Tennessee School Nutrition Readiness Programs
GrantID: 77074
Grant Funding Amount Low: $15,000
Deadline: Ongoing
Grant Amount High: $250,000
Summary
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Grant Overview
Tennessee operates 95 county school districts where 58 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Readiness_first applications must document current meal-program participation rates and the share of produce currently sourced within 150 miles of each district. The state's topography creates distinct sourcing challenges: Appalachian districts face shorter growing seasons while Delta districts contend with higher humidity affecting storage.
Districts in the 23 counties classified as rural by the Tennessee Department of Education report 22 percent lower participation in fresh-fruit-and-vegetable programs than urban counterparts, attributed to delivery logistics rather than student preference. Summer meal sites in these counties operate at 41 percent average attendance compared with 67 percent in Shelby and Davidson counties.
Eligible applicants must secure letters of commitment from local farm cooperatives and from the county school nutrition director specifying delivery schedules aligned with the academic calendar. Proposals must also address cold-chain capacity, citing either existing district refrigeration or budgeted equipment purchases meeting USDA specifications.
Tennessee differs from Kentucky and Arkansas because its state education agency requires all school nutrition procurement to route through approved vendors listed on the Central Procurement Office website, necessitating that farm-to-school contracts include vendor registration confirmation. Budgets must separate costs for produce purchases from costs for nutrition education materials, with the latter capped at 12 percent of the total request.
Performance measures track the change in average daily participation in the National School Lunch Program between baseline and the end of the first full academic year of implementation. Districts must also report the percentage of produce items meeting the state's definition of Tennessee-grown, verified through farm invoices rather than processor affidavits.
Applications from multi-district consortia receive additional points only when the lead applicant provides a single fiscal agent agreement and a shared delivery calendar that accounts for differing school calendars across the Cumberland Plateau and West Tennessee regions.
Eligible Regions
Interests
Eligible Requirements
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