FY19 RFA.pdf

Farm to School Grant Program

Fiscal Year 2019 Request for Applications

Catalog for Federal Domestic Assistance Number (CFDA): 10.575

Dates:

Publication Date: October 2, 2018

Application Due Date: 11:59 PM, Eastern Standard Time (EST), December 4, 2018

Estimated Award Date: May 2019

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Program Solicitation Information

Executive Summary:

Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (NSLA) established a Farm to School program in order to assist eligible entities, (schools, school districts, agricultural producers, Indian tribal organizations, nonprofit organizations, state agencies and local agencies), through grants and technical assistance, in implementing farm to school programs that improve access to local foods in eligible schools. To fulfill the farm to school mandate in the NSLA, effective October 1, 2012, $5 million will be provided to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on an annual basis to support grants, technical assistance, and the Federal administrative costs related to USDA’s farm to school program.

Designed to increase the availability of local foods in schools, grants can help new farm to school programs get started or expand existing efforts. Funds support a wide range of activities from training, planning, and developing partnerships to creating new menu items, establishing supply chains, offering taste tests to children, purchasing equipment, planting school gardens, and organizing field trips to agricultural operation. FNS will competitively award grants to eligible applicants for projects that meet the purpose of the grant program.

Additional funding for the Farm to School Grant Program was made available through the FY 18 Omnibus bill, and as a result, approximately $7.5 million will be released under this solicitation in FY 2019. In the FY 2018 application cycle, FNS received 290 eligible applications and was able to fund 73 (25%) of the applications. To be competitive, applications must be complete and of high quality.

Planning and training grant awards range from $20,000 to $50,000, and implementation grant awards range from $50,000 to $100,000. Organizations that have received implementation, support service, or training grants through the Farm to School Grant Program in the last two funding cycles (FY 2017 or FY 2018) are ineligible to apply for FY 2019 funding. Planning grantees may reapply for an implementation or training grant. A 25 percent cash or in-kind funding match is required.

Webinar Information and FAQ USDA will conduct two webinars to review the RFA and address questions regarding the application process. These informational webinars are scheduled for Tuesday, October 16, 2018 and Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. ET. Please register on the Farm to School Grant Applicant resource page. A recording will be available for those who cannot attend the live presentations.

In addition, applicants can find a set of Frequently Asked Questions and summaries of previously awarded projects online via the USDA Office of Community Food Systems website.

We strongly encourage applicants to review the Frequently Asked Questions resource prior to preparing an application.

https://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=395176 https://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=395176 https://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/resources-farm-school-grant-program-applicants https://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/resources-farm-school-grant-program-applicants http://www.usda.gov/farmtoschool

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2019 Highlights and Changes

Below are highlights of major changes to the program since the last fiscal year:

• Provides an updated definition for agricultural producer.

• Proposal narrative lengths have been shortened for each grant track:

o Implementation: Max page limit is six pages.

o Planning: Max page limit is four pages.

o Training: Max page limit is four pages.

• Slight revisions to the information requested in the proposal narrative.

• Up to three letters of commitment may be submitted for planning and implementation grants. Additional guidance regarding content and length of commitment and support letters has been provided.

• Applicants may only submit up to three resumes for key staff managing the project.

• Additional guidance provided regarding allowable costs for equipment and supplies as well as how to estimate budget line items.

• Suggested lengths have been provided for each subsection of the proposal narrative.

• Applicants will no longer be able to include optional attachments (additional materials not specifically requested for inclusion) in the grant application package.

• For your SAM.gov registration, you must submit a notarized letter appointing the authorized Entity Administrator. The review process changed for the Federal Assistance community on June 11, 2018. Read the updated FAQs to learn more:

https://www.gsa.gov/about-us/organization/federal-acquisition-service/office-of-systems-management/integrated-award-environment-iae/sam-update-updated-july- 11-2018 https://www.fsd.gov/fsd-gov/answer.do?sysparm_kbid=d2e67885db0d5f00b3257d321f96194b&sysparm_search=kb0013183 https://www.gsa.gov/about-us/organization/federal-acquisition-service/office-of-systems-management/integrated-award-environment-iae/sam-update-updated-july-11-2018 https://www.gsa.gov/about-us/organization/federal-acquisition-service/office-of-systems-management/integrated-award-environment-iae/sam-update-updated-july-11-2018 https://www.gsa.gov/about-us/organization/federal-acquisition-service/office-of-systems-management/integrated-award-environment-iae/sam-update-updated-july-11-2018

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Application Checklist

This application checklist provides a list of the required documents; however FNS expects that applicants will read the entire RFA prior to the submission of their application.

In order to apply, at least three weeks prior to submission, you must have:

Obtained a Duns number from Dunn & Bradstreet (D&B) (Data Universal Numbering System

(DUNS) number);

Register the DUNS number and the TIN or EIN number into the System for Award Management

(SAM). SAM registration must be renewed annually. For more detailed instructions for registering with SAM, refer to:

https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration/step-2-register-with-sam.html Failure to register with SAM will prevent your organization from applying through Grants.gov and;

Create a Grants.gov account.

When preparing your application, ensure:

Your application format and narrative meet the requirements included in Section 4

“Application and Submission Information,” including page limits, priorities outlined in Section 1.4, and all necessary attachments.

When preparing your budget, ensure the following information is included:

You have at least a 25 percent match and that you have detailed the source of those funds.

All key staff who are paid by this grant.

The percentage of time the project director will devote to the project in full-time equivalents.

Your organization’s fringe benefit amount along with the basis for the computation.

The type of fringe benefits to be covered with federal funds.

Itemized travel expenses (including type of travel), travel justifications, basis for lodging estimates, and estimates for one mandatory face-to-face meeting.

Types of equipment and supplies, justifications, and estimates, ensuring that the budget is in line with the project description.

If the sole purpose of equipment and/or supplies is not intended to be used to support Child

Nutrition Programs, the applicant must determine what percentage of the good’s time or space will be dedicated to project activities.

Information for all contracts and justification for any sole-source contracts.

Justification, description and itemized list of all consultant services.

Indirect cost information (either a copy of a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) or if no agreement exists, the basis of the indirect costs requested). If none requested, please indicate this in the budget narrative.

When submitting your application, ensure you have submitted the following:

Farm to School Grant Program Application Cover Sheet (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) SF-424 – Application for Federal Assistance (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) SF-424A – Budget Information and Instruction Form (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) SF-424B – Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (fillable PDF in Grants.gov) https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration/step-2-register-with-sam.html

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SF-LLL Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.

Grant Program Accounting System & Financial Capability Questionnaire (in Appendix B) Project Narrative (PDF - Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424) Budget Narrative (PDF-Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424) Signed Letters Verifying Matching Funds for EACH cash and/or in kind resource (PDF or MS

Word - Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424) Signed Letter(s) of Commitment from Partner and Collaborator Organizations (PDF or MS Word

- Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424) Staff Resumes (PDF or MS Word - Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-

424)

When applicable, application packages are required to include the following documents:

AD-3030 – Representations Regarding Felony Conviction and Tax Delinquent Status for Corporate Applicants (fillable PDF in Grants.gov).

Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (PDF - Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424) iInclude 501(c)(3) determination letter issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms.html

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Table of Contents

1.0 Program Description

1.1 Legislative Authority

1.2 Defining Local Foods

1.3 Grant Tracks

1.4 FY 2019 Funding Priorities

2.0 Federal Award Information

2.1 Type of Federal Assistance

2.2 Award Amounts and Period of Performance

2.3 Allowable Costs

2.4 Match Requirements and Cost Sharing

3.0 Eligibility Information

3.1 Planning and Implementation Grant Eligibility

3.2 Training Grant Eligibility

3.3 Additional Eligibility Requirements

3.4 Grantee Requirements

4.0 Application and Submission Information

4.1 Application Format

4.2 Application Content: Proposal Narrative

4.3 Application Content: Budget and Budget Narrative

4.4 Application Content: Attachments

4.5 Application Content: Required Grant Application Forms

4.6 Submitting an Application

5.0 Application Review Information

5.1 Initial Screening

5.2 Panel Review

5.3 Selection Process

5.4 Determination of Award Amounts

6.0 Accounting System & Financial Capability Questionnaire

7.0 Federal Award Administration Information

7.1 Federal Award Notice

7.2 Non-selected Applicants

7.3 Reporting Requirements

7.4 Administrative and National Policy Requirements

8.0 Federal Awarding Agency Contacts

9.0 Other Information

9.1 What is Farm to School?

9.2 A Vision for Health and Economic Opportunity

Appendix A: Urban/Rural Classification Instructions Appendix B: Grant Program Accounting System & Financial Capability Questionnaire… 41

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1.0 Program Description

1.1 Legislative Authority

The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (NSLA) establishes a Farm to School Program in order to assist eligible entities, through grants and technical assistance, in implementing farm to school programs that improve access to local foods in eligible schools.

To fulfill the farm to school mandate in the NSLA, $5 million is provided to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on an annual basis to support grants, technical assistance, and the Federal administrative costs related to USDA’s Farm to School Program. The USDA Farm to School Grant Program is housed within the Food and Nutrition Services’ (FNS) Office of Community Food Systems (OCFS). Additional funding for the Farm to School Grant Program was made available through the FY 18 Omnibus bill, and as a result, up to $7.5 million will be released under this solicitation.

Authorizing language in the NSLA directed the Secretary of Agriculture to award competitive grants for:

• Training;

• Supporting operations;

• Planning;

• Purchasing equipment;

• Developing school gardens;

• Developing partnerships; and,

• Implementing farm to school programs.

The Secretary of Agriculture was also directed through the NSLA to ensure geographical diversity and equitable treatment of urban, rural, and tribal communities, as well as give the highest priority to funding projects that, as determined by the Secretary –

• Make local food products available on the menu of the eligible school;

• Serve a high proportion of children who are eligible for free or reduced price lunches;

• Incorporate experiential nutrition education activities in curriculum planning that encourage the participation of school children in farm and garden-based activities;

• Demonstrate collaboration between eligible schools, nongovernmental and community-based organizations, agricultural producer groups, and other community partners;

• Include adequate and participatory evaluation plans;

• Demonstrate the potential for long-term program sustainability; and,

• Meet any other criteria that the Secretary determines appropriate.

Authorizing language also states that as a condition of receiving a USDA Farm to School Program Grant, each grant recipient shall provide matching support in the form of cash or in-kind contributions, and agree to cooperate in an evaluation of the program carried out using grant funds.

https://appropriations.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=395176

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1.2 Defining Local Foods

Local and regional food systems typically centralize within a specific region where all activities associated with producing, processing, distributing, and marketing foods take place. How one defines “local” or “regional” – which are often used interchangeably, and will be for the purposes of this request for applications – can depend on geographic, social, governmental, physical, or economic parameters, seasonality, or other factors. USDA fully expects applicants of this RFA to have varying definitions of “local” specific to their individual contexts.

1.3 Grant Tracks

Grant funds will be made available on a competitive basis, subject to availability of Federal funds, using three grants tracks: Planning, Implementation, and Training. Applicant eligibility varies across grant type, for further clarification see Sections 3.0 through 3.3, Eligibility Information. The grant tracks are independently awarded and are not intended to be sequential sources of funding. For example, a district that has been awarded a Planning Grant is not automatically eligible for or awarded an Implementation Grant. The grant tracks exist to provide diverse funding for a wide range of farm to school constituents in different stages of farm to school development.

1.3.1 Planning Grants

Planning grants are intended for eligible entities that are just getting started with farm to school activities. Planning grants should primarily focus on goals and objectives that lay a solid foundation for launching or scaling up farm to school work. Key activities for a planning grant proposal include (but are not limited to): collecting data; engaging stakeholders; identifying gaps in knowledge and resources; and pinpointing and developing solutions for obstacles that hinder farm to school programming for a particular community.

Planning grants will be awarded to entities that can demonstrate support and excitement for starting a farm to school program, but have undertaken few Farm to School activities thus far.

Over the course of the grant period, planning grantees will be encouraged to use USDA resources intended to help organize and structure their farm to school efforts for maximum impact by embedding known best practices into early design considerations.

Recipients of planning grants must complete a comprehensive Farm to School Action Plan, the submission of which will be required in final reporting documents. Applicants may use the Farm to School Planning Toolkit and other technical assistance resources prepared by USDA staff.

Activities supported by planning grants include, but are not limited to:

• Developing a Farm to School Action Plan that includes goals, activities, and timelines to develop and implement a farm to school program or project that identifies responsible parties for each activity. The creation of a Farm to School Action Plan is a required activity for all awarded planning grant projects, and applicants should budget ample staff time for its completion. Sample action plans are available on the USDA website.

• Aligning the Farm to School Action Plan with the agency’s, organization’s, farm’s school district(s)’ or school(s)’ existing operations, goals and commitments, integrating farm to school concepts in local wellness policies or school board resolutions, and identifying https://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/f2s/F2S-Planning-Kit.pdf https://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/f2s/F2S-Planning-Kit.pdf https://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/f2s/F2S-Planning-Kit.pdf https://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/resources-current-grantees

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• Assessing a state, community, farm’s school district(s)’ or school(s)’ need and readiness for development of a farm to school program and determining the tools, training, and technical assistance needed to create a farm to school program;

• Engaging a wide variety of internal and external collaborators and forming a leadership team with the purpose of designing a Farm to School Action Plan;

• Identifying obstacles and gaps in resources, training, and knowledge and exploring options for addressing existing barriers to launching or expanding farm to school activities;

• Hosting stakeholder meetings, conducting trainings, and/or attending professional development conferences and seminars;

• Conducting menu audits and/or issue surveys to determine reasonable first or intermediate steps school districts, schools or SFSP sponsors can take to offer locally- or regionally-sourced foods;

• Research garden, farm, or classroom-based educational curriculum that integrates farm to school concepts;

• Developing a garden or farm-based food safety plan that aligns with the needs and expectations of CNP operators (e.g., schools, districts, child care centers, etc.); and

• Assessing local or regional product availability and identifying key supply chain relationships necessary for successful implementation of a farm to school program.

1.3.2 Implementation Grants

Implementation grants are intended for eligible entities to scale up or further develop existing farm to school initiatives. Applicants may focus on a relatively discrete set of schools as direct recipients of project activities, or may provide products and services that have national, regional, or statewide relevance and scope. As such, eligible activities may include: training and technical assistance; supply-chain development; evaluation activities; curriculum development; creation of promotional materials or campaigns; and formation of networks or coalitions; among other activities. In addition to these activities, state agencies are well-positioned to develop strategic plans and coordinate efforts among schools and with other states. Working at the state level offers opportunities to incorporate farm to school strategies in trainings and professional development opportunities, while also identifying barriers and exploring options for addressing existing barriers at the state and school levels.

Implementation grants are appropriate for entities with established partnerships and initial implementation success. Proposals must be responsive to the USDA Farm to School Grant Program goals as described in Section I.0: Legislative Authority.

Activities supported by implementation grants may include, but are not limited to:

• Bringing more unprocessed and value-added, minimally processed, regionally-sourced meal components into the cafeteria;

• Expanding farm to school programs beyond lunch to bring local or regional products into the School Breakfast Program, school-based SFSP or school-based CACFP;

• Operating service projects (e.g. AmeriCorps, VISTA, FoodCorps, local service corps programs, etc.) that support farm to school initiatives in schools;

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• Readying producers to participate in the school food market by providing training on procurement regulations, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and other food safety-related topics;

• Improving infrastructure to accommodate new local ingredients or local menu items;

• Providing technical support in the form of face-to-face trainings, consultations, webinars, etc.;

• Developing promotional campaigns in support of farm to school initiatives;

• Strategic planning efforts to expand or coordinate efforts across multiple districts;

• Conducting farm to school evaluation efforts;

• Solving distribution bottlenecks that limit the feasibility of sourcing more regionally produced items by working closely with distributors or serving as a broker to develop business relationships between farmer(s), schools, and aggregation entities such as food hubs or food distributors;

• Establishing new or strengthening existing community partnerships (e.g. working with culinary schools on training or menu development; partnerships with extension personnel to identify appropriate suppliers, etc.);

• Encouraging increased consumption of fruits and vegetables through promotional activities, taste tests, and other activities;

• Expanding experiential or agriculture-based learning opportunities, such as creation of school gardens, developing school-based farmers markets, providing support to ag/food clubs, or increasing exposure to local farms and on-farm activities; and,

• Developing and implementing integrated curriculum to reinforce food and nutrition-based learning throughout the school environment or on a local farm(s).

• Activities in state agency proposals may include, but are not limited to: hiring of staff to support statewide farm to school, school-based farm to summer, and/or school-based farm to childcare efforts; creation of statewide marketing campaigns or harvest of the month initiatives; and formation of statewide coalitions or taskforces.

1.3.3 Training grants

Training grants are intended to support eligible entities to conduct state, regional (across multiple states), and national- level trainings that strengthen farm to school supply chains and/or increase trainees’ knowledge and capacity related to local procurement, food safety, school gardens, culinary education, and/or integration of agriculture‐based curricula.

Applications that have a specific emphasis on developing supply chain relationships by connecting local producers to school food buyers will also be considered.

Activities supported by training grants may include, but are not limited to:

• Technical assistance trainings that address buying or selling local foods to the federal child nutrition programs;

• Training events that bring together stakeholders from across the supply chain, (including producers, manufacturers, distributors, buyers, educators, etc.), e.g. statewide producer-buyer meetings designed to stimulate cross learning and business connections;

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• Trainings on school garden development and food and agriculture curricula integration;

• Culinary training or educational activities, e.g. a “Junior Chef” competition where local products are incorporated into school meal programs; and,

• National, state, or regional trainings to support information sharing, networking, or the professional development of farm to school practitioners.

1.4 FY 2019 Funding Priorities

In addition to the general program purpose and priorities outlined above, across all grant categories, USDA considers the following priorities for FY 2019:

• Applications from school districts (i.e. the school district is the lead applicant1): schools or school districts will receive at least 50 percent of the overall number of planning and implementation awards.

• Applications from Indian Tribal Organizations and entities serving Native communities.

• Projects that reach more than one school.

• Projects that serve a high proportion of children (at least 40 percent or more) who are eligible for free or reduced price meals.

In selecting successful applicants, USDA, to the maximum extent practicable, will seek to ensure geographical diversity and equitable treatment of urban and rural communities.

2.0 Federal Award Information

2.1 Type of Federal Assistance

Funding of applications will be provided through the grant award/letter of credit process, via electronic transfer of funds, or by another payment method as determined by USDA, upon receipt of a properly executed grant agreement and subject to the availability of funding. USDA expects to make funds available to the grantee in advance of need. The submission of an application does not guarantee funding.

2.2 Award Amounts and Period of Performance

Planning and training grant awards will range from $20,000 - $50,000, and implementation grants will range from $50,000 - $100,000. Training grant applications to conduct state-level training are encouraged to cap their grant funding requests at $25,000. While USDA sets specific award amounts for each grant track, please note that the total project costs (including the non-USDA portion) may exceed these amounts.

1 The lead applicant is the organization that submitted the grant application.

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The period of performance for the FY 2019 USDA Farm to School Grant Program will be as follows, beginning from the date of the award:

Grant Track Award Period Eligible Entities Award Amounts

Implementation 12 or 24 months Schools, Nonprofits, ITOs, Ag producers, state/local agencies

$50,000 - $100,000

Planning 12 or 24 months Schools, Nonprofits, ITOs, Ag producers, state/local agencies

$20,000 - $50,000

Training Grants 12 months Nonprofits, ITOs, Ag producers, state/local agencies

$20,000 - $50,000

Applicants should expect the grant life cycle to include start-up activities, execution, and close- out activities (final financial and program reports, accounting, etc.). Applicants are expected to plan accordingly in order to achieve project deliverables within the award period selected.

All grant funds must be obligated, and all program activities under the grant (other than activities relating to the close out of the grant) must be completed by the end of the award period. The close-out of the grant must occur no later than 90 days following the end of the award period, and all obligations incurred under the grant must be liquidated by this date. Any funds that are not used within 90 days following the end of the award period must be returned to USDA. In addition, final progress reports are due to USDA no later than 90 days following the end of the award period.

2.3 Allowable Costs

Among other costs, budgets may include expenses related to personnel, contractors, equipment and supplies, meeting expenses, travel, and trainings.

Equipment and Supplies: Expenditures for both equipment (i.e., items of personal property having a useful life of more than one year and a cost of $5,000 or more such as walk-in freezers, coolers, and ovens) are allowable expenses only for implementation grants. Supplies (e.g., knives, cutting boards, and food processors) are an allowable expense. Salad bars are also an allowable expense. Equipment is an unallowable cost for training and planning grants. Vehicles and permanent structures are also unallowable costs. For more information regarding allowable costs, please see the Frequently Asked Questions document on the Farm to School Grant Applicant resource page.

Please refer to 2 CFR 200.313 for more information on the definition of equipment, as well as the disposition requirements for equipment once the grant has ended. In your application, you will need to address how you will handle the disposition of any equipment purchased with grant funds. This can be found online at: https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?node=2:1.1.2.2.1#se2.1.200_1313 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?node=2:1.1.2.2.1#se2.1.200_1313 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?node=2:1.1.2.2.1#se2.1.200_1313

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Equipment and supplies purchased using Farm to School Grant Program funds must be used for the purpose of accomplishing stated project objectives. (It is expected that project objectives will be in alignment with the legislative priorities outlined in section 1.1 of this RFA.) If purchased equipment or supplies are not fully dedicated to project activities, including beyond the grant period end date, the applicant must determine what percentage of the good’s time or space will be dedicated to project activities. This percentage must then be applied to the value of the good in order to determine the amount of federal funds that can be used to purchase said good. Please note that if awarded, a completed SF428 (Disposition request form) will need to be submitted with the close out of the grant.

For example:

• Purchase large walk-in freezer that will store foods for Child Nutrition Program but will also store food for the community food pantry.

• Walk-in Freezer total cost: $8,000

• 25% of freezer space used to store foods that will be serve the Child Nutrition

Programs

• $8,000 x 25% = $2,000 (amount of federal funds that can used to make this purchase)

Food Expenses: No more than 10 percent of the grant funds may be used for food purchases in the grant budget. The ultimate goal of funded projects should be to make local food products available on school menus; however, purchasing local products should not be a primary use of grant funds. Food purchases should be limited to educational purposes, including: farm to school sample tables, taste tests, or promotional use. Food costs related to conducting a test run of a new local or regional product are also deemed an appropriate use of funds.

Partnerships: Partners essential to the proposed project that may require funding from USDA to participate in the proposed project can be included in applicant budgets as a sub-grantee or line item contractor. Please be sure to provide a rationale for the partner(s)’ services.

2.4 Match Requirements and Cost Sharing

For all grant types, federal funds should constitute no more than 75 percent of the total project budget. The grant recipient must show evidence of matching support of at least 25 percent of the total budget in the form of cash or in-kind contributions, including facilities, equipment, or services provided by state and local governments, nonprofit organizations, and private sources as defined in The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.). For help calculating your project’s match requirement, please use OCFS’ Match Calculator on the Farm to School Grant Applicant resource page.

In-kind contributions are generally defined as the value of goods or services provided by a third-party for the benefit of the grant program, where no funds transferred hands. Applicants may not use Federal funds of any kind, including Federal food service funds, as a match for this grant program. The match contributions reflected in the submitted grant proposal must be documented, including the basis for the value determination as well as be reasonable, allocable, and allowable under the criteria for this grant award. Matching funds may be in the form of

14 | P a g e allowable direct or indirect costs. The basis for determining the value of cash and in-kind contributions must be in accordance with 2 CFR 200.306.

The grantee must maintain written records to support all allowable costs which are claimed as being its contribution to participation, as well as costs paid by the Federal Government. In the event the grantee does not provide the minimum amount of cost share, as described in the budget, the Government’s contribution will be reduced in proportion to the grantee’s contribution. A sample match calculation can be found in section 4.3.1 Budget.

3.0 Eligibility Information

The authorizing language specifies the following eligible entities:

• Eligible schools;

• State and local agencies;

• Indian tribal organizations;

• Agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers; and

• Non-profit entities.

Eligible schools are defined as pre-K-12 School Food Authorities (SFAs), non-profit private schools, charter schools, Indian tribal schools, and o t h e r s that participate in the National School Lunch or Breakfast Programs. Eligible SFAs may apply for funding that spans the entire SFA, for a specific group of schools (e.g. only K-5 schools within an SFA), or for an individual school. In the case where an SFA exists, the application must come from the SFA, and only one application per SFA is allowed.

Please note that the Office of Community Food Systems seeks to award funding to agricultural producers who operate small- to medium-sized farms. Please note that agricultural producers are not limited to those producing fruits and vegetables but also include fishers, ranchers and those raising other livestock for consumption. A small- to medium-sized farm is any place from which up to $1 million (gross) of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the previous calendar year. Or a small to medium farm is any place with land acreage measuring less than 1,582 acres that produced and sold, or normally would have sold agricultural products.

For more information regarding eligibility entity definitions, please review the Frequently Asked Questions document on the Farm to School Grant Applicant resource page.

3.1 Planning and Implementation Grant Eligibility

Eligible schools, state and local agencies, Indian tribal organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, and non-profit entities are eligible to receive planning and implementation grants.

Funding is available to support school-based programs only. If a proposal seeks to increase local foods in the Child and Adult Care Program or the Summer Food Service Program, target sites must be located at an eligible school. If a proposal seeks to target school(s), schools discussed in the project proposal as benefiting from the project must be eligible as defined in section 3.0.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2014-title2-vol1/xml/CFR-2014-title2-vol1-sec200-306.xml http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2014-title2-vol1/xml/CFR-2014-title2-vol1-sec200-306.xml

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Proof of existing support: Applicants must show evidence of existing community support or partnerships with entities that will be involved in the implementation of the project. Applicants must submit up to three letters of commitment from key partners identified in the project plan or budget. Letters are not to exceed more than one page. Please do not provide more than three letters; they will not be considered. Potential partners may include, but are not limited to, key food service personnel (e.g. school nutrition directors), school administration (e.g.

superintendent, principal, etc), teachers, agricultural producers or distributors providing local food for the school nutrition programs or educational enrichment, or other key organizations (e.g. cooperative extensions, rural development centers, etc.). Applications which do not include relevant letter(s) of commitment may be subject to a reduced score in the review process.

Letters must include a description of the partner’s:

• overall support of the project’s execution;

• role and responsibility in achieving the proposed project; and

• demonstrated experience or expertise with executing the assigned role/responsibility.

Please carefully review sections 3.0 and 3.3 before proceeding with preparing a proposal.

3.2 Training Grant Eligibility

Only state and local agencies, Indian Tribal Organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, and non-profit entities are eligible to receive training grant funds.

Unlike planning and implementation grants, training grants may support projects that impact CACFP and SFSP operators that have sites beyond schools. Please review section 3.0 for additional eligibility requirements before proceeding with preparing an application.

Proof of existing support: Applicants must show evidence of existing community support in the form of a support letter from a stakeholder the applicant intends to train. The letter is to describe the individual’s support of the training and how such a training will overcome farm to school challenges experienced by the target audience. The letter is not to exceed more than one page. Applications which do not have a support letter from a potential training attendee may be subject to a reduced score in the review process.

Please carefully review sections 3.0 and 3.3 before proceeding with preparing a proposal.

3.3 Additional Eligibility Requirements

• One grant application per entity: Applicants must choose between submitting a planning, implementation, or training grant request and may only submit one application.

• Current and previous implementation, support service, and training grantees: in order to ensure diversity among awardees, organizations that have received implementation, support service, or training grants though the USDA Farm to School Grant Program in the last two funding cycles (FY 2017 or FY 2018) are ineligible to apply for FY 2019 Farm to School Grant Program funding.

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• Past planning grantees: While being a past planning grant recipient does not guarantee an implementation award, previous planning grantees that have completed their projects may apply for implementation or training grants.

• Past implementation, support service and training grantees: Organizations that have received implementation, support service, or training grants though the Farm to School Grant Program in the last two funding cycles (FY 2017 or FY 2018) are ineligible to apply for FY 2019 Farm to School Grant Program funding.

• Cooperative Extension Service2 programs and institutions of higher learning are ineligible to apply for these grant projects as the lead applicant, however they can be a key partner.

3.3.1 Fiscal Sponsors

Eligible applicants may use fiscal sponsors/agents in their effort to attain and administer a grant award. Such applicants seeking to implement a Farm to School Grant project may utilize a fiscal sponsor/agent to apply for an award on behalf of the implementing organization. By doing so, the sponsor/agent accepts all financial and legal liabilities for that organization at the time the award is made. Fiscal sponsors/agents must submit the application as the applicant organization, and the Authorized Organizational Representative responsible for all grant decisions should be listed as an employee of the fiscal sponsor/agent. Fiscal sponsors/agents are bound by the same requirements mentioned in this RFA as other applicant organizations.

An applicant organization cannot accept an award and later transfer the award to a fiscal sponsor/agent. Distinct eligible applicants that use the same fiscal sponsor may submit applications during the same round of funding.

3.4 Grantee Requirements

All grant recipients must:

• Participate in an orientation call.

• Complete standardized evaluation activities as determined by USDA which includes baseline and final reporting, an annual grantee satisfaction report, as well as quarterly progress and final reports.

• Acknowledge USDA support: As outlined in 2 CFR 415.2, grant recipients shall include acknowledgement of USDA Food and Nutrition Service support on any publications written or published with grant support and, if feasible, on any publication reporting the results of, or describing, a grant-supported activity. Recipients shall include acknowledgement of USDA Food and Nutrition Service support on any audiovisual which is produced with grant support and which has a direct production cost of over $5,000.

o When acknowledging USDA support, use the following language: "This material is based upon work that is supported by the Food and Nutrition Service, U.S.

Department of Agriculture.” Whenever practical, FNS also expects that grantees use the Office of Community Food Systems identifier in publications, posters, websites and presentations resulting from their award. Grantees are asked to follow the USDA Visual Standards Guide when using the USDA logo.

2Cooperative Extension Service is defined by USDA NIFA as a nationwide, non-credit educational network that addresses public needs by providing non-formal higher education and learning activities to farmers, ranchers, co mmu n itie s, yo ut h, and fa mil ies thro u g ho ut t he nat io n.

https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/visual-standards-guide-january-2013.pdf https://nifa.usda.gov/cooperative-extension-system

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Grant recipients may be asked to host USDA officials for a site visit during the course of their grant award or during the training event. All costs associated with the site visit will be paid for by USDA and are not expected to be included in grant budgets. Site visits serve to augment USDA’s understanding of the challenges with and best practices of farm to school efforts.

3.4.1 Planning and Implementation Grantee Requirements

Planning and Implementation grant recipients must:

• Participate in webinars and regularly scheduled training and technical assistance throughout the course of the grant period.

• Engage in periodic one-on-one consultations with USDA personnel.

• Attend one face-to-face meeting with USDA personnel and fellow grantees to provide exposure to farm to school best practices and networking opportunities, discuss project progress, explore opportunities for collaborative efforts, and enhance dissemination of exemplary methods.

• Applicants must include travel costs for at least one and no more than two project representatives, preferably including the project director, in their grant budgets to attend this meeting.

• Applicants should estimate three full days of travel including hotel, airfare, ground transportation, meals, etc. For airfare, assume that the destination of the meeting will be several states away and that tickets will be medium to high priced.

• Planning grantees must create a Farm to School Action Plan using USDA’s Farm to School Planning Toolkit.

3.4.2 Training Grant Requirements

• Make best faith efforts to include USDA FNS Regional Farm to School personnel, time permitting, in the planning process.

• Where relevant, disseminate USDA Farm to School Program fact sheets and other relevant resource materials.

• Place the USDA logo on all training materials and reference USDA as a training event sponsor in all promotional materials including websites.

• Use standardized USDA evaluation questions to monitor the effectiveness of any programming.

• Submit results from all evaluations to USDA.

• Submit meeting agendas, presentations, and other training materials to USDA.

4.0 Application and Submission Information

4.1 Application Format

Applications should meet the following formatting guidelines:

• Include a table of contents (not counted towards page limit);

• 4-page maximum length for Planning and Training grant narrative response; or

• 6-page maximum length for Implementation grant narrative response.

• A suggested length for each subsection of the proposal narrative is provided.

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• 1-page maximum length for support and commitment letters.

• Narrative response page restrictions apply only to content of the narrative proposals and do not apply to other required forms/attachments, nor the budget-related documents.

Pages exceeding the stated page limits may be omitted during the review process.

• 8 ½” by 11” paper;

• 12 point Times New Roman font size (smaller font may be used in tables, charts and graphs as long as they are clearly readable);

• Single-spaced;

• At least 1 inch margins on the top and bottom of the page; and,

• Numbered pages.

4.2 Application Content: Proposal Narrative

4.2.1 Planning Grant Proposal Narrative (Maximum 4 pages)

In preparing your proposal narrative, provide the information requested, in the order presented below.

• Farm to School Background and Readiness: Describe your school(s) and the number of students that will benefit from this project. Briefly describe the vision for your farm to school program, including any goals related to local food purchasing, school gardens, and agriculture education and how many schools your project will reach.

Note any challenges, anticipated or existing, as well as how challenges can be overcome through this grant. Clearly indicate why your site is ready to undertake this planning process at this time.

Suggested length: ~200 words

• Need: Describe the population being served by the proposal and how a farm to school program would address an identified gap or need that exists within your school and/or community. Support your position with relevant quantitative or qualitative data, (e.g.

Farm to School Census data, demographic information, levels of access to healthy foods, poverty statistics, public health information such as obesity rates in your city/county, school meal participation rates, Census of Agriculture information, etc.).

• Objectives, Activities, and Timeline: All objectives should lead to the end goal of having a comprehensive Farm to School Action Plan in place by the end of the grant period. Action plan corresponds to Farm to School legislative priorities outlined in Section 1.1. Use “SMART” objectives (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound) to describe what you hope to accomplish. Activities should clearly align with the identified objectives and support the development of a Farm to School Action Plan. Your project timeline should start no earlier than July 1, 2019. The timeline should have a logical order of activities that can be completed within the 12 or 24 month time period. (If awards are made after the expected award date the timeline may be shifted appropriately.)

(Example) Objective: By September 2019, identify supply chain partners we could work with to increase our procurement of regional foods by 20%.

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Activities:

• Identify X n u m b e r o f local farmers and regional supply chain actors

- Who: Bob Jones (By: July 2019)

• Host initial meeting w/ potential supply chain partners

- Who: Bob Jones (By: August 2019)

• Follow up w/ supply chain partners one-on-one

- Who: Bob Jones (By: August-September 2019)

Suggested length: ~800 words

• Evaluation: Evaluating your farm to school progress, both from a quantitative and a qualitative perspective, and then assessing your program’s overall impact, will be critical.

Please describe how you would monitor your proposed activities, how you would evaluate progress against stated objectives throughout the grant period and at what frequency would these activities occur. Outline the roles and responsibilities of the staff, volunteers, or contractors involved in monitoring and evaluating success. For more information on evaluation resources, see: http://www.usda.gov/farmtoschool.

Suggested length: ~300 words

• Staffing, Project Management, and Quality Assurance. Describe your approach to managing the project to ensure that project activities are completed on time, within budget, and with quality results. Identify the staff (or contractors) who will manage the project. Describe roles and responsibilities of these employees or contractors, as well as relevant qualifications and experience. You may reference attached resumes to demonstrate relevant experience. If a key staff member has not been hired, in lieu of a resume, please attach the job description that will be used to fill this position (including desired knowledge, skills and education).

Suggested length: ~300 words

• Sustainability. How will you ensure your Farm to School Action Plan is executed regardless of whether future funding is awarded? Please share which other funding opportunities will be pursued to initiate your action plan. Discuss the current and future roles of any partners and stakeholders in this section, and include how planned activities will be integrated into the organization’s regular, ongoing operations and/or local policies.

4.2.2 Implementation Grant Proposal Narrative (Maximum 6 pages)

Farm to School Experience

• Describe the type of organization you operate, including your line of business and the product(s) or the services you provide. Discuss previous experience in providing support for farm to school procurement strategies, promotional efforts, hands-on learning, training, curriculum development, planning, and evaluation. Note existing or

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Identify and briefly describe key partnerships in place that will support the successful execution of this project.

Suggested length: ~350 words

Need

• Need: Describe the population being served by the proposal and how a farm to school program would address an identified gap or need that exists within your school and/or community.. Support your position with relevant quantitative or qualitative data, (e.g.

Farm to School Census data, demographic information, levels of access to healthy foods, poverty statistics, public health information such as obesity rates in your city/county, school meal participation rates, Census of Agriculture information,…