Appendix C25. Principal Introduction Letter to Schools (Full Outlying Areas)

C25. PRINCIPAL INTRODUCTION LETTER TO SCHOOLS

(FULL OUTLYING AREAS)

This page has been left blank for double-sided copying.

OMB Control Number: 0584-XXXX

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

<Date>

<P_FN> <P_LN>

<School>

Dear <P_FN> <P_LN>:

Recently, your school was selected for the Outlying Areas Cost Study (OACS) as part of your district’s participation in the study. Mathematica Policy Research and Insight Policy Research are conducting the OACS, a sub-study of the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study-II (SNMCS-II) for the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Cooperation with the study by selected States/Territories, districts, and schools is required under Section 28 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act.

The study will determine the cost of producing reimbursable meals for the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program, including indirect and local administrative costs. The attached overview provides a summary about the OACS and the data collection activities for certain staff at your school.

We are scheduled to collect data from you and your school nutrition manager during the week of [DATE]. All data collection will occur over the phone or electronically.

As part of the study, you will be asked to complete a phone interview with a data collector during the week of [DATE]. This interview will review the activities school staff do to help food service, and what their compensation is, so that we can calculate the cost of their food service work. For example, if a teacher supervises a lunch period we would want to know salary information about this person.

Also during the week of [DATE], the school nutrition manager will be asked to complete (1) an electronic or hard-copy menu survey, and (2) a cost interview over the phone.

Your participation in this study is extremely valuable and we appreciate the time and effort that you and the school nutrition manager will devote to the study. If you have any questions, please feel free to call a member of our project team at xxx-xxx-xxxx or email xxxx@mathematica-mpr.com. We look forward to working with you on this important study.

Sincerely,

Mary Kay Fox

OACS/SNMCS-II Project Director

Mathematica Policy Research

Attachment: Study Overview