T KNOW 99

IF RESPONDENT IS AVAILABLE:

I would like to ask you some questions about the summer program, to gain better understanding about program operations and factors that affect the decision of sponsors, sites, and households to participate in the program.

Your participation in this interview is voluntary. The information you provide will be kept private and will not be disclosed to anyone outside of the research team, except as otherwise required by law. You have the right to stop at any time or skip questions. Whether you decide to participate or not will not affect any government benefits or services you or your site receives – either now or in the future.

The interview should take about 1 hour.

Do you agree to participate?

• YES

• NO  ADDRESS ISSUES/CONCERNS ABOUT STUDY. CODE AS REFUSAL.

Thank you. Before we begin, I would like to introduce my colleague, [NAME] also from Westat. [NAME] will be taking notes while we talk. With your permission, we would also like to record this discussion. The recording will be transcribed so that we can recall exactly what was said and correctly summarize the information you provide. The recordings, transcripts, and any notes we have will be stored on Westat’s secure server and will be destroyed after the project is complete.

Do you have any questions before we begin?

INTERVIEWER: ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT WESTAT/STUDY/TOLL-FREE NUMBER, ETC. AS NEEDED.

Do I have your permission to record this discussion?

• YES

• NO – clarify if willing to continue without recording but OK with note taking. Otherwise end interview.

IF NO, ADDRESS ISSUES/CONCERNS ABOUT STUDY. CODE AS REFUSAL.

INTERVIEWER: Turn on recorder and begin interview

SECTION A. SITE PARTICIPATION FACTORS

I would like to begin our discussion by asking about reasons that <SITE NAME> provides summer meals.

A1. Can you tell me why <SITE NAME> participates in the [Summer Food Service Program/Seamless Summer Option]?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What are the main reasons <SITE NAME> decided to participate as a site? Free meals? Activities for children?

A2. What specific group of children do you have in mind to attend the meal site or program?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Is your target audience…

• …Children in the area?

• …Children enrolled in a specific program?

• …Some other subset of children?

A2a. Has this changed over time?

A2b. Do you feel you are successful in serving your target audience? Why/why not?

A3. What role does staff from <SITE NAME> play in determining if there are activities or programs offered?

A3a. Have activities or programs changed over time? How? Why?

IF NO ACTIVITIES:

A3b. Have you had activities in the past? Do you think more children would attend if there were activities?

A4. Thinking about the children you serve, who is responsible for marketing the program (site or sponsor) and what role does staff at <SITE NAME> play to promote or market the program to families with children so they will attend?

IF SPONSORS PROMOTE:

What role does the staff at <SITE NAME> play?

A5. Do you promote the availability of free meals and snacks, another aspect of the program, or both?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Which is most important in your marketing? (Activities or free meals?)

A6. How are families given information about the menus? Are they provided the menu in advance?

A7. Do you wish you used other methods to promote the program? Which ones and why? What makes it not feasible for you to use these methods?

A8. What methods have you used to promote children’s attendance?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

How do you use…

• …Social media?

• …Print?

• …A hotline?

• …any other methods?

Have these methods been effective? How do you know?

Are any methods not effective? How do you know?

A9. Who is involved in promotion activities?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What role does [REFER TO EACH PERSON, GROUP, OR ORGANIZATION MENTIONED] play?

IF NOT MENTIONED:

What about …sponsor? ….advocacy groups? …State agency staff? …Others?

A10. When is the program promoted?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What schedule (timeline) do you follow for marketing?

• When do you start?

• How long does the marketing last?

How has that schedule worked out?

What, if anything, would you change about the schedule? Why?

A11. Who decides the number of days or weeks the site will stay open and serve free meals over the summer?

A11a. What factors are considered when making that decision?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Does this site consider…

• …Availability of staff?

• …Availability of site facilities?

• …Costs?

• …Some other factors?

A12. In prior summers, has your site been open longer, about the same, or for a shorter period of time?

IF LONGER OR SHORTER:

Why has that changed?

A13. What would facilitate keeping the site open for more days?

SECTION B. OBTAINING MEALS

Now let’s talk about where you get the meals for <SITE NAME>.

IF SITE IS NOT PRIMARY MENU PLANNER:

B1. Meals at <SITE NAME> are [provided by a vendor/self-prepared by the site/sponsor]. How would you describe your site’s involvement in the decision to [use a vendor/self-prepare]?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

How do you collaborate? What does that look like?

B2. Who decides which meals to serve (breakfast/lunch/snack/supper)?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

How are these decisions made?

When are decisions made about using a vendor or self-preparing meals?

Has your role in deciding how meals are obtained for the site changed over time?

IF SITE IS PRIMARY MENU PLANNER AND SITE USES VENDOR:

B2. Meals at <SITE NAME> are provided by a vendor. Please walk me through the process of how the decision was made to use a vendor to obtain meals, instead of self-preparing the meals.

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Who made the decision?

What factors were considered when deciding whether to purchase the meals from a vendor or self-prepare meals?

• [Is/Are] ____ considered? How?

  • IF THE FACILITIES AT THE MEAL SERVICE SITE (KITCHEN, EQUIPMENT, STORAGE, ETC.): What type of facilities did you need?

  • IF COST OF MEALS: What alternative meal service arrangements did you consider? How much more cost effective was your choice of vendor?

  • Available reimbursement

  • IF NUMBER OF CHILDREN ENROLLED OR EXPECTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROGRAM:

• What process did you use to estimate the number of meals you would need?

• Did you find your estimate to be on target?

• Inconsistency/consistency/variability in daily/weekly attendance

• IF AVAILABILITY OF KITCHEN STAFF TO PREPARE MEALS: Were you able to explore multiple staffing sources (for example, school employees, temporary employees)?

• Some other factors

Which factor is most important in deciding how you obtain meals for <SITE NAME>? Why is that most important?

B3. How satisfied or dissatisfied is <SITE NAME> with the available vendors in your area?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Why? (For example, cost, meal quality, number of vendors to choose from, meal delivery options)

IF SITE IS PRIMARY MENU PLANNER AND SITE IS SELF-PREP:

B4. Meals at <SITE NAME> are self-prepared. Please walk me through the process of how the decision was made to self-prepare meals, instead of using a meal vendor.

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Who made the decision?

What factors were considered when deciding whether to purchase the meals from a vendor or self-prepare meals?

• [Is/Are] ____ considered? How?

  • IF THE FACILITIES AT THE MEAL SERVICE SITE (KITCHEN, EQUIPMENT, STORAGE, ETC.): What type of facilities did you need?

  • IF COST OF MEALS: What alternative meal service arrangements did you consider? How much more cost effective was your choice of vendor?

  • Available reimbursement

  • IF NUMBER OF CHILDREN ENROLLED OR EXPECTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROGRAM:

• What process did you use to estimate the number of meals you would need?

• Did you find your estimate to be on target?

• Inconsistency/consistency/variability in daily/weekly attendance

• IF AVAILABILITY OF KITCHEN STAFF TO PREPARE MEALS: Were you able to explore multiple staffing sources (for example, school employees, temporary employees)?

• Some other factors

Which factor is most important in deciding how you obtain meals for <SITE NAME>? Why is that most important?

SECTION C. PLANNING MENUS

Now let’s talk about the menus for <SITE NAME>.

IF SITE IS NOT PRIMARY MENU PLANNER:

C1. How is <SITE NAME> involved in the menu planning process?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What do you do? (for example, review menus, provide suggestions, provide feedback on popular and unpopular foods, etc.)

When are you involved?

Do you have staff who are dietitians or nutritionists?

ASK REMAINING QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION ONLY IF SITE IS PRIMARY MENU PLANNER:

C2. What is your menu planning process for <SITE NAME>?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Who participates in the menu planning process?

In planning menus, what is the role of…

• …Staff within your organization?

• …Sponsor staff?

• …State agency staff?

• .. Any others who participate?

IF USE VENDED MEALS

How does the vendor participate, if at all, in the menu planning process?

C3. What is the timing of the menu planning process?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

When does menu planning start?

How long does the planning process take?

C4. What resources does your organization use in planning menus?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Which resources are especially helpful? Why?

What else does your organization need for menu planning, that you don’t currently have?

C5. Thinking more about how you plan menus, what factors are most important?

What about meal pattern requirements? Facilities? Staff? Sponsor guidance? State guidance? Equipment?

Why are these important?

How are they considered?

IF “HEALTHY MEALS”:

C6. What does your organization use as the basis for defining what “healthy meals” are?

Has your organization developed its own definition of “healthy meals,” or adapted one from some other source? Why?

IF ANOTHER SOURCE:

Which source?

C6a. What guidelines, if any, does <SITE NAME> use to set standards for “healthy meals?”

C6b. What do you do to provide healthy meals?

• Fresh foods?

• Variety of foods?

• Certain types of foods? (For example, fruits, vegetables, whole grains)

IF NO MENTION OF “HEALTHY MEALS”:

C7. How much focus is placed on serving “healthy meals”?

C7a. Is the focus limited to ensuring the meals meet the meal pattern requirements?

C7b. Do you have a dietitian or nutritionist review the menus?

C7c. What challenges, if any, do you have in serving healthy meals?

C8. When planning menus for <SITE NAME>, how are food preferences of children taken into account?

C9. How does <SITE NAME> measure or track child preferences and reactions to the menus?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What process do you have in place to monitor how children react to menus/new menu items? (For example, taste tests, surveys, plate waste)

C10. When planning menus for <SITE NAME>, how do you plan meals to accommodate local foods and cultural preferences of your participants?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

What are some examples of local preferences you incorporate?

How do you get input from the children or community about cultural foods to consider?

C11. When planning menus for <SITE NAME>, how do you use USDA foods?

C11a. How easy or difficult is it to incorporate USDA foods into the menus?

C11b. What is <SITE NAME’s> experience with using USDA foods in the menus?

C11c. How does using USDA foods impact the bottom line?

C11d. Which USDA foods would you like to use, but are not available?

IF USDA FOODS ARE NOT AVAILABLE OR USED:

C11e. How do you think you would use USDA foods if they were available? What impact would this have on your menus?

IF SITE CONSIDERED LOCAL FOODS IN MENU PLANNING:

C12. How do you incorporate locally-produced foods into the meals?

C13. What do you consider “local foods” for your program?

…in the State?

…in the county?

…other area?

C14. Is there a State or regional program to promote local foods?

C15. What are the benefits of obtaining and using local foods?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Are there benefits such as the…

• …Opportunity to provide fresh food?

• …Opportunity to support the local economy and farmers?

• …Opportunity for education about food, etc?

C16. What are the challenges in obtaining and using local foods?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Do you face challenges such as…

• …Issues with working with farmers?

• …Unpredictability of obtaining the foods?

• …Higher costs?

SECTION D. MEAL SERVICE

Now let’s talk about the meals.

D1. What are the participants’ reactions to the meals that are served?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Are meals well-received by participants? How do you know?

• Do participants tell you what they think of the meals?

• How much food is thrown away?

D2. What changes, if any, have you noticed in daily participation based on the types of food served?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Do more participants show up on days when certain meals are served?

IF YES:

D2a. What kinds of meals and snacks seem to be related to higher participation (more participants showing up)? Why?

D2b. What characteristics of those meals and snacks account for better attendance?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Hot meals (i.e., meals with at least one component that is heated)? Pizza? Hamburgers? Other meals?

D3. Have any changes been made to the foods served in response to feedback from children? What were they?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

How has that worked out?

D4. What challenges, if any, do you have in serving special meals for children with food allergies or other types of special dietary needs?

D4a. Do you serve many children with special dietary needs?

IF SITE PROVIDES “EXTRA” FOODS WITH MEALS:

D5. Why do you serve extra foods in addition to the meal?

[portion sizes are too small for some children; funding is available to buy them, etc.]

D5a. What kinds of “extra” foods do you serve?

D5b. How frequently do you serve them?

D5c. Do all or only some children take the extra foods?

IF SITE OFFERS A LA CARTE FOODS:

D6. How frequently do children buy the foods sold in vending machines and snack bars?

D6a. How does this impact plate waste?

D7. Who decides which foods will be sold as a la carte?

D7c. Are the a la carte foods considered to be healthy or not healthy?

Why?

D7d. What are some examples of the a la carte foods offered at this site?

SECTION E. SUMMER FOOD PROGRAM OVERALL EXPERIENCE

The last topic I’d like to cover today is <SITE NAME’s> overall experiences as a participant in the summer meals program.

E1. For this site, what is the greatest benefit of participating in the program?

E2. What is the greatest challenge <SITE NAME> faces in serving summer meals?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Does this site lack …

• Staff?

• Training?

• Budget?

• Equipment?

• Facilities?

E2a. How did you decide that is the greatest challenge? (Are there any other challenges you considered, but decided not to mention? IF SO: Why?

E3. Overall, how would you characterize <SITE NAME’S> experience with the summer meals program?

PROBE IF NEEDED:

Has it been a positive or a negative experience? Why?

E4. Would you recommend or not recommend the program to other sites considering participation, or not? Why?

Thank you for participating in the Summer Meals Study.

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