Appendix F1. SFA Director Survey Advance Letter (Group 1)

F1. SFA Director Survey Advance Letter (Group 1)

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OMB Control Number: 0584-XXXX

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

[DATE]

«FirstName» «LastName»

School Food Authority Director

«Address1» «Address2»

«City», «State» «PostalCode»

Dear «FirstName» «LastName»:

Your school food authority (SFA) has been selected to participate in the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study-II (SNMCS-II). The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has contracted with Mathematica Policy Research, and its research partners Insight Policy Research, Decision Information Resources, and Agralytica to conduct the study for school year (SY) 2019–2020. The study is authorized by the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, and participation by selected states and districts is required under Section 28 of the Act.

Your participation is vital to informing future policies for school meals to ensure the meals contribute to a healthy future for all children.

This important study will (1) describe the food and nutritional quality of school meals and afterschool snacks, (2) update information on the school food environment and food service policies and practices, (3) estimate the cost to produce school meals and snacks, and (4) collect information about student participation, satisfaction, and dietary intake. Having updated information about the school meals programs will help States, SFAs, and schools better serve students.

Within the next few weeks, Insight will email you an invitation to complete the School Food Authority (SFA) Director Survey on the web. The survey asks about the food service characteristics of your SFA, «District_Name», and its schools. Insight will email you an invitation from the study email address ([FILL EMAIL]) and will include a unique link to the web survey. We hope you will participate right away in this important survey. We emphasize that none of the information you provide in the survey will identify your district in any reports; the results will aggregated with the information collected from other school systems to derive national estimates.

I have also enclosed a letter of support for the SNMCS-II from the School Nutrition Association (SNA). SNA agrees with me that the data collected through the SNMCS-II will provide critical information for setting policies and planning strategies and tools that can truly support schools in serving meals that contribute to a healthy future for all children – a goal we all share.

Thank you in advance for your assistance with this important study. If you have questions, feel free to contact me at [PHONE] or [EMAIL].

Sincerely,

[FNS Signatory]

Office of Policy Support

Food and Nutrition Service/USDA

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