Join us for the next California Department of Education (CDE) Nutrition Services Division (NSD) Tuesday at 2 Town Hall, scheduled for Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at 2 p.m., when we will share an overview of federal and state policies, funding and training opportunities, and best practices for operating Child Nutrition Programs (CNPs).
During the September Town Hall, Landy Gonzalez-Hernandez, Supervisor I, with NSD’s Resource Management Unit, will provide a mini-training on Net Cash Resources. The session will cover net cash resource requirements, maintaining compliance, budget agreements, and spending plans, as well as the resources and tools available to support sponsors.
Town Hall Webinar PowerPoint
Use the following steps to access slides on the Child Nutrition Information and Payment System (CNIPS) web page after 10 a.m. on the morning of the Town Hall:
- For School Food Authorities: Select Applications and Download Forms.
- For Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Operators: In the SFSP Module, select Applications and Download Forms.
The Town Hall slides in CNIPS are marked “Draft” and are subject to change. If updates are needed, the CDE will upload the revised slides in the same location following the Town Hall.
After the Town Hall, the CDE posts the final Town Hall PowerPoint slides on the CDE Food Service Staff Education and Training web page under the Town Halls tab.
Background
The Tuesday at 2 Virtual Town Hall events typically occur on the fourth Tuesday of each month, unless otherwise noted. The Town Halls provides updates on policy guidance, program requirements, and best practices for operating CNPs. The desired audience includes CNP Operators and Food Service Directors.
Participation Information
Date and Time
Tuesday at 2 School Nutrition Town Hall
Tuesday, September 22, 2026
2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Registration and Cost
This town hall is free to attend. Register in advance for this webinar
.
After registering, you will see a screen that says Webinar Registration Approved with a link to the webinar. You will also receive several emails with information about joining the webinar. First, you will receive confirmation on the day you register and then you will receive two reminders one day and one hour prior to the webinar. If you cannot find the email confirmation, or do not receive the reminders, you can always re-register.
Tip for Attendees
To save time before the meeting, check your system to make sure it is ready to use Zoom.
- Visit the Zoom test link
.
- If you experience issues, visit the
Zoom Help Center web page
for assistance.
If you receive an error message that the host has declined your webinar registration, try using an alternate email address. While it is not ideal, you may also join by phone if you have technical issues logging in from your computer.
Professional Standards Crediting Information
- Key Area: Administration (3000)
- Training Topic: Program Management (3200)
- Learning Objective: Manage Staff Work Including Scheduling (3210)
- Instructional Hours: 1.5 hours
Reasonable Accommodation
Pursuant to state and federal statutes, individuals with a disability may request reasonable accommodation to attend or participate in the Tuesday at 2 School Nutrition Town Hall. Send direct requests for reasonable accommodation to the CDE by email at NSDTownHalls@cde.ca.gov no later than seven days prior to the event. Live captioning will be available during the webinar.
Town Hall Information Links and Resources Provided on August 25, 2026
The following resources were shared in the chat during the previous town hall:
- A current list of School Nutrition Program (SNP) Specialists is available on the CDE SNP Specialist Directory web page or email the SNP staff at SNPInfo@cde.ca.gov.
- Find your assigned Child Nutrition Assistant or Consultant information by visiting the CNIPS web page in the Application Download Forms section and using the Form ID Caseload.
- Share your back-to-school celebration photos with CDE NSD at NSDTownHalls@cde.ca.gov.
- Read the article highlighting Los Angeles Unified School District (USD), “LAUSD unveils student-created menu items ahead of new school year,” on the ABC7 Los Angeles education web page
or view the LA Snapshot: Food Tasting web page
to learn more about the event.
- Access the article, “San Diego Unified Serves Up Success with New School Meals this Fall,” on San Diego USD’s web page
.
- Apply for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Turnip the Beet: High-Quality Summer Meals Award Program by completing the following Turnip the Beet: High-Quality Summer Meals Award Program 2026 Nomination Form
(PDF)
.
- Submit Turnip the Beet nominations to the CDE SFSP at SFSP@cde.ca.gov by Friday, September 11, 2026.
- Visit the USDA Team Nutrition website
to access and download, “The Real Food Guide to School Breakfast for Families” and “The Real Food Guide to School Lunch for Families” fact sheets.
- Access Food Safety and Cyclosporiasis information available on the following web pages:
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration Recall, Market Withdrawals, & Safety alerts web page
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Current Outbreaks web page
- California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Cyclosporiasis web page
- CDE Food Safety web page
- Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) Food Safety Produce Safety Fact Sheets and Produce Safety Videos web page
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration Recall, Market Withdrawals, & Safety alerts web page
- Send questions regarding the updates to the Public Contract Code by email to the Procurement Resources Unit at NSDprocurementreview@cde.ca.gov.
- View the CDE 2026–27 CNP Reimbursement Rates - Rates, Eligibility Scales, & Funding web page.
- Find more information on CNP disaster waivers on the CDE Disaster Guidance for Child Nutrition Programs web page, under the Waivers tab.
- If you are interested in public input and/or listserv opportunities related to Assembly Bill 1264: Real Foods, Healthy Kids Act implementation, email CDPH staff at Nutrition@cdph.ca.gov.
- Learn more about the 2027 Healthy School Food Pathway Fellowship on the Chef Ann Foundation Fellowship web page
.
- Share the 2027 Healthy School Food Pathway Fellowship – Email template
for language to share with your CNP network and teams.
- Send your Healthy School Food Pathway Fellowship questions to the Fellowship team at fellowship@chefannfoundation.org.
- Access the CDE Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) Funding Results web page to find fiscal year 2026–27 FFVP recipients and funding.
- Email your FFVP questions to the team at FFVP@cde.ca.gov.
- Email your Food Distribution Program (FDP) questions to the FDP staff at fooddistribution@cde.ca.gov.
- Access the CDE Management Bulletin NSD-FDP-02-2013: Changing Receipt of USDA Foods web page.
- Access the CDE training video Food Distribution Program: Avenues of Participation
(Video; 20:58) available on CDE Nutrition Programs YouTube channel.
- Access food allergy trainings on the CDE Disability Modifications Including Food Allergies web page, available under the Trainings tab.
- Learn more about National Farm to School Month on the National Farm to School Network website
.
- Learn more about California Crunch Day on the Community Alliance with Family Farmers California Crunch web page
.
- Find information and resources about National School Lunch Week available on the School Nutrition Association’s National School Lunch Week web page
.
- Receive recognition for your Farm to Summer Celebration Week 2026 efforts by completing the Farm to Summer Celebration Week Post-Survey.
- Contact Farm2School@cde.ca.gov if you have any questions regarding Farm to Summer Celebration Week.
- Visit the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s CA Farm to School Incubator Grant Program web page
to learn more about this funding opportunity.
- Sign up to receive updates and reminders about the Chef Ann Foundation Salad Bars to Schools grant program web page
.
- Submit questions about the Chef Ann Foundation Salad Bars to Schools grant, please email the team at saladbargrant@chefannfoundation.org.
- Access the CDE Child Nutrition Advisory Council (CNAC) web page for information on the CNAC, including how to access the student and member applications.
- Send questions regarding CDE’s CNAC recruitment process to the CNAC email at CNAC@cde.ca.gov.
- Order free CDE Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Photo Cards from CDE Press Online ordering web page
and enter FRESH092025 in the coupon code field.
- For questions about the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Photo Cards, contact the Farm to School team at farmtoschool@cde.ca.gov.
- Access the webinar, Local Beef in School Meals: Strategies, Safety, and Student-Led Processing Programs - Produce Webinar Series: Local Beef in School Meals: Strategies, Safety, and Student-Led Processing Programs web page
available on the Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) iLearn.
- Access the federal Welcome Back to School letter
(PDF) available for distribution.
Contact Information
If you have any questions regarding this subject, email NSDTownHalls@cde.ca.gov.