Community Eligibility Provision (CEP)

  • The Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit (CSIU) will be implementing the Community Eligibility Provision at our Five Star Secondary and Work Foundations + programs during the 2024/25 school year to provide lunch for all enrolled students. This is a program available to schools and districts that are participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).

    The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) is a non-pricing meal service option for schools and school districts in low-income areas. CEP allows the nation’s highest poverty schools and districts to serve breakfast and lunch at no cost to all enrolled students without collecting household applications. Instead, schools that adopt CEP are reimbursed using a formula based on the percentage of students categorically eligible for free meals based on their participation in other specific means-tested programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

    More information and resources, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) press release, regarding the expanding of access to school breakfast and lunch for students can be found on the USDA's website.