State, Local, and Tribal Government - State Child Nutrition Agency, SFA, and Schools

Appendix C13. Recruitment 014--School Follow-Up Discussion Guide

OMB Number: 0584-0530

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

School Follow-Up Discussion Guide

This discussion guide is to be used by APEC IV recruiters when contacting schools. All initial calls should be made within one week of sending the school notification letter. What follows are talking points for the recruiters to 1) confirm the schools received the notification letter, and 2) inquire about their willingness to participate.

Discussion Points:

When Speaking with Point of Contact:

• Introduce yourself and explain that you are part of the APEC IV study team calling to confirm receipt of the notification letter sent to them via email on [DATE].

  • [If did not receive letter] Tell them you will resend it, and confirm their email address. Explain that you will call again in a few days after they have had a chance to read the letter. [End call.]

• Ask if they have any questions about the study. Answer all questions, and note that the study website contains additional information. Give them the website if necessary.

• Ask if their school will participate in the study.

  • [If agrees to participate] That’s wonderful to hear! A member of the study team will reach out to you again in [MONTH, YEAR] before data collection begins. In the meantime, you can always find more information on the study website. [End call.]

• [If needs to consider/ask permission] I understand, and thank you for considering it. I will reach out again in a week to follow up, but please get in touch if there are any questions we can answer to help you make your decision. [Provide study phone number and email.] Additionally, you can always find more information on the study website. [End call.]

• [If declines] I am sorry to hear that, but we respect the decision. If you reconsider, please do not hesitate to contact us at <STUDY TOLL-FREE NUMBER> or via email <STUDY EMAIL ADDRESS>.

When a Call Goes to Voicemail:

• Provide the following information:

  • Your name

  • Where you’re calling from (Westat, a research organization in Rockville, MD)

  • Reason for call (to confirm receipt of study notification letter sent via email and ask if willing to participate)

  • Call-back number

• When to leave voicemails

  • Call #1 and #5 (do not leave voicemail on calls 2-4).

  • If no response after five calls, inform supervisor and do not attempt to contact again.

If the Point of Contact No Longer Works at the School:

• Ask the secretary/administrative assistant whom you can talk to, and obtain their contact information.

• Send the notification letter via email to the suggested person, and follow up by phone one week later.

This information is being collected to provide the Food and Nutrition Service with key information on the annual error rates and improper payments for the school meal programs. This is a voluntary collection and FNS will use the information to examine school meal error rates and inform future APEC studies. This collection requests personally identifiable information under the Privacy Act of 1974. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0530. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 0.334 hours (20 minutes) per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy Support, 1320 Braddock Place, 5th Floor, Alexandria, VA 22306 ATTN: PRA (0584-0530). Do not return the completed form to this address.

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