Food & Nutrition [Volume 8, Number 1]

              / For Building Use Only I
oepos\tor~.
LIBRARY
SEP 2 0 1978
L
This issue is all about the Child Care
Food Program - how it works, who runs
it, and who may join.
Building a Program Page 6
Enlisting Participants Page 12
Working on
Recordkeeping Page 17
Providing Training Page 20
Child Care
Food Program
When people think of child care,
they might not think of food. But
food is an important part of every
child's day, and a child care center
cannot provide good care without
providing good food.
This issue of FOOD AND NUTRI­TION
is devoted to the Child Care
Food Program, a nationwide program
designed to help child care centers
and day care homes serve nutritious,
well-balanced meals and snacks. Ad­ministered
by USDA in cooperation
with State and local agencies, the
program provides financial aid as
well as other types of assistance.
The Child Care Food Program
began in 1968 as part of a 3-year pilot
program known as the Special Food
Service Program for Children.
Designed originally to serve especial­ly
needy children, the pilot program
provided assistance to nonresidential
child care centers serving children
from low-income areas or from areas
with significant numbers of working
mothers.
In October 1975, new child nutri­tion
legislation, Public Law 94-105,
expanded and refocused the pro­gram.
The law extended eligibility to
all nonprofit day care centers-those
serving non-needy as well as needy
areas.
It also opened participation to
family and group day care homes, al­lowing
them to join under the spon­sorship
of a qualifying institution or
organization.
When Public Law 94-105 was
passed, some 425,000 children were
benefiting from the program. That
figure has since grown to nearly
550,000, but there are still many thou­sands
of children in centers and
homes that have not yet joined even
though they are eligible.
2
What blocks their participation?
Some centers and homes simply
don't know about the program.
Others may have heard about it, but
don't understand it or are afraid par­ticipation
will mean administrative
headaches and red tape.
Many centers get funding from
several sources, so recordkeeping is
already a big job-why complicate
it further?
Some center staffs and day care
providers are concerned about the
program's meal requirements.
Especially if they have had little train­ing
in nutrition and food service
management, they may wonder how
they would learn to operate the pro­gram
according to Federal regula­tions.
Besides, if they're used to run­ning
their programs just the way
they want, they may not like the idea
of involving anyone else.
The following articles address
these concerns. The first is an in­troductory
article with questions and
answers basic to an understanding of
the program. The rest are features
about people who are involved in the
program in a number of ways.
Some are program coordinators in
State agencies. Others are people
who administer or actually operate
the program at the local level-in
child care centers and day care
homes, and in organizations which
act as sponsors for centers and
homes.
The articles show how people are
working together to build good
programs, enlist participants, provide
training, and develop solutions to
special problems, such as keeping
accurate records.
Food and Nutrition
~ .... ow does
!'::')What is the Child Care Food
~ Program and what kinds of
"A*" .. assistance does it provide? The Child Care Food Program
is a nationwide program authorized
by Section 17 of the National School
Lunch Act. The program helps child
care centers and family and group
day care homes serve nutritious, well­balanced
meals.
The program offers several kinds of
assistance to help centers and day
care homes initiate, maintain, or ex­pand
food service programs:
Reimbursement for meals. Par­ticipating
centers and homes receive
cash reimbursements based on the
number of breakfasts, lunches, sup­pers,
and snacks they serve. The rate
of reimbursement varies according to
the family incomes of the children.
Food assistance. USDA makes
available a variety of donated foods
for use in the program. States may
choose to accept these foods and dis­tribute
them to participating centers
and homes, or, they may choose to
receive the cash value of the foods
and distribute cash payments to
centers and homes. Most States dis­tribute
cash instead of foods.
.Equipment assistance. In many
areas, local resources cannot provide
all the equipment needed to set up
and maintain food services. Through
the program, centers and homes
may apply for funds to help buy
or rent equipment for storing, pre­paring,
moving and serving food.
Technical assistance and
guidance. State and Federal program
coordinators provide technical as­sistance
and guidance. Through
publications, workshops, and onsite
visits, they offer help with program re­quirements,
meal patterns, and food
service management.
Q What are the program's
. . eligibility requirements? A Many different child care
. programs are eligible for the
Child Care Food Program. Basically,
they fall into two categories: child
February 1978
care centers, which may participate
on their own or under the auspices of
a qualified sponsoring organization;
and, family and group day care
homes, which must participate under
the auspices of a qualified sponsoring
organization.
Outlined below are the eligibility re­quirements
for child care centers, day
care homes, and sponsoring orga­nizations.
Child care centers. Child care
centers may join the program if they
are nonprofit and provide organized
child care in nonresidential, non­school
situations. To be eligible, the
centers must:
• Have, or have applied for, a tax­exempt
certificate from the Internal
Revenue Service under section 501
(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1954; or be participating in another
federally funded program requiring
tax-exempt status.
• Have a license or approval as a
child care institution from Federal,
State, or local governments. Or, if a
State has no licensing requirements,
they must meet the Federal Inter­agency
Day Care requirements.
Some examples of eligible centers
include those run by churches, settle­ment
houses, community action agen­cies,
neighborhood organizations,
Head Start centers, afterschool rec­reation
programs, and institutions
providing day care services for hand­icapped
children.
Day care homes. Family and group
day care homes may join the program
if they provide organized child care,
and if they:
• Have a qualified sponsoring
organization.
• Have a license or approval as a
child care institution from Federal,
State, or local governments.
Family day care homes generally
have up to six children in attendance,
including the provider's own children.
Group day care homes generally have
up to 10 children in attendance, in-
~ -· i .~ ,... ... ,
" · .. (· l '·'\}.r~t .• '·
tl
eluding the provider's own children .
Sponsoring organizations. Orga­nizations
may join the program as
sponsors if they are nonprofit institu­tions,
and if they agree to be responsi­ble
for the finances, recordkeeping,
and administration of the program in
each child care center or day care
home they serve.
To be eligible, sponsoring orga­nizations
must have, or have applied
for, a tax-exempt certificate from the
Internal Revenue Service under Sec­tion
501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1954. Or, they must be par­ticipating
in another federally funded
program requiring tax-exempt status.
Sponsoring organizations must
provide supervisory and technical aid
to centers and day care homes
under their authority.
!:'\How is the Child Care Food
'-\' Program administered? A On the national level, the Child
Care Food Program is ad­ministered
by USDA's Food and Nutri­tion
Service. On the State level, the
program is administered by an ap­propriate
State agency, usually the
State Department of Education.
However, in some States, the pro­gram
is administered directly by FNS
regional offices.
The Federal coordinators. Basical­ly,
the role of the Food and Nutrition
Service is to provide overall guidance
and technical assistance. FNS staff
members write and publish the rules
and regulations governing the opera­tion
of the program. They also write
guidelines, develop and test meal pat­terns,
and set policy on when and
where audits will be conducted.
In addition, FNS personnel provide
training for people in State agencies
and evaluate the State agencies' per­formance
in operating the program.
They distribute Child Care Food
Program funds to State agencies,
which in turn distribute the funds to
participating centers and sponsoring
organizations.
The State agency role. State
agency personnel work directly with
sponsoring agencies and child care
3
I ~,,
:f{!,f€ ' ,. ' ' . . ,., ; . ' •
v ·~ •
centers. They explain the program to
potential participants, and approve or
disapprove their applications.
They provide regulatory informa­tion
to participating centers and spon­sors,
along with program guidance
material and technical assistance.
They conduct workshops and training
sessions on subjects like reimburse­ment
procedures, meal requirements,
nutrition education, and filling out
forms. They also receive and process
claims for reimbursement
Periodically, State agency people
conduct audits to evaluate local spon­soring
organizations and independent
child care centers in the following
areas: complying with program
regulations; meeting meal require­ments;
keeping records; and prepar­ing
accurate reports.
In the 15 States in which FNS cur­rently
administers the program direct­ly,
the FNS regional office staffs work
directly with centers and sponsoring
organizations and offer the same ser­vices
as State agencies.
~What are the responsibilities of
.. ~Jparticipating child care centers
ailcf sponsoring organizations?
A If child care centers join the pro­gram
independent of sponsoring
organizations, they must be responsi­ble
for their own program finances
and for the administration of the food
service program. Essentially, their
responsibilities are to:
• Serve nutritious meals that meet
program requirements.
• Keep records on food ser­vice
operations and participation.
• Report to the administering State
agency the information needed for
reimbursement purposes.
To determine reimbursement, the
State agency needs information on:
the family sizes and incomes of par­ticipating
children; the numbers of
breakfasts, lunches, suppers, and
snacks served; and the operating
costs of the food service.
Sponsoring organizations are
responsible for the program finances
4
and administration of the food service
program in each center and home un­der
their jurisdiction. Sponsors must:
• Make sure centers and homes
serve nutritious meals that meet
program requirements.
• Compile and keep, for every
center and home, information needed
for reimbursement purposes.
• Prepare and file with the State
agency all claims for reimbursement
• Distribute reimbursement pay­ments
to participating centers and
homes.
Both independent centers and
sponsoring organizations also have
training responsibilities. They must
make sure center personnel and fami­ly
day care providers get the training
they need to serve nutritious meals,
manage the food service, and keep
accurate records. Training assistance
is available from State and Federal
program administrators.
,I'!\ What are the responsibilities of '\.1! participating family and group Xcare homes?
Family and group day care
homes must serve nutritious
meals that meet the program's meal
requirements. Each home must pro­vide
its sponsoring organization' with
the information the sponsor needs to
keep accurate records and to prepare
claims for reimbursement.
Sponsors work with homes on an
individual basis to see that they carry
out these responsibilities and any
other responsibilities the sponsoring
organization assigns.
I"\. How many meals may centers
~ and homes serve? A' The Child Care Food Program
~ will provide reimbursement for
up to three meals and two snacks per
day. Participating centers and homes
may serve breakfast, lunch, supper,
and a mid-morning and mid-afternoon
snack.
Centers and homes may prepare
the meals themselves; they may ob­tain
them from a food service facility
in a local school; or they may obtain
them by contracting with a food ser­vice
management company.
All meals served in the program
must meet the minimum nutritional
requirements set by USDA.
r\.How does reimbursement
\JI/work?
A As authorized by law, USDA
provides a certain amount of
Federal money to State agencies for
each meal or snack served to par­ticipating
children. The amount of
money varies according to the need of
children served within the State.
Except where FNS regional offices
administer the program directly, State
agencies compute and distribute
reimbursement, using information the
center or sponsor has submitted on
its monthly claim.
Reimbursing child care centers. To
determine the amount of reimburse­ment
a child care center will receive
for a particular month, a State needs
to know:
• The total numbers of breakfasts,
lunches, dinners, and snacks the
center has served.
• The need of enrolled children as
reflected in family size and income.
• The cost of producing the meals.
Reimbursement is always the lesser
of: (1) the meals served times the as­signed
rates of payment for those
meals; or (2) the cost of producing
the meals.
The assigned rates of payment
usually differ for each center and
reflect the neetl of participating
children. They are based on national
rates set and adjusted twice a year by
USDA.
Reimbursing sponsoring orga­nizations.
To determine the amount of
reimbursement a sponsoring orga­nization
will receive, State agencies
generally use the same approach
Food and Nutrition
described above.
However, organizations sponsoring
day care homes have an option not
available to child care centers or their
sponsoring organizations.
Instead of having to keep records of
food purchases, these sponsoring
organizations may choose to claim
reimbursement on the basis of special
rates for breakfasts, lunches, dinners,
and snacks. These are flat rates,
known as food cost factors. Like the
national rates of payment, the food
cost factors are set and adjusted twice
a year by USDA.
Q What types of records will par­'
ticipants have to keep? .A Recordkeeping requirements
. ~vary from State to State.
However, to receive the maximum
reimbursement, all centers and spon­sors
must keep records on the family
sizes and incomes of enrolled chil­dren
and on any costs they claim for
reimbursement.
Generally, States require centers
and sponsoring organizations to keep
records of direct and indirect costs.
Direct costs include food, labor, and
non-food supplies. They also include
the costs involved in planning, orga­nizing,
and supervising the program.
Indirect costs include depreciation of
kitchen equipment and a prorated
share of utilities.
To simplify recordkeeping, many
centers and homes elect to be reim­bursed
only for food and labor. This
procedure greatly simplifies record­keeping
responsibilities .
Some States require centers and
~,
~~
81
0
sponsors to keep track of food on an
"as used" basis. Others allow them to
keep track of food purchases. In
States where FNS Regional Offices
administer the program, centers must
keep track of food actually used.
In family and group day care homes
using the predetermined food cost
factor for reimbursement, it is not
necessary for homes to keep records
on food purchased or used. D
by Michael McAteer .
For further information: Contact the
State Department of Education or the
neare.st regional office of the Food
and Nutrition Service. The FNS
regional offices are in: San Francisco;
Dallas; Atlanta; Denver; Chicago;
Burlington, Massachusetts; and Rob-binsvil
New Jersey.
5
Building
a Program
What does it take to build a good
Child Care Food Program? Accord­ing
to the people featured in the
following three articles, it takes
initiative, planning, imagination, and
lots of teamwork.
The articles show how the CCFP
actually works in individual child care
centers and day care homes. The arti­cles
also illustrate the role of spon­soring
organizations and highlight
ways they have found to make the
program an enjoyable experience for
the people who run it, as well as for
the children who take part.
People at
Portsmouth
make food a
priority
"It's a Small World-A Festival of
Food and Song" was the theme of last
summer's activities at the Portsmouth
Day Care Center in Portsmouth,
Virginia. The theme is a particularly
appropriate one for a child care
center whose staff makes meals
educational as well as enjoyable.
The Portsmouth center feeds an
average of 35 children a hot lunch and
two snacks daily. Often meals corre-
6
spond to the day's lessons.
The center serves children from a
wide range of socio-economic back­grounds.
Many of the children come
from families who live just above the
poverty level. Some are on welfare.
However, some families are econom­ically
well off and bring their children
to get what they consider first-rate day
care. Enrollment fees are based on a
sliding scale which relates to the fami­ly's
income, size and needs.
Although the center is licensed for
50 children, the staff feels 35 is nearly
an ideal, manageable size for the
available resources. Portsmouth has
seven paid staff members-four full­time
teachers, a cook, an assistant
cook, and a center director.
Sponsored by
an association
The Portsmouth Day Care Center is
sponsored by the Tidewater Child
Care Association , a United Fund
agency. The association pays the
salaries of the center staff; it also
employs an executive director and a
bookkeeper, who spend part of their
time at the center.
Because the staff is so small,
responsibilities often voluntarily
overlap. Executive director Evelyn
Green and center director Fiorella
Whitehurst spend time in the kitchen,
the classrooms, the office and with the
staff. Audrey Nyman, the bookkeeper,
sometimes spends time with the
children, as do the cooks, Mary Hayes
and Inez Wingate.
The teachers and volunteer assis­tants
use the kitchen facilities for
weekly cooking activities with the
children and also assist in food
preparation when needed.
Seldom
short-handed
Although the Portsmouth Day Care
Center has funds to hire only seven
full-time staff members, they are
seldom short-handed. Community
resources are often used to fill out the
meager staff.
For example, high school students
from a nearby alternative school help
the four full-time teachers, center
director, and kitchen staff. These stu­dents,
many of whom are slow-learn­ers
or have behavioral problems,
receive valuable on-the-job training at
the center.
Students from local community col­leges
temporarily join the staff as part
of work-study internship programs.
An on-the-job trainee from the Ports­mouth
Redevelopment and Housing
Authority has been a valuable re­source
for both the office and the
classroom this year. The center also
benefits from the services of several
young people placed through the
Summer Youth Employment Program
of the local anti-poverty agency.
Parents
get involved
In addition to general community
involvement, the center often asks the
advice and help of parents on new
and ongoing projects. Center director
Fiorella Whitehurst offers an open in­vitation
for parents to visit and par­ticipate
in the center's activities. The
day care center has much contact
with parents through letters,
meetings, informal talks. Both are
highly supportive of each other.
"Parents are interested, for in­stance,
in the menus we prepare,"
says Ms. Whitehurst. "We post menus
in several places in the center for
families to see. Often they will prepare
their children's favorites at home."
The center and parents exchange
favorite menus and recipes. Parents,
board members and visitors often join
the children for meals at a small cost.
Importance of
family stressed
The importance of family is stres­sed
consistently with the children, in
many different ways.
"We are trying to provide an ex­tended
family experience," says
Evelyn Green. "We are not a sub­stitute
for the home. These children
come from strong families, despite
any problems they may have.
"We consider ourselves as a
resource for the children to add to
their family experience," she con­tinues.
"We impress on them that they
are special because they have a
chance to extend their families. Food
shopping is one family-type activity
we plan with the children. Gardening
is another. Both offer a variety of
learning experiences."
Ms. Green explains that the
Food and Nutrition
children have worked o·n a number of
gardening projects this year. They've
grown cabbage, tomatoes, beans and
mints in pots indoors. They've also
grown orange, grapefruit, pine­apple
and avocado plants.
"We try to teach the children that
food is not just something that comes
from the kitchen or appears magically
on the tables," the association direc­tor
says. "That's why we involve the
children in growing food, and in
preparing and serving it as well."
Meals served
family-style
Meals at the center are served
family style, and the children fre­quently
help with preparation. They
also set the tables and help clear them
after meals. This teaches respon­sibility
and reinforces the family con­cept.
It also reinforces number con­cepts
and enhances language
development through discussions
about the utensils, food , sharing
duties, and so forth.
Teachers and children eat together,
and table talk often centers on food.
"Most of the children finish
everything on their plates," says
Evelyn Green. "We find that talking
about different foods and having the
children participate in cooking ac­tivities
makes them open-minded
about foods. With activities and con­versation,
the children are much more
likely to try new foods and to accept
them, and there is usually little waste."
Summer meals
have themes
While food-related activities are a
regular part of Portsmouth's year­round
program, they get special at­tention
during the summer months.
Each summer, the center selects a
central theme for its activities.
This past summer, activities ex­panded
the children's awareness of
this "small world." Through books,
songs, arts and crafts, they learned
about different countries and the peo­ple
who live in them. Menus featured
foods from the countries the children
were studying.
The year before, activities and
menus had a historic theme­"
Celebrating Cultures: the Afro­American,
the Indian, and the Anglo­Saxon
Cultures in Early Virginia."
The children grew vegetables in­digenous
to the three cultures in three
separate gardens and learned about
the vegetables as they watched them
grow. During July and August, the
center served a variety of meals from
8
At the Portsmouth
Center, children en­joy
nourishing meals
and a variety of food­related
activities.
the three cultures, using vegetables
from the gardens.
Food is
important
"Food is important for children in
many ways," says Evelyn Green, ad­ding
that for some of the Portsmouth
children, lunch at the center is their
main meal of the day.
"That's why we concentrate so
heavily on food in our curriculum ,"
she says. "And that's why we value the
help we get from USDA."
Until last winter, the center received
USDA-donated foods. However, like
all Virginia participants in the Child
Care Food Program, the center now
receives cash instead of foods.
The association's bookkeeper,
Audrey Nyman, prefers the new ar­rangement.
"We enjoyed the high
quality of food we received ," she says.
"But shipments were unpredictable,
and so, in a way, cash makes it easier
for us to plan. This business is chal­lenging
enough with our enrollment
varying so much from week to week."
Chart helps
with reporting
Florelle Whitehurst and the rest of
the staff help Ms. Nyman with her
recordkeeping responsibilities. The
teachers count attendance daily on
mimeographed charts. They desig­nate
the number of meals served each
day, tally them for the week, and turn
the records in to the office.
Ms. Nyman keeps a running total
of meals served for the month. To­gether,
Ms. Nyman and Ms. White­hurst
keep track of the family incomes
of all the children.
Recordkeeping and reporting are
complicated by the number of agen­cies
providing assistance to the cen­ter.
To make reporting as easy as pos­sible,
Ms. Green has developed a
large chart which she keeps on a wall
of her office.
The chart lists all the agencies
which give the center assistance and
the various agencies or vendors with
whom the center has contracts. The
chart indicates the agency, the type of
report, and the frequency of
reporting. Keeping the chart helps
Ms. Green organize the recordkeep­ing
duties more efficiently for the of­fice
staff.
Ms. Whitehurst and Ms. Nyman
keep account of the inventory, and the
cooks assist with this duty.
"The cooks try to keep track of what
they use daily," Ms. Green explains,
Food and Nutrition
"but they have found errors in their
accounting that way, and so they must
double check by taking inventory at
the end of each month."
Ms. Whitehurst and Ms. Wingate
plan the menus the last week each
month around the inventory still on
hand. They must keep the center's
limited storage space in mind when
planning the new food orders for the
month. Ms. Nyman orders the food
from three main sources, all whole­salers
in the area.
On occasion, teachers bring in
foods ,or fresh produce for a special
meal or demonstration. Usually
teachers buy these as treats to the
children and the center, so they are
not counted for reimbursement.
Proud of
the kitchen
The staff is proud of the center's
kitchen, which they keep sparkling
clean. The building had been used as
a day care center before the Ports­mouth
Day Care Center took over, so
some of the kitchen facilities-like the
freezer, refrigerator, and stove-were
already installed. With funds from
USDA, the association bought a
new hood, stainless steel table, and
cooking and serving utensils.
The day care center is located in a
low-income area of Portsmouth, and it
is surrounded by barren yards and
dilapidated housing. But the center
itself is cheery and bright, and the as­sociation
has made many improve­ments
in the building with revenue
sharing funds from the city.
The center is anticipating additional
revenue-sharing funds to transform
the bare grounds into an exciting play
area. A member of the art faculty of
Old Dominion College has designed
some beautiful and functional play
structures for the area. They now have
to walk several blocks to use play­ground
equipment.
"If you ask for help, you get it," says
Ms. Green.
The first children arrive at the
Portsmouth Center at 7:00 a.m., and
the last ones leave at 5:30 p.m.
"Day care is tiring and taxing," says
Evelyn Green. "We always have to
create new ways to stretch our limited
resources.
"But we watch the children grow
and learn and see parents show their
confidence in us, and we know it's all
worthwhile."
by Linda Feldman
February 1 978
A look at
a New Hampshire
family day
care program
Each weekday at about 7:15 a.m.,
2-year-old Kevin McBrearty arrives at
Carol Hall's house on Mitchell Street
in Manchester, New Hampshire. Kevin
spends a good part of his day in the
Hall's comfortable family room kit­chen
in the company of Tiffany, and 8
months, Mark, also 2 years old, and
Adam and Jennifer, both age 3.
Kevin and the other children are
receiving family day care in Carol
Hall's home. Only two of them are
related-Tiffany and Mark Lambiris
are brother and sister.
During the 8 or 9 hours they spend
with Carol Hall, the children play, take
naps, go for walks, and eat lunch as
well as snacks. Because she is a
licensed day care mother associated
with a recognized sponsoring agency,
Ms. Hall can receive reimbursement
for the snacks and lunches through
the Child Care Food Program.
Sponsored
by GMCCA
Ms. Hall's "sponsor" is the Greater
Manchester Child Care Association
(GMCCA), which provides ad­ministrative
services to 21 homes
serving approximately 60 children.
The agency also operates two day
care centers for approximately 340
children, including 42 children who
come for after-school activities.
Generally younger children, aged 3
months to 3 years, go to the homes.
Carol Hall might have chosen to be
"independent," but the .association .
relieves her of the responsibility of in­terviewing
parents, accepting children
and making financial arrangements.
GMCCA sponsorship offers Ms.
Hall other benefits as well, for exam­ple,
vacation and sick pay, and Social
Security benefits. ·
Like the other family day care
providers sponsored by GMCCA,
Ms. Hall receives a separate check
for the meals she serves. USDA
reimburses the association on the
basis of the children's family in­comes,
but G MCCA gives pro­viders
the same amount for each
child. That amount is always at
least as great as the Federal payment
the association gets from USDA.
"Children from families of all in­come
levels may be in a single home,"
says Larry White, GMCCA executive
director. "For planning purposes, we
find it best to give the mothers a flat
rate they can count on."
Training
provided
GMCCA staff members work close­ly
with the family day care mothers to
make sure they understand the meal
pattern and portion requirements set
by USDA. The mothers may serve
breakfast, lunch, and a morning and
afternoon snack. They must keep
records of the number of meals
served, but they do not have to record
food, labor, or other costs.
As part of its total training package,
GMCCA includes sessions on nutri­tion
and Child Care Food Program re­quirements.
Twice a year, the as­sociation
holds ten 2-hour evening
sessions for new day care mothers.
Family day care consultant Sarah
Chamberlain arranges the meetings,
which cover various aspects of child
development, first aid, home safety,
and nutrition. Often, volunteer instruc­tors
lead the training seminars.
The volunteer instructor for a re­cent
nutrition training program was
home economist Ellen McDevitt,
formerly a member of the Food and
Nutrition Service staff in Washington,
D.C. Ms. McDevitt began the session
with a label quiz in which she asked
the mothers to identify familiar
items-such as chicken soup and in­stant
potatoes-from the ingredients
listed on the labels. This led to a dis-
Carol Hall often serves
hot meals she has pre­pared
in advance.
9
cussion on grocery shopping.
"I tell the mothers they have a
responsibility to the children to give
them the best food possible, and a
responsibility to themselves to get it at
the best price," Ms. McDevitt says.
Materials
welcomed
A Planning Guide tor Food Service
in Child Care Centers, an FNS
publication, was Ms. McDevitt's
source for handouts during a discus­sion
on meal patterns and snacks.
She duplicated and distributed the
pages listing bread products, vitamins
A and C and iron, "finger foods," and
the amounts required for each meal.
As Ellen McDevitt explains, many
mothers had come to the session con­vinced
that a hot meal is always best.
"But," she says "they quickly learned
that cold finger foods such as cheese
cubes, chunks of vegetables, and fruit
with milk can be more nutritious than
hot entrees like canned pastas with
tomato sauce." Ms. McDevitt said the
mothers welcomed the handouts and
the suggestions.
GMCCA often provides books and
games designed to teach the children
nutrition concepts and food identifica­tion.
One of the GMCCA mothers,
Terry Desruisseaux, was so excited
about the materials she received that
she decided to write for more. Ms.
Desruisseaux found a number of
government and private sources, and
she got enough materials to rotate the
wall decorations in the children's
playroom every few months.
Providers get
individual help
Every Thursday, the family day care
mothers submit their menus for the
week. GMCCA asks the mothers to
plan menus in advance but submit
them as the week closes. GMCCA's
director of child care homes, Carole
Treen, and Jean Roebuck, her ad­ministrative
assistant, review the
menus, noting any mothers who need
further guidance on nutritional mat­ters.
They make regular monthly visits
to the homes, and can provide help at
that time.
GMCCA recognizes the importance
of nutrition. When the association
accepts a child for family day care, the
staff nutritionist makes an assess­ment
of the child's nutritional needs
and advises the day care mother ac­cordingly.
Then, immediately after placement,
Food and Nutrition
staff members make extra visits and
phone calls to check on how well the
child is adjusting and to discuss any
problems the mother might be having
in getting the child to accept food.
GMCCA also discusses the child's
nutritional needs with his or her
actual parents.
Flexibility
is important
In Carol Hall's home there are no
special nutrition problems. She's now
concentrating on getting Tiffany to eat
more table foods and to rely less on
the bottle.
Independent Kevin insists on
feeding himself, so she must watch
carefully to see that he eats the right
things. Mark still wants a little help
with his spoon.
Ms. Hall recently welcomed the as­sistance
of foster grandparent Marion
Shepherd, who comes every day to
help with the busy mealtime.
According to GMCCA director
Carole Treen, flexibility and in­dividuality
are the keys to successful
family day care. For example,
because Carol Hall likes to take the
children for a morning outing, she
usually prepares their noon meal the
night before it is served. Another
mother might prefer to get up before
her family to begin the meal.
In some homes, fathers lend a
hand. Carol Hall's husband, Bradley,
helps with the big shopping, done
twice a month. The association has
one couple, Donna and Jeff Kent, who
work together to care for 10 children.
"A close relationship with the
caregiver is important in the develop­ment
of the baby and toddler," says
Carole Treen, discussing the reasons
why she feels family day care is an ex­cellent
way to care for small children.
"It is easier for the children's pa­rents,
too," she notes, adding that
children are accepted as early as 3
months.
"And a big advantage is flexibility of
location, which makes it possible to
place children in neighborhoods
where they live," she adds. "It's better
for very young children to be in small
places relating to just a few children."
A source
of support
Carole Treen and her agency
provide much support to Man­chester's
family day care mothers.
The association 's clerical and fiscal
efforts are necessary for regular pay­ments
to homes. But, as the family
day care mothers or fathers are quick
February 1978
to point out, the agency provides
other sources of support, which are
equally significant. Advice, training,
and encouragement are among the
most important.
by Catherine Tim Jensen
Some advice
from the
people at
St. Alban's
In the Coconut Grove area of
Miami, Florida, many mothers have
found a solution to their day care
problems in a family day care
program run by St. Alban's Day Nurs­ery,
Inc. Under this program, children
from 6 weeks to 3 years of age are
cared for in private homes through­out
the area.
St. Alban's child care efforts began
back in 1949, when a local pastor
enlisted the help of the Coconut
Grove Citizen's Committee for Slum
Clearance. With a rent-free building
contributed by a local church, $100
from the citizen's committee, and
donations of supplies from local
merchants, St. Alban's began its first
year as a nonprofit, nondenomina­tional
child care agency.
Family care
began in 1966
St. Alban's confined its child care
efforts to group day care for older
preschool children until 1965, when it
received a grant from the Florida
State Board of Public Welfare to add
an experimental project in family day
care. The following year, St. Alban's
opened its first family day care home.
Since then, the family day care
program has expanded to 25 homes
providing care for 125 infants and tod­dlers.
In addition, they agency has two
substitute homes which are used
when a family day care mother is sick
or on vacation.
Each family day care home is
limited to a maximum of five children,
with no more than three infants (18
months or younger) in any one home.
The program operates year-round,
from 7:00a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, with the child's pa­rents
responsible for transportation to
and from the day care home.
St. Alban's pays family day care
mothers $85 a month for each child
in their care. St. Alban's also pro-vides
them with all their supplies, in­cluding
disposable diapers, toys, cots,
small tables and chairs, and equip­ment
for measuring food portions.
Since October 1976, the family day
care mothers have been reimbursed
for food costs through the Child
Care Food Program.
Homes keep
daily records
The children eat breakfast, lunch
and an afternoon snack at the day
care homes. Each day care mother
has a book in which she keeps her
food service records, including
menus and amounts of food served.
St. Alban's provides the books as
well as special forms for recording the
number of children served at each
meal. After the afternoon snack, the
day care mothers phone these figures
in to the center, where the center's
clerical staff records and totals them
on similar forms.
Most of the family day care mothers
say that the food service aspect of the
program is easy to handle. The ma­jority
of these women have already
raised families of their own, so they're
used to shopping and cooking for a
group. And since their reimbursement
is based upon a national scale of food
costs, rather than the cost of the in­gredients,
they can shop for and
prepare the children's food with their
families'. They do not have to worry
about keeping supplies separate.
Several agencies
provide assistance
All meals served must meet the
nutritional requirements set by FNS.
Although the day care mothers decide
what meals they will serve, they often
use suggested menus provided by the
local child development agency, the
State Department of Education, or by
St. Alban's food service supervisor.
St. Alban's, which has multiple
funding sources in the community,
handles all the financial details of the
program. The agency pays the family
day care mothers' salaries, collects
and distributes food reimbursements
from FNS, and collects child care fees
from the children's parents. Fees are
based on a sliding scale, according to
ability to pay, and many children at­tend
free. An accounting firm handles
St. Alban's bookkeeping, and United
11
Way provides the agency with data
processing services.
Suggestions
from St. Alban's
How do you go about setting up and
administering a family day care
program? James Callier, ad­ministrator
of St. Alban's family day
care program, and Sallie Walker, the
agency's executive director, offered
some suggestions.
First, find out whether or not there
is actually a need for the program in
your community. "We did a survey of
parents at the center and determined
that many needed family day care,"
Ms. Walker said.
Second, be careful whom you
recruit for family day care mothers.
St. Alban's was able to start off by
employing parents of children at the
center. Now the agency doesn't have
to do much recruiting, because
women hear about the program from
their friends and apply on their own.
"We don't require them to have any
exceptional educational back­ground,"
Mr. Callier noted, "just a
love of children." St. Alban's does re­quire,
however, that they all meet
State and local licensing require­ments,
and that they have three
references from the community
Make sure that the agency and
home has the proper contracts and
the proper insurance, to determine
and cover liability in case of an
accident.
St. Alban's has written contracts or
agreements between itself and the
family day care mother, itself and the
parents, and between the family day
care mother and the parents. These
contracts were particularly important
when the agency first began the family
day care program, because at that
time student accident insurance
wasn't available for children under 2%
years old.
Now, if a child is injured in the
home, he or she is covered by this in­surance.
And if a staff member is in­jured
while visiting the family day care
home, he or she is covered under
workmen's compensation. St. Alban's
12
also encourages the family day care
mothers to have home-owners in­surance,
in case a parent is injured in
the day care home.
As Ms. Walker noted, however,
thanks to close supervision, they have
been able to keep accidents to a
minimum.
Have an orientation period for
training new family day care mothers.
St. Alban's uses several methods.
They invite new day care mothers to
observe activities in another family
day care home. They arrange for one
of the agency social workers to visit
the new day care mother and help her
set up her home.
And sometimes they enroll new day
care mothers in a noncredit course at
the University of Miami-"lnteracting
with Infants and Toddlers." In this
case, St. Alban's pays the tuition.
"We have a close working rela­tionship
with the University of Miami,"
Ms. Walker explained, noting that uni­versity
students often observe at the
family day care homes as well as
at the center.
Plan an educational program for
both staff and parents. Mr. Callier has
monthly workshops for the family day
care mothers on topics such as nutri­tion,
arts and crafts, language de­velopment,
music and health. He and
other St. Alban's staff members, in
turn, attend workshops on nutrition
and menu planning sponsored by the
State Department of Education.
St. Alban's also has PTA meetings
for both the day care mothers and the
natural parents. In addition, each year
the parents are involved in a fund­raising
activity and a family picnic.
Involve people who care. The peo­ple
at St. Alban's are proud of their
program and of the dedication of the
staff. "Most of the staff members were
making little money in the beginning,
but they stayed for the love of the
children," said Sallie Walker. "Loyalty
and dedication-they make a good
program." D
By Linda Klein
Getting the progr~m to the people ··
it's designed to serve. That's the goal
of what's often called "outreach," and
good outreach is essential for a pro­gram
to be effective.
In the Child ·Care Food Program,
State program coordinators aod
"sponsoring agencie,·are most direct~ ly ihvolved in outr,each efforts. It's
patt of the s•~te coordina.or;s job to
develop ways to inform potential par- .
ticipants about the program and to
explain how it works. Sponsoring
organizations perform a similar func­tion
in enlisting and working with day
care homes and centers.
These articles are about two out­reach
programs..,..-one carried out by
a State coordinator, the other by a
family day care sponsor. They're full
of ideas on how to "get out the word"
to potential participants, and tben to
encourage the continuing participa­tion
of those who have already joined.
Michigan's
coordinator
uses a variety
of approaches
In Michigan, Child Care Food
Program coordinator Zoe Slagle has
found success with a variety of out­reach
efforts. She says her most
valuable asset is her close working
relationship with the State's 33 licens­ing
consultants, who discuss the
program with the staffs of the centers
they visit.
Also important are the contacts Ms.
Slagle makes by working with the
media, meeting with advocacy
grol)ps, and speaking at workshops.
Last year sbe attended 27 workshops
to explain the program. Ten were
workshops she organized herself.
· Whatever approach she's using, the
State coordinator has available a
number of good informational ma­terials.
She's put together a number
or opublicatio[!s, and she gets addi­itional
mate'rials from the Food and
Nutrition Service, the American
Working with
licenfiing consultants
Zoe Slagle says the key to her out­reach
program is the help she gets
from the Department of Social Ser­vice's
33 licensing consultan'ts, who
make periodic visits to all the child
care centers in the State.
When the consultants are kept well­informed
through meetings an€!
speciat mailings, they can play a
valuable role in explaining the
program to nonparticipating centers.
They can also discuss the program
with participating centers and let the
State coordinator know of any
problems the centers are having.
During their visits to new centers or
to established centers which have not
yet joined, the licensing consultants
. explain the Child Care Food Program
and teiJ the directors how to contact
Zoe Slagle.
Speaking at
workshops
Speaking at workshops is second
on Z e Slagle's outreach list. Last
year she attended 27 workshops
t.h roughout the State. ~
..
The works into two
categories: tho~e Ms. Slagle initiates
herself, and those she's asked to ad­dress.
Some workshops are large,
with as many as 2"'600 paFtieipants.
Others attract s roups.
Because o t . ours of Qperation ·
of ~hJid care c n s, usu_all~ 6 a.m.
6 R,m .• Msf SI i as. it best te
the same {l'laterra wo or three times
day~ That way more child care center
employees can attend and benefit.
Usually, the State coordinator address­es
groups of up to 150 people in ses­sions
that run about 2 hours each.
In addition to child care center ·
employees, wqrkshop participants
often include representatives from
professional cnild care grouf:)s,
county health tlepartments, agencies
which sponsor family ana group day
care homes, anct others. Some are
from centers and homes participating
in the CCFP. Others are from centers
and homes which may be eligible.
Ms. Slagle always makes sure she
allows plenty of time for people to ap­proach
her and ask questions. Many
people seem to feel more comfortable
calling her for more information after
they have actually met her. "We've
sent publications to everyone under
the sun," the State coordinator says,
"but we get the !:>est results after we
meet people at a workshop."
Visuals
are helpful
She uses posters and .overhead
projection transparencies and other
visuals-which she usually makes
herself-to snow exactly what she's
talking about She also uses movtes
and filmstrips, sometimes borrowed
from such sources as the National
Agriculture Library at Beltsville,
Maryland, the Michigan State Library,
or the Michigan School Food Service
Association.
Ms. Slagle's office has purchased a
number of film!i to i:jSe at workshor;>s
and lend 10 . iot.erested iA
holding thei WOJkst:iops.
Centers; "fa · ate SPOQSOrS1 t
and high schools are among those
who have borrowed films.
How material
is selected
When possible, Ms. Slagle aims
her material at child care center
employees who work at specific tasks.
For instance, when she's addressing a
group of cooks she tells them why it's
smart to "cost out" recipes and exact­ly
how to do it. She tells them how to
cook and store certain foods, and in­structs
them in sanitation.
Ms. Slagle also explains the
program's meal pattern and offers
menu and recipe ideas. She feels it's
important that teachers as well as
other center employees know the
meal requirements.
Since the staffs often eat with the
children, they can help make sure the
children get fully nutritious meals.
"Most centers serve family style," Ms.
Slagle explains, "and this is allowed if
they encourage the children to eat
each meal component."
When working with child care
center directors, the State coordinator
provides administrative information,
such as changes in requirements. But
she also covers such subjects as
menu planning.
For people already operating the
Child Care Food Program , the
workshops offer opportunities to
improve their skills. For people in­terested
in learning about the pro­gram,
the workshops offer opportu­nities
to see how it works, and to talk
to others who are already involved.
Meetings
and media
Another important part of Zoe
Slagle's outreach program is working
with advocacy groups, professional
organizations, media people, and
others who can help her spread the
word about the program.
She meets regularly with advocacy
groups to make sure they understand
14
Zoe Slagle (left) meets
with the director of
a Michigan center.
the program, so they can inform
others effectively. While many ad­vocacy
groups are small, they are ac­tive.
In fact, many call Ms. Slagle­sometimes
to offer names of orga­nizations
to contact, sometimes to see
if she's doing her job.
The State coordinator talks with
newspaper, radio and television peo­ple
to encourage them to publicize the
program. She also talks with people in
other government agencies, whose in­formation
staffs can often provide
valuable assistance.
Ms. Slagle says she gets a lot of
help from food service specialist Jean
McFadden from the Michigan
Cooperative Extension Service. Ms.
McFadden frequently helps get CCFP
information published in Extension
Service publications.
Reaching out
with publications
Zoe Slagle's own publications are
of two types. One type explains the
CCFP and the other tells how to run it.
To attract new participants, Ms. Slagle
mails to every licensed child care
center and to each day care home in
Michigan.
Her first mailing is a small flyer giv­ing
the CCFP basics. She follows it up
with more specific information,
describing reimbursement rates,
where to apply, what type of records
participating centers must keep, and
other pertinent information.
To those who respond, Ms. Slagle
sends a large application packet,
which includes sample copies of the
necessary records and a detailed
planning guide. She also sends a
sample press release, which par­ticipating
centers must distribute to
their local newspapers, and an appli­cation.
Her last mailing brought in 50
new applicants. After a center is ap­proved,
she keeps the director up­dated
with vital program information.
Distributes
many materials
Ms. Slagle prepares much of this
material herself, working closely with
the printer to see that flyers and
publications are simple, well designed
and neatly printed. She gets quan­tities
of other publications from
USDA, the Florida Department of
Citrus, and other government and
private sources.
The State coordinator turns out a
monthly publication called "Stone
Soup," which takes its title from a
children's story. "Stone Soup" goes to
1 ,000 child centers, day care home
sponsors, educators, groups and
organizations which are involved in
child care or CCFP outreach. All
program sponsors get it automatical­ly.
Everyone else must ask to be put
on the mailing list.
"Stone Soup" gives information
about how to run the Child Care Food
Program. It relays news about sanita­tion,
requirements, and changes in
reimbursement rates. It also offers
recipes, advice and other practical in­formation.
"The materials have to be
easily understandable, but still tell
child care employees everything they
need to know to run an effective pro­gram,"
says Ms. Slagle.
Visits centers
and sponsors
In addition to keeping in touch with
Food and Nutrition
participating centers through publica­tions,
Ms. Slagle also phones them
and makes personal visits. Usually the
phone calls are to discuss a particular
problem, like a claim, but they give
her the chance to discuss the center's
operation generally.
She makes personal visits on an
appointment basis. Last year, the
State coordinator visited 63 of the 390
participating centers. She also visited
several family day care sponsors to
see how they were reviewing the
homes for which they were responsi­ble.
She visits individual homes only
for spot checks.
Ms. Slagle arrives for a typical
review 1 hour before mealtime, so she
can have plenty of time to talk with the
center director. She then goes over
the center's records for free and
reduced-price meals, examines the
kitchen and storeroom, and checks
the quality of food served. She spends
considerable time with the cooks, dis­cussing
menus and answering any
questions they have.
She also reviews equipment and
tells directors when she feels it should
be improved. She often helps centers
apply for USDA equipment funds to
make these improvements.
At the end of the review, Ms. Slagle
goes over everything with the
director-good points, bad points­and
offers suggestions for improve­ment.
She follows up her visit with a
letter citing everything discussed at
the exit conference.
She has found that this close atten­tion
gives the CCFP good "word of
mouth" advertising that helps her get
new centers into the program.
In Michigan, since last year, par­ticipation
in the Child Care Food
Program has grown from 272 centers
serving 8,741 children to 390 centers
serving 13,020 children. The number
of homes participating has grown
from 552 serving 1,084 children to
1,200 homes serving 3,500 children.
February 1978
But there are still more centers and
homes eligible for the program, and
Zoe Slagle says she's determined to
reach them.
by Russell T. Forte
A city agency
becomes a
family day
care sponsor
In Washington, the Seattle Depart­ment
of Human Resources serves as
the sponsoring agency for nearly 200
family day care homes participating in
the Child Care Food Program.
This is one of the few instances
where a city agency has become a
Child Care Food Program sponsor for
day care homes, and the development
of the Seattle program may be of
special interest to city governments
looking for ways to improve child care
services.
But Seattle's experience also offers
valuable lessons for much smaller
public and private agencies interested
in sponsoring the program. For no
matter what its size-whether it is an
individual day care center, a com­munity
service organization, a county
social service department or another
agency-every sponsor must face
some basic organizational tasks in
recruiting and working with family
day care homes.
Seattle program
began in 1976
The people at the Seattle Depart­ment
of Human Resources decided to
apply to sponsor the program in 1976,
when a dynamic young woman named
Randi Reinholt convinced them of a
very important need.
"When the program first became
available," Ms. Reinholt explained,
"there was a tremendous fear of
government red tape surrounding the
program here. The private nonprofit
organizations eligible to act as spon­sors
didn't get involved, feeling the
paperwork would be too much of
a burden.
"So here was this program with
great potential for child day care, and
no one using it," she said. "I studied it
and concluded that it couldn't pos­sibly
be that difficult to administer."
Ms. Reinholt approached Seattle's
Department of Human Resources
with her findings to see whether they
would be interested in becoming the
sponsor for the Seattle area. The peo­ple
at the department were familiar
with her work. She originally served
on their staff as one of the first coor­dinators
of the summer food service
program, and had returned each year
to coordinate the program.
The Department welcomed her as a
year-round staff member, and gave
her the go ahead to file an applicaton
with FNS. When approval came,
Randi Reinholt wasted no time in
enlisting homes. Within 7 months, she
had signed up 122 providers, serving
approximately 800 children.
Mailings were
the first step
Explaining the strategy responsible
for this rapid growth, Ms. Reinholt
said she and her co-workers began by
identifying the homes in areas of
greatest need.
"We wanted to reach first those
people who would benefit most," she
said, "so our first push was toward
those Seattle communities that were
most economically deprived."
To accomplish this, Ms. Reinholt
obtained from the State licensing
agency a list of names and addresses
of all licensed day care providers in
the Seattle area. "Because the
program is for only licensed day care
providers," she said, "it was really
quite simple to find out just who they
were and to get into direct contact
with them."
16
Using the list and her own
demographic understanding of the
Seattle area, Ms. Reinholt identified
the providers she wanted to reach
first. She sent each a Sf)ecial mailer
which described the program and
explained how providers and chil­dren
could benefit.
The mailer outlined, step by step,
the procedures a day care provider
must follow in order to join.
Other efforts
also helpful
To reinforce the direct mailings,
Randi Reinholt also spoke to various
groups throughout the community, in­cluding
classes at local colleges. She
especially wanted to reach parents.
"You really have to cover all the
bases to get a new program off the
ground," she explained. "Direct com­munications
with the providers was a
good beginning, but to reinforce that, I
spoke to many parents whose chil­dren
are in family day care situations.
"If these parents were to approach
their providers with questions about
the program," she said, "the providers
might be more apt to seek informa­tion,
and possibly join."
Ms. Reinholt also prepared a press
release on the program and offered it
to the local media. "Quite frankly, I
didn't expect to receive any coverage
on it. But, to my surprise, it received
great reception by the Seattle media.
Apparently they need our information,
just as much as we need them to dis­seminate
it."
Participating day care homes were
another good source of publicity. Ms.
Reinholt believes that much of the
program's growth is due to the word
of mouth efforts of the providers.
"The Child Care Food Program is a
good progam," she said, "and a lot of
people here have gotten behind it,
spreading the word to the right
people."
In explaining the program to day
care providers, the Seattle coor­dinators
were careful to select their
words tactfully. "You have to be
careful not to insult the providers'
previous efforts at food service," Ms.
Reinholt said.
"If you say, 'Now you can serve bet­ter
food,' providers may feel that you
are slighting their present service,"
she continued. "We prefer to present
the program as an edge against in­creasing
food prices, and then to lead
into a discussion of the nutritional
aspects of the program by explaining
the USDA meal requirements."
Part of
a process
Getting a new program off the
ground is a big job, and recruiting
Seattle coordinator
Randi Reinholt visits
a day care home.
Food and Nutrition
new providers is an ongoing process.
But Department staff members also
recognize the importance of efforts to
ensure the continuing participation of
providers which have already joined.
"We see it as our responsibility as a
sponsoring agency to make it as easy
as possible for providers to fulfill the
program requirements," Randi
Reinholt said. "If we continue to do
that, both the providers and USDA will
be satisfied, and things will run
smoothly. So far, so good."
According to the program coor­dinator,
the basic requirement for a
smooth running program is good
communication between sponsor and
provider. Ms. Reinholt's office is
always open to providers who have
questions, and she and her co­workers
are continually looking for
ways to clarify difficult areas. For ex­ample,
when they found that pro­viders
were most concerned about
meal requirements and recordkeep­ing,
they devised a special set of
handout sheets for reference.
Staff work
pays off
The extra energy Randi Reinholt
and the Seattle Department of Human
Resources devote to the providers
pays off in the form of valuable n utri­tion
to the children in Seattle's family
day care program.
"Whenever I feel I can't possibly
fill out one more form or speak to
another group," the program coor­dinator
said, "all I have to do is think
about the people in the homes and
what they are doing for the com­munity.
I realize that it is important
that someone connect this program
with people, and keep it running." D
by Rick Rice
February 1978
Working on
Recordkeeping
One of the most difficult challenges
facing a center or sponsoring orga­nization
is that of keeping accurate
records on participation and expen­ditures.
When they join the Child
Care Food Program, many centers
and sponsors are already receiving
funding from more than one source.
And multiple funding complicates
recordkeeping and accountability.
What can State coordinators do to
help make this task easier? Mary­land's
State coordinators have found
that by . working closely with centers
and sponsors, they can help them an­ticipate
and solve many of their prob­lems.
They do this in a number of dif­ferent
ways.
How Maryland
coordinators
work with
participants
In Maryland, there are over 200 day
care centers participating in the Child
Care Food Program, under the spon­sorship
of 105 organizations. More
than half of the centers receive
funding from more than one source,
and multiple funding complicates
recordkeeping and accountability.
Knowing the difficulties centers and
sponsors face, Child Care Food
Program specialist Sharolyn High
makes special efforts to keep "red
tape" and administrative headaches
to a minimum.
Ms. High works in the State Depart­ment
of Education's Office of Food
Service Programs. During the 8 years
she's been a program supervisor,
Sharolyn High says she's learned the
value of meeting personally with par­ticipants
to explain recordkeeping
and reporting.
Meets with
applicants
Ms. High sets up an interview with
every applicant. During the interview,
she goes through all the application
materials and explains reimburse­ment
policies and procedures. She
carefully reviews the State's training
guide, which she gives to each spon­soring
organization.
The guide explains the basics of
daily recordkeeping and monthly
reporting and provides instructions
on how to complete the claim for
reimbursement. The manual ad­dresses
such basics as:
• Files: What kind of information to
maintain and for how long.
• Participation: How to collect par­ticipation
data, and what are the dif­ferences
between participation and
attendance.
• Operating costs: What costs are
allowable for reimbursement.
Sharolyn High (left)
offers some advice
on recordkeeping.
17
• Expenditures: How to classify
program expenditures.
Many centers
have experience
As Sharolyn High explains, by the
time center personnel come to her of­fice
to apply for the Child Care Food
Program, most have already
demonstrated some basic ability in
record keeping.
Even if the centers are brand new,
the staffs have had the experier)ce of
collecting the information needed to
apply for a license to operate. To meet
Maryland's licensing requirements,
every center must provide information
on enrollment, attendance, staffing,
and weekly menu plans.
Many applications are from centers
which have been operating for some
time. Their directors, therefore, have
extensive experience in working with­in
a budget, and most are reporting to
at least one public or private agency.
However, even if the staffs have had
previous experience with budgets
and recordkeeping, the Maryland
program specialist finds it useful to
carefully review with them what the
Child Care Food Program will require.
Completing a
sample claim
To familiarize potential sponsors
with the claim process, Ms. High es­timates
what program costs and par­ticipation
might be. Using those es­timates,
she develops a sample claim,
which also gives the sponsor some
idea of what to expect in terms of
reimbursement.
The sponsor is often able to com­plete
the application forms and in­struction
materials in the course of the
meeting with Ms. High. Many can
begin immediately.
"Once they're approved to op­erate,"
Ms. High says, "we suggest
that, as they get ready to do the first
month's claim, they either come in
again or give us a call on the phone.
Then we'll go through the reporting
procedures again, step by step."
The program specialist sees this
review procedure as an effective
preventive measure. "If you work with
a sponsor on that first month's claim,
and you get that one straight,
problems are minimal after that," she
explains. "But if you really foul up the
first reporting, it's going to take a long
time to straighten it out."
Sponsors must provide the State
agency with monthly totals of par-
18
there)
~
ticipation data by meal type. The
sponsor must maintain daily data
sheets supporting these monthly
totals, even though they do not submit
daily data to the State. In addition,
sponsors must report all income
specifically relating to food service.
Sponsors get
worksheets
The State staff recognizes that
recordkeeping is a big job. And to as­sist
centers, they provide sample
worksheets on which to record daily
participation and expenditures. Most
of Maryland's Child Care Food Pro­gram
sponsors say they use these
worksheets because it makes filling
out the monthly claim form easier.
The monthly worksheet includes
spaces for daily tallies of breakfasts,
lunches, suppers, and morning and
afternoon snacks.
"It's a form that can be used in the
..
kitchen," Sharolyn High explains.
"The cook can actually record, as she
serves the meals, the number which
she's prepared and is serving."
The form also provides for a daily
tally of expenditures as they are incur­red,
by vendor and by category-food
service or administrative.
The worksheets generate the data
for the monthly claim for reimburse­ment.
"If sponsors have maintained
their worksheets as we've suggested,"
Ms. High says, "they need only take
the totals from the sheets to complete
the claim for reimbursement."
Most of Maryland's child care
Food and Nutrition
I
programs do not use full cost ac­counting,
and the State does not re­quire
centers to show the full cost of
producing meals.
However, center staffs must docu­ment
any costs claimed for reim­bursement
under the Child Care Food
Program.
Sharolyn High has found that in
most centers, recordkeepers need
only document what she calls direct
costs-actual food purchases and
labor expenses-in order to claim
maximum reimbursement. It's
February 1978
generally not necessary to document
overhead and indirect costs.
Centers file
monthly claim
Maryland's Child Care Food
Program coordinators ask centers to
report food program participation by
the fifth of each month. The State staff
provides pre-addressed postcards for
reporting the necessary information.
Centers fill out this "quick report"
postcard on the last day of the month
and drop it in the mail.
Child care centers and sponsoring
agencies submit their actual claims
for reimbursement by the 15th of the
month. The claim must be signed and
certified by an authorized represen­tative
of the sponsor, and it must con­tain
complete participation as well as
expenditure data.
When Sharolyn High gets the
claims, she sends them on to the peo­ple
in the State Department of Educa­tion's
finance office, who verify the in­formation.
When the claim has been
approved, the Department issues a
letter of transmittal to the Comptrol­ler's
office in Annapolis, and this
authorizes payment.
are
Addressing
key problems
The State coordinators address
recordkeeping problems in their in­dividuaL
and group training efforts.
Staff members feel sponsor train­ing
is very important, and they place
special emphasis on identifying needs
and targeting the training so that it
reaches the right audience.
In addition to the individual help
she gives centers, Sharolyn High
holds recordkeeping workshops
every year or two to keep all the spon­sors
up to date. "The biggest problem
in recordkeeping-or in any part of
program management-is the high
turnover of personnel in center or
sponsoring agencies," she explains.
"Just about the time you have a
good system working and people who
know what's going on with account­ability,
there's a personnel change."
The training sessions focus on
problem areas, such as apportioning
costs. For instance, a sponsor may
buy all of its paper supplies from one
vendor but may not use all the sup­plies
in connection with food service.
Paper plates might be used in an art
project. What portion of the paper
supplies may be charged to food ser­vice?
What may not be charged?
Apportioning labor costs is another
area in which many sponsors need
assistance. How much time does the
bookkeeper spend on food service
accounting, and how much on other
activities? What portion of the book­keeping's
salary is a food service
labor expense?
The workshops enable Sharolyn
High to answer questions like these.
They also provide opportunities to en­courage
the sponsors to call on the
State agency whenver they need help.
Feel free
to call
"I think our sponsors know we're
being fair with them, and that we'll
provide as much help as we possibly
can," Ms. High says. "Most of them
feel very free to call us." D
by Carol M. D'Arezzo
19
Providing
Training
Several articles in other sections
have shown how State and local
program administrators train center
staffs and day care providers. Many
offer guidance and technical assis­tance
through publications, work­shops,
meetings, and personal visits.
This section focuses on tailoring
training to the particular needs of
family day care providers. The first
article describes an ongoing series of
training programs organized by peo­ple
in the Rhode Island State govern­ment.
The second is about a project
carried out by graduate students from
the University of Connecticut.
Rhode Island
offers weekly
meetings and
other programs
When the Child Care Food Program
opened its doors to family and group
day care homes, Rhode Island had
already laid the groundwork for pro­viding
the training new participants
would need.
For 10 years, the Nation's smallest
State has operated a family day care
system through the State Department
of Social Rehabilitation. There are 450
homes in the system.
As in most States, in Rhode Island
the State Department of Education
administers the child nutrition pro­grams-
school lunch and breakfast,
summer food service, and child care
feeding. In most States, however, day
care centers and social agencies are
the primary channels of funds and
nutrition education to family day
care mothers. These agencies are
"sponsors" handling the administra­tive
details required to reimburse
mothers and assure that the meals
served meet nutritional standards.
The operation of a statewide family
day care program by a government
agency is unique to Rhode Island.
And the extent to which the State
provides training to family day care
mothers or fathers is also unique.
While carried out by a State
government, the ideas could be useful
20
to child care administrators in local
and Federal agencies as well.
Some special
considerations
When people think of setting up a
training program, they usually have
several immediate concerns: deter­mining
the purpose and focus of the
program; getting the right people to
teach the sessions; planning ap­prgpriate
material geared to the
needs of the trainees; finding a good,
convenient location; and enlisting par­ticipants
and making sure they are in­formed
of all the necessary details.
In most cases, planners do not have
to worry about how participants will
actually get to the sessions or who will
take care of their children while they
are there. But in planning training for
Day care mothers and
"their" children arrive
for a training session
in Woonsocket, R.I.
family day care mothers, these are
very significant concerns. From its
beginning, the Rhode Island program
has addressed these concerns.
Began as a
television project
The training program grew out of a
series of 10 television shows on child
development shown throughout the
State during the fall of 1974. The
series was developed as a public ser­vice
by WPRI-TV in cooperation with
the Department of Social Rehabilita­tion's
Office of Day Care Services,
headed by Marion Goldsmith.
Using funds from a grant from the
State Division of Vocational Educa­tion,
Ms. Goldsmith's staff arranged
for family day care mothers to meet
in groups to watch the programs to-
Food and Nutrition
gether. The staff provided transporta­tion
to several different locations.
They also provided babysitters.
After viewing each show, the
mothers discussed the content and
how it applied to their work. One of
the 30-minute shows focuses on nutri­tion,
stressing food as a learning tool.
Because of the success of the
weekly meetings, the State staff
decided to look for ways to continue
to bring the day care mothers
together for training. They arranged
for 12 family day care mothers to
study at Rhode Island College and set
up training programs as part of their
field course work.
Arrangement
worked out
According to Marion Goldsmith, the
arrangement worked out well for
everyone involved. The trainees have
since become program consultants
and have continued to provide ses­sions
for interested day care mothers.
The sessions receive enthusiastic
support from the mothers, whose par­ticipation
is strictly voluntary. As in the
television project, transportation is
provided, and there are always ac­tivities
for the children. Most of the
sessions are in community action
agencies, churches, or libraries. The
libraries are especially convenient
locations, since the librarians fre­quently
volunteer to entertain the
children with a story hour.
Preparing for
the food program
When the Child Care Food Program
came along, the weekly meetings
were readily available as a way to
reach the mothers. To prepare them
for the food program, the State had to
do two important things: find a way to
include professional nutrition training;
and to set up a mechanism for review­ing
meal plans and reimbursement.
For starters, the State Department
of Social Rehabilitation assigned two
professionals to develop a series of
nutrition workshops that would be
mandatory for all family day care
February 1978
mothers. Betsy Perra, an Extension
Service home economist who works
with the Department, and Marion
Sperling, the Department's own home
economist, together developed and
gave a series of workshops at the five
resource centers where the mothers
were meeting regularly for training.
Series of
three sessions
Each workshop had three sessions,
given on different mornings. The first
session covered basic food groups
and nutrients. The second reinforced
these concepts, adding health and
sanitation. And the third dealt with
meal patterns and menu planning.
"We built on the nutrition the
mothers already knew." Betsy Perra
explained. "Many were aware that
milk is a source of calcium, and
orange juice is a source of vitamin C.
But they didn't always know other
sources of these important nutrients.
"When we got into something they
didn't understand, you could feel
them paying more attention," Marion
Sperling added. For instance, she
said, the mothers were confused
about the difference between
starches and whole grains.
Including make-up sessions, the
home economists gave a total of 13
workshops with 39 sessions in all. The
workshops began in the spring of
1977 and, after a break for the sum­mer,
continued into the fall.
The State staff plans to hold the
nutrition workshops periodically for
family day care mothers who join the
Child Care Food Program. To receive
reimbursement, new participants will
have to complete all three sessions.
Reimbursement
and monitoring
To handle the reimbursement and
monitoring aspects of the program,
the State set up a new unit. The unit
includes two social workers, Bill Ciresi
and Karin Rattey, and two neigh­borhood
aides, Renee Warren and
Dianne Pollard.
All four make individual home visits
to work personally with mothers in ex­plaining
how to fill out the reimburse­ment
forms. They assist mothers who
have literacy problems and arrange
for Spanish and Portuguese trans­lators
if necessary. They also offer
special training sessions on food ser­vice
problems.
"The mothers often have trouble
with portions," explained Karin Rat­tey,
"and we hope to have a workshop
on that subject alone. We want the
mothers to be able to visualize por­tions,
and perhaps it would help them
to set up various snacks and lunches
themselves."
Through their visits and special
training sessions, Karin Rattey and
her co-workers provide continuing
training for family day care mothers.
Weekly meetings
another source
The State staff also encourages
family day care mothers to take ad­vantage
of the continuing training
available through the weekly meetings
conducted by program consultants.
The meetings focus on various areas
of interest. Food and nutrition are two
of the frequent topics.
For example, "Food and Children"
was the discussion topic at one train­ing
session held in Woonsocket
last summer.
The session was conducted by
three consultants-Doris Berard,
Simone Lambert, and Bea Vaillan­court.
As the training got started in
one part of the meeting room, the
children began their activities on the
other side, separated by a room
divider. Three volunteers supervised
and entertained the children.
Participants
share ideas
Discussion leader Doris Berard
began by asking all the participants to
explain what the word "food" meant to
them. Then she asked them to share
their ideas on the learning exper­iences
children can gain while work­ing
or playing with food.
One participant, Jessie Lindsay, ex-
21
plained that one 8-year-old girl in her
care enjoys reading recipes as she
(Ms. Lindsay) prepares the food.
"Children can. learn about texture
and color," offered Simone Lambert,
adding that one activity can teach
many things.
Measuring, counting, telling time,
safety and table manners-the group
listed many things a child can learn in
the kitchen.
When talk turned to food prepara­tion,
participant Cleora Coleman told
how she organizes meals in advance.
Karen Richardson said that she had
started freezing yogurt with fruit
for the next day's dessert.
Ideas are
summarized
All these ideas and recipes would
later be included in the weekly re­sume
the leaders regularly prepare
and distribute. From the previous
meeting, the Woonsocket participants
got a reference list of vitamins.
The training coordinators sug­gested
that family day care mothers
share this information with parents,
along with reports on what the chil­dren
are eating.
"It's important to tell parents what
the child eats and how well he or she
accepts food," Bea Vaillancourt told
the group, explaining that this is an
important part of the day care pro­vider's
role.
However, she added a word of cau­tion
in working with parents. "You may
know and be proud that the meal you
serve may be the child's main meal
of the day," she said. "A working
mother may simply be too tired to
cook much at night. But be careful­remember,
it's our job to reassure
parents, not put them down."
by Catherine Tim Jensen
Connecticut
students
hold series
of workshops
Twenty-eight family day care
mothers took part in a nutrition train-
22
ing project developed last year by the
University of Connecticut. The project
involved a series of workshops orga­nized
and led by graduate students.
The workshops were held at three
Hartford child care centers, and they
covered such topics as food prepara­tion,
menu planning, assessing food
advertising and labeling, and basic
nutrition.
While the content and basic edu­cational
techniques were traditional,
the methods used were not. The
workshops were flexible, lively and
fun, and informal conversation was
the basic means of communication.
Activities included food preparation
· and tasting parties for the children,
who accompanied the mothers to
the centers.
The nutrition training project was
developed by the University of Con­necticut's
Department of Nutrition
Sciences as a grant under Section 1 0
of the Child Nutrition Act. The project
was funded through the Connecticut
Department of Education, which ad­ministers
the Child Care Food Pro­gram
in cooperation with FNS and
local agencies.
Three day care centers in Hartford
were projects sites, and a total of five
graduate students, 28 mothers and 60
children were involved.
Lunch menu
analyzed
At one of several workshops at the
Women's League Day Care Center,
four day care mothers analyzed their
lunch menus from the previous day.
They had written the menus on paper
plates divided into four parts. The
quarters represented the four familiar
food groups-fruits and vegetables,
meat, milk, and bread.
Having completed three work­shops,
participants Leona Walker,
Mavis Norman, and Mary Allen were
familiar with more sophisticated
terms. The mothers had learned
about vitamins A, 8, and C, and about
minerals, protein, calcium and iron.
They had talked about why each is im­portant
to a growing child. Still, the
plate was a handy visual guide
for review.
The menus reviewed were as varied
as the mothers and the children in
their care, but they all met the basic
nutritional requirements. The meat­protein
portions had included lunch
meat, tuna, homemade spaghetti with
meat sauce, and chicken soup. Each
food group was open for comment.
"My children don't like peas and
carrots mixed," said Annie Webb.
"Mine like vegetables if they can eat
them with their fingers," observed
Mary Allen.
When the conversation turned to
meat and meat alternatives, graduate
student Arlene Edmonds reminded
the mothers that peanut butter and
cheese count as protein foods.
Ms. Edmond's comment showed
the importance of repetition and rein­forcement,
which she says is par­ticularly
useful in changing food
habits and preferences. Ms. Edmond
and Sue Rump, the other student
assigned to the Women's League
Center, used this method frequently in
their discussions with the mothers
and in their activities with the children.
Preparing and
testing food
Since every workshop involved
preparing and tasting food, the
mothers usually didn't have to wait
long to actually see how their children
would react to the food or ideas they
had been discussing.
For example, one day when vege­tables
were the topic, the mothers
prepared special snacks for the chil­dren
to taste. Raw cauliflower, cherry
tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers,
celery and carrots got a new look for
the occasion. The mothers decorated
the vegetables with cream cheese and
Food and Nutrition
A Hartford day care
mother takes part in a
discussion on how to
shop carefully.
peanut butter, using a pastry bag.
They tried crinkle cutters to make
them more interesting.
"How do I cut it?" said Mary Allen,
contemplating cauliflower as a poten­tial
raw snack for the first time.
"I would never serve these things
raw," said Mavis Norman.
To the surprise of some of the
mothers, the raw vegetables were a
success with the children. By far the
most popular were the carrots.
A variety
of exercises
The workshops included a variety
of exercises, which generated some
interesting conversations.
Sometimes the mothers took turns
role-playing. One day, for instance,
one of the mothers pretended to be a
cereal company president talking with
her board of directors about how to
"sell" cereal. The result? She and the
board decided to appeal to children
by adding more sugar, new shapes,
and colors. In discussing the exercise
later, the mothers said it made them
aware of the need to be alert to
merchandising techniques. They
agreed that it's important to judge a
cereal on the basis of nutritional value
February 1978
and to examine labels closely for lists
of ingredients.
In all, there were seven workshops
held at the Women's League Center
on Wednesday mornings from 10 to
11:30 a.m. On alternate Wednesdays,
Arlene Edmonds and Sue Rump
visited the mothers in their homes.
During home visits. the mothers
talked about their individual con­cerns.
One day, for instance, Ms.
Rump talked with Mary Allen about
preparing breakfast for the one child
in her care who arrives at 6 a.m.
Materials
provided
As students gaining field exper­ience,
the two workshop leaders were
also involved in the development of
educational materials. They helped
plan and prepare a variety of ma­terials
for the mothers, including
notebooks, charts for recording the
meals, shopping guides, and menus
for meals which require no cooking.
All of the materials were developed
with their guidance by the profes-sional
graphics staff available to the
Connecticut Extension Service.
Ms. Edmonds and Ms. Rump
also developed slide presentations,
sometimes using the mothers and
children themselves to illustrate a
point. They found nutrition posters
appropriate for each workshop and
hung them in the small staff kitchen
they used as a meeting place in the
day care center.
Grant funds paid for the food used
during demonstration, the graphics,
notebooks, and small equipment for
the mothers, and for the baby-sitters
who cared for the children during the
sessions.
Follow-up
activities
Since the project's conclusion,
monthly group sessions at the day
care center continue to give mothers
opportunities to talk over nutrition and
reimbursement matters. However,
many workshop participants said they
were sad to see the weekly sessions
end. D
by Catherine Tim Jensen
23
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