Sponsors are needed to provide meals to children

Sponsors are sought to to provide meals to children living in economically disadvantaged areas in Wisconsin, through the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) Summer Food Service Program (SFSP).

Last year, because of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the DPI applied for, and received, waivers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), to allow the SFSP and its sponsors, to provide nutritious meals to children year round, and not only during the summer months.

Those waivers were extended by the USDA to be effective through June 30. From March through December 2020, 248 local sponsors served nearly 40 million free meals at 1,650 locations across Wisconsin, to children ages 18 and under.

“I applaud the sponsors of the SFSP, for stepping up and partnering with their local communities, to deliver nutritious meals to children during this incredible time of need,” said state superintendent Carolyn Stanford Taylor. “The SFSP and sponsors continue to fill an essential gap, and I am hopeful the momentum and team effort continue in communities across our state, and access to these meals is expanded during this pandemic.”

Sponsors can be public or private, non-profit school food authorities or non-profit summer camps, units of local, municipal, county, tribal or state governments, private nonprofi t organizations (special considerations and restrictions apply), and public or private colleges, or universities currently participating in the National Youth Sports and Precollege Programs.

Programs with summer school sessions are among the most-common program sponsors. Through partnerships and creative collaboration, school districts work with area organizations, to extend the SFSP beyond summer school programs to serve more children in need.

If interested in applying to be a sponsor, individuals must contact the program coordinator and complete the SFSP application no later than May 7.

For more information on the SFSP, visit dpi.wi.gov.