Experience

School Meals Initiative

Ohio Department of Education - During 2007 & 2008, CN Resource conducted over 450 SMI reviews for the ODE. The contract has since been renewed for 2009, with an option for three additional years, to conduct 250 reviews per year.

Florida Department of Education - For the spring of 2009, CNR has been contracted to conduct 30 SMI reviews for

South Dakota Department of Education - For three of the last four years, CNR has provided the analysis portion of the SMI review process for the SDDE. Districts submit their information to CNR from which an analysis is conducted. The completed analysis and USDA spreadsheet is then sent to the SDDE for follow up and corrective action.

Texas Department of Agriculture - During the spring of 2008, CNR conducted 47 SMIs for the TDA which oversees the National School Lunch Program in Texas. For this project CNR also conducted the follow-up review of the corrective action and prepared a final report for the TDA.

Louisiana Department of Education - For three of the last four years, CNR has conducted SMIs for the LDE including site visits, analysis, reports and corrective action.

District of Columbia Education Office - From 2005 through 2007, CNR conducted approximately 15 SMIs each year for the District of Columbia Education Office, primarily of private and charter schools utilizing the services of local caterers. As part of this process, CNR would conduct large group trainings for all sponsors prior to beginning the SMIs. This significantly reduced delays and errors in the SMI process.

Child and Adult Care Food Program

New York Department of Health - During 2006, 2007 and 2008, CNR was contracted to conduct approximately 115 CACFP reviews each year in the five boroughs. This included centers, sponsors of centers, Head Starts, adult day cares and after school at-risk programs. In 2008, the reviewers for CNR were able to utilize the new on-line review tool built for the NYDH by Colyar Consulting Group. CNR has also been contracted for 2009 pending available funds.

Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment - CN Resource has provided a variety of services to the CDPHE over the last five years.
a) CACFP Center and Sponsor of Center Reviews - Since 2004, CNR has conducted numerous CACFP center and sponsor of center reviews depending on the needs of the CDPHE that particular year. Our reviewers use the Excel based review tool built by CDPHE and draft the final report.
b) CACFP Day Care Home Sponsors - In 2006 and 2007, CNR was contracted to conduct the financial portion of each Day Care Home provider's annual review.
c) Special Projects - As part of an ongoing review by the Office of Inspector General of a large day care home sponsor, CN Resource was contracted to conduct 200+ home reviews in both 2007 and 2008. The results were then compiled and submitted to CDPHE for further use in the review.

Louisiana Department of Education - Since 2005, CN Resource has been contracted each year to complete anywhere from 115 - 220 center reviews. By utilizing CNR, especially in outlying areas, LDE specialists were freed up to focus on training, technical assistance and outreach. CNR utilized Louisiana's on-line resources and Excel based review tool to complete the reviews.

Pennsylvania Department of Education - During the second half of 2008, CNR reviewed 150+ CACFP sponsors, primarily in the Philadelphia area, including centers, sponsors of centers, adult day cares, Head Starts and after school at-risk programs.

Georgia Department of Early Learning - CNR was recently awarded a four-year contract to review the CACFP at approximately 25 centers throughout Georgia. This contract should begin during the summer of 2009.

District of Columbia - From 2003 through 2007, CNR conducted approximately 150 reviews of CACFP centers, sponsors and day care home sponsors throughout the city.

Summer Food Service Program (SFSP)

Texas Department of Agriculture - For each of the last four summers, CNR has conducted over 220 site visits throughout Texas as part of their SFSP oversight. This included report preparation, documentation and corrective action.

Louisiana Department of Education - CNR has provided approximately 10 summer food reviews during the past two summers to help the LDE with outlying sponsors that are only open during the summer for a limited time.

Georgia Department of Early Learning - During the past two summers, CNR has provided site visits and claim reviews at 100+ sponsors. This included detailed financial review and corrective action preparation

Coordinated Review Effort (CRE)

Louisiana Department of Education - During the 2008-2009 school year, the LDE had several new sponsors, many in outlying areas, needing CREs. Successful outreach efforts ahd led to expansion of the NSLP across Louisiana. CNR was contracted to help with several of these smaller CREs to ensure they could be conducted before the end of the school year.

District of Columbia - In 2005, the District of Columbia Public Schools was required to have a comprehensive follow-up CRE conducted of their NSLP. The CRE was very large and required numerous personnel on a short-term basis to complete. The USDA provided personnel to the DC State Agency from both their national and regional offices and then CN Resource provided additional personnel to assist.

Food Service Management Companies (FSMC)

Expert Witness Work - A large school district in a lawsuit against a national Food Service Management Company hired CN Resource to be an expert witness during discovery and trial. CNR identified and documented mistakes made by the FMC and prepped attorneys on questions to ask during discovery. CNR also identified mistakes made by the FMC's expert witness.

Financial Analysis - A midsized high school district, under contract with a FSMC, could not figure out why they were losing so much money in their foodservice program each year. The school board hired CN Resource to identify causes of the loss and then present their findings in a public meeting. The FSMC then had to respond and identify possible solutions.

RFP Review and Recommendation - A midsized school district went out to bid for the services of a FSMC and received three responses. CN Resource was hired to objectively identify the strengths and weaknesses of each proposal.

Miscellaneous

USDA 796-2, Revision 3 Training - When the USDA released its new financial rules for the CACFP, CN Resource was hired to conduct training of state agency personnel and sponsors in several western states including Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Hawaii and California.

Oregon CN Label Project - In 2007, the Oregon Legislature passed new nutrition standards for school districts across the state. In 2008, CN Resource was contracted by the Oregon Child Nutrition Coalition to gather and compile 500+ CN Labels and use these labels to identify if these products were still eligible to be used in the NSLP and SBP in Oregon. Several large spreadsheets, as well as a copy of all labels were provided to the Coalition.

USDA Provision 2 & 3 Outreach - When the USDA wanted to expand the use of Provision 2 & 3 in the National School Lunch Program, they awarded grants to several states. Two states, Arizona and Oregon, contracted with CNR to visit dozens of potentially eligible school districts and conduct a financial analysis to determine if Provision 2 or 3 would be a good fit for their NSLP.

Financial Review - Dozens of individual school districts have hired CNR to analyze why they are losing money in their NSLP and how to turn it around. Recently, a large district in Nevada with substantial losses in their NSLP hired CNR to evaluate if the employees should receive a step up on the salary schedule. During the on-site review, numerous instances were identified where the program was underperforming. A detailed report was prepared with specific suggestions for improvement and tied to the potential for a step up on the salary schedule.

Menu Analysis - A large school district in Oklahoma contracts each year with CNR to analyze their school menus and prepare posters of nutrient information to hang on the walls of their cafeterias. This allows students to make informed choices at breakfast and lunch. It also means she doesn't have to wait several years for her SMI analysis to know how her menus stack up against USDA regulations.

Restaurant Menu Analysis - As part of a program with the Arizona Department of Health Services' Smart Choice Program, CN Resource analyzes restaurant entrees and sides for nutritional content at a nominal fee.

Menu Writing - With the roll-out of CNMenus, CNR has now launched its NSLP menu writing service. School districts can go online and use our software to write their menus with the assistance of experienced dietitians and nutritionists. The potential savings of cost and time is extraordinary. Visit http://www.cnmenus.com/ to learn more.