The Child Nutrition Department plays a critical role in establishing a healthy school nutrition environment for the promotion of optimum health.  In addition to providing nutritious meals in each school cafeteria, the Child Nutrition Department helps sets goals for nutrition education, physical activity and other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness. 

By establishing nutrition standards for all foods that are available on each school campus during the school day, the department assists the district in promoting student health and reducing childhood obesity.

Free/Reduced Meal Application Menus & Resources

• March
  Elementary Breakfast / Lunch
  Grades 6-9 Breakfast / Lunch
• Online Payments 
• Free/Reduced Meal Application 
  - See Informational Flyer
• Food Allergies
• District Wellness Policy
• COVID-19 Keeping School Meals Safe At Home

Hot Lunch Program

Union students have the option of bringing their lunch or purchasing a hot lunch, sandwich or salad in the school cafeteria. Elementary students should purchase lunch tickets from the cafeteria manager between 8:30 and 8:45 a.m. Schools can accept either a daily cash payment for meals or a pre-paid dollar amount ranging from $1 to $200. If lunch money is lost or forgotten, a student is permitted to charge lunch for three days only.

Elementary students will receive an alternate meal after 7 charges and we allow one charge for secondary students.  You can reference the district charge policy that is in the orange box. 

Food may not be ordered from outside vendors and/or delivered to school without prior permission from the principal. Parents must check in at the school office first when delivering food items. Parents must be present with the student in the cafeteria if food is brought in from outside.

Pre-Payment

Students may pay for an entire month or an entire semester. Money is deposited in each child's lunch account and deducted daily. With pre-payment, students do not need to carry money to school on a daily basis.

Breakfast

School breakfast will be available at all Union Public School sites. The cost for a student breakfast at the elementary level is $1.40. Lunch prices are subject to change during the school year as the need arises.

The most important meal of the day is usually the one meal that most people skip-breakfast!  Breakfast meals are available at all of our schools and are very reasonably priced at $1.40 for paid students, $.30 for students that qualify for reduced price meals, and free for students that qualify for free meals.  There are many advantages to eating breakfast at school:  it saves time in the morning in the hectic rush to get to school, work, etc., school breakfasts are nutritious, school breakfasts consists of foods that students like such as pancakes, breakfast sandwiches, and French toast, and students can eat with their friends and classmates.  There are eight elementary schools that provide breakfast in the classroom.  Consider trying breakfast at school and “jump start” your student’s day with a nutritious meal that will help them perform their best!

Meal Prices

Free and Reduced Meal
Online Application

Union Public Schools School Year 2022-2023 Free and Reduced Meal Application is now available online at:

http://unionps.schoollunchapp.com

If your child’s application was approved last year, you still need to fill one out this year: Your child’s application is only good for that school year and the first few days of the new school year.

If a parent/guardian completes a free or reduced-price meal application in July or August 2022 and that meal application is approved for free or reduced-price meals, they will be eligible for Summer 2022 P-EBT benefits retroactively when pick-up files are sent to DHS in October. This will only apply to Summer 2022 benefits.

Direct Questions to:

Jenny Bradley ( [email protected] )
Child Nutrition Office Manager
Union Public Schools
Education Service Center
8506 E 61st Street Tulsa, OK 74133-1926
P: 918.357.6136

MySchoolBucks

The MySchoolBucks fee for all cafeteria credit/debit card payments is $2.75.

Improvements to MySchoolBucks include:

• New Parent Portal-  easily customize and control the parent experience
• Better Login Security – 2-step verification process to add an extra layer of security
• More Support Options- parents can now chat directly with MySchoolBucks support team on the website or mobile app

Pay for Meals Online

Union Public Schools is excited to offer MySchoolBucks®! This online payment service provides a quick and easy way to add money to your student’s meal account using a credit/debit card.   MySchoolBucks®! is an upgraded software version of the MyLunchMoney®! program that was piloted this spring at several sites. 

MySchoolBucks provides:

• Convenience - Available 24/7 on the web or with the Mobile App for your iPhone, Android or Windows phone!
•  Efficiency - Make payments for all your students, even if they attend different schools within the district.  Eliminate the need for your students to take money to school.
• Control - Set low balance alerts, view account activity, recurring/automatic payments & more!
• Flexibility - Make payments using credit/debit cards.
• Security – MySchoolBucks adheres to the highest security standards, including PCI (Mastercard Payment Card Industry standard) and CISP (Visa Cardholder Information Security Program).

Enrollment is easy!

• 1. Go to ​www.MySchoolBucks.com and register for a free account.  Click the “SIGN UP TODAY” button.
• 2. You will receive a confirmation email with a link to activate your account.
• 3. Add your students using their school zip code, school name and student ID.
  a. 5 or 6 digits without any leading zeros
  b. Can be found on report card, Infinite Campus parent portal, Student ID card, class schedule or call the Child Nutrition Department at 918-357-6131.
• 4. Make a payment to your students’ accounts with your credit/debit card.

A program fee may apply.  You will have the opportunity to review any fees and cancel if you choose, before you are charged. 

If you have any questions, contact MySchoolBucks directly:
• [email protected]
• 1-855-832-5226
• Visit myschoolbucks.com and click on Help/FAQ’s

Parents welcome!

Parents are always welcome to join their children for lunch. The price of an adult ticket at the elementary or secondary level is $3.95.

Extra Money?

Parents, are you looking for extra money? Cafeteria jobs are available now and the hours are convenient. For more information, contact the Child Nutrition Department at 918-357-4321.

Child Nutrition

Child Nutrition employs more than150 professionals that include managers, team members, drivers, warehouse workers, and supervisors. School meals are planned by registered dietitians to reflect the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans, www.ChooseMyPlate.gov and student preferences as determined at student taste parties. Low cost, nutritious school meals are served to more than 16,000 customers every day and breakfast is offered in all schools.

Charge It Up Nutrition Assemblies

Union Child Nutrition Department is always looking for ways to creatively teach kids about nutrition and how to “Charge Up” their bodies for good health. The department collaborates with Union High School’s Marketing and Promotions classes to put on fun, interactive, nutrition education assemblies for elementary students. This partnership allows a large number of students to receive healthy messaging and provides them the opportunity to see High School students role modeling healthy behavior. Please see our promotional videos for both elementary age groups. To schedule an assembly, please contact the Child Nutrition Department at [email protected] or call 918-357-6137.

Charge It Up Assemblies

• Pre-K-2nd grade 
• 3rd-5th grade 

Statistics

The Child Nutrition Department served 884,247 breakfasts, 1,282,602 lunches, and 531,647 supper meals during the 2020-21 school year. Child Nutrition is  currently providing free breakfast, lunch, and supper for all students, averaging about 5,700 breakfasts, 9,800 lunches, and 900 supper meals per day.

The Child Nutrition department trained about 170 employees in culinary arts and safe food handling, has four chefs, and four dietitians. The number of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch has steadily increased over recent years and is currently at 67 percent.

The district purchased fresh vegetables and fruits and local grass-fed beef from six local farms. These local products have been served on the menus every day in August and September, and we will continue to offer local products each month. Child Nutrition purchases have enabled farmers to increase their revenue, continue farming, and hire additional farm help.

Eight elementary schools participated in the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Grant, which provided fresh produce for snacks every day in the classroom.

The district’s two nutrition educators developed seven nutrition videos called “Food for U” that are used in classrooms and in the homes of virtual learners. These videos are very interactive, and provide interesting history, science, math, geography, and cooking connections with foods. Union High School and elementary students participated in these videos. Union Dietitians also developed video lessons on a new nutrition field called nutritional psychiatry, which will be utilized by teachers to help students understand the importance of nutrition on emotions and feelings and will bolster Union’s efforts in the areas of Hope and Social/Emotional learning. The new program is called Food Mood Connection, and will be introduced at the 6/7 Grade, and eventually be offered in all schools.

Seventeen Union schools are participating in the afterschool supper meal program.  The program reduces hunger among students who otherwise might not get a good, healthy afternoon meal and encourages participation in afterschool programs that tend to drive class attendance and performance.

Union was recognized by the United Fresh Produce Association as the “Produce Excellence in Foodservice for Schools” national award-winner for our use of fresh produce, nutrition education, and for promoting the consumption of more produce by children. Union was also awarded a USDA Farm to School Grant of $100,000 to provide a district gardener, a farmer consultant, and a hoop house to grow vegetables and herbs; the grant also provides STEM learning experiences and Career Connect agricultural experiences for students, involves more farmers in the Farm to School Program to increase the usage of more local products, and to provide mentoring from the consultant farmer to improve farming practices.

Federal Requirements On Snacks

In 2010, Congress passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act requiring school cafeterias to make significant changes to the meals students receive during the school day.

Changes phased in over several years include decreased fat and sodium, and increased amounts of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains served throughout the week. These changes have been made by the United States Department of Agriculture.

The federal requirements include changes in the nutritional standards for snacks, called “Smart Snacks”.  Smart Snacks set the standards for all foods sold throughout the school day including cafeteria a la carte options, vending machines, school stores, snack bars, fundraisers, and at school activities.

The nutrition standards for snacks are as follows:

• whole-grain rich products
• or the first ingredient must be a fruit, vegetable, dairy product, or protein food
• or may be a combination food containing at least ¼ cup fruit and/or vegetable
• or contain 10% of the Daily Value (DV) of one of the nutrients of public health concern in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (calcium, potassium, vitamin D, or dietary fiber)
• Limitations on sodium, sugar, fats, and calories

Beverages sold during the school day will also be required to meet set standards:

• Schools may sell water, unflavored low fat milk, unflavored or flavored fat free milk and milk alternatives, 100% fruit or vegetable juice or 100% fruit or vegetable juice diluted with water with no added sweeteners
• Milk may be up to eight ounces in the elementary schools and may be up to 12 ounces in middle and high school
• High schools may also sell no calorie and low calorie beverage options such as flavored water, and carbonated beverages with less than five calories per eight fluid ounces and no more than 12-ounce portions of beverages with 40 calories per eight fluid ounces or 60 calories per 12 fluid ounces

Lastly, all food and beverage fundraisers located on school property must meet the minimum requirements in the nutrition standards for foods sold in school.  Therefore, fundraising that sells high fat and/or high sugar items such as candy or snack foods are not be permitted during the school day. It is important to note, the standards do not apply to fundraisers that are off campus or during the weekends.

These changes are being made in order to offer your children only healthy and nutritious food options while they are at school, allowing them to be the best student they can be. We appreciate your support as we transition to smart snacks in school.

Contacts

Lisa Griffin
Director of Child Nutrition / Biography

Bradyn Powell
Associate Director of Child Nutrition / Biography

918-357-4321

Mike Yip
Executive Chef,
Culinary Operations Coordinator

Candyse Walker
District Chef/
Marketing/Catering

Robin Hill
Coordinator/ Elementary Schools

Angela Treat
Coordinator/ 
Secondary Schools

Bernice Tharps
Food Service
Purchasing Agent/
Senior Financial Clerk

Lauren Bradley
Megan Parks
Nutrition Education

Cafeteria Managers
(School Sites)

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