Welcome to the Chartwells Food Service Department

for the Ann Arbor Public Schools

Michigan School Meals

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School Year 2024-2025 - Free Breakfast & Lunch for ALL Students

The Michigan School Meals program has again been approved for this school year, providing free breakfast and lunch for all public school students, grades Pre-K - 12.

Free food is only for complete breakfast and lunch meals. It does not include à la carte items such as milk, or meals for teachers, staff or administrators.

A la carte purchases will be charged to families. Milk is .60 cents per carton.

Important Information to Know:

• All students eat for free - both breakfast & lunch - full meals NOT à la carte items. À la carte items include milk, snacks or single purchase items.
• NEW - ALL families are to fill out the Education Benefits Form (EBF). These forms are available in multiple languages. AAPS ESL teachers/translators are available to help families. Please let your school know if you need assistance.

  • Based on the information you provide on the EBF form, your student may qualify for these programs:

    • Summer Food/EBT
    • Pay to Play or Pay to Participate for athletics
    • Potential household support for cable and internet

Meal Magic Family Portal - https://annarbor.familyportal.cloud/

Add funds to your child's account if they plan to purchase à la carte items such as milk, snacks, or single food items.

Full breakfast and lunch meals are free to all students, but if you want your student to be able to eat à la carte items available on the menu, such as milk, they will be charged. Meal Magic Family Portal provides an easy-to-use, efficient way to make payments quickly and securely anytime using a simple internet connection for à la carte items. The Meal Magic Family Portal runs in real time, so the payment will show at the school in seconds. The Meal Magic Family Portal also offers the following features:

• • • Tutorials on how to navigate The Meal Magic Family Portal.

    • Make online deposits to your student’s meal account for à la carte items only.

    • View purchase and payment histories, and account activity at no cost for à la carte items only.

    • Set up reminders for when your student’s balance is low.

    • Transfer funds among siblings.

    • Fill out the Free and Reduced Meal Applications.

Programs that Encourage Fun and Discovery

Chartwells continues to inspire healthy eating habits and spark a culinary curiosity to last a lifetime through fun and engaging programs, including:

• • Discovery Kitchen: Designed to make nutrition education fun and entertaining. Chartwells chefs and dietitians have worked together to create curriculums that get kids cooking, trying new foods, and learning about what they’re eating. Each month has a different theme and activities will be adapted to the current meal programs.

  • Mood Boost: This innovative program helps elementary and middle school students connect what they eat with how they feel. It features recipes and characters that focus on six moods: Smart, Happy, Confident, Alert, Strong and Calm.

Menus, Nutrition Facts, at Your Fingertips

Through Nutrislice, an innovative app, students, parents and faculty have access to school menus, including nutrition information, allergens and photos. Nutrislice can be downloaded for free from the App store (iOS) or Google Play (Android) and is available on desktop and mobile devices. Menus are also available at https://a2schools.nutrislice.com/

Food Allergies and Special Diets

We recognize the critical importance of supporting students and families who manage food allergy issues every day.  Our commitment is to always work closely with the families of students who have food allergies and medical conditions that require a modification to their school meal menu. Our approach involves coordination between parents and guardians, school nurses, school administrators, and food service professionals following the Ann Arbor Public Schools food allergy and medical conditions policy.

• Accommodations are granted for students with disabilities (this includes allergies) at no additional cost to families. However, we are unable to accommodate preferences such as veganism or Halal through this program. 

• If you would like your child to receive meal accommodation for food allergies or a medical condition impacting their diet, please submit the required documentation to your child's school. The form is available at this link Special Diets Form . Please share the form with your school principal and school nurse. Please email the completed form to our dietitian aaps_dietary_requests@aaps.k12.mi.us

• In order to modify the school meal, we must have a written Medical Statement on file signed by a licensed medical provider (physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner). The statement must identify the following: 

• Information about the child’s dietary needs is sufficient for understanding how it restricts the child’s diet,

• An explanation of what must be done to accommodate the child’s dietary needs, and

• If appropriate, the food(s) to be omitted, texture modifications, and recommended substitutions.

• After receiving the completed form, our Dietitian, Sarah Mason, will contact you to review the meal accommodation plan, which may require additions or amendments based on the ongoing supply chain issues. 

• If you have any questions or concerns regarding your student’s allergies or dietary needs, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Mike DeVries, the Food Service Director, at 734-994-2265.

Celebrating Our School Lunch Heroes

As kids advance from grade to grade with new classes and different teachers, the dedicated food associates in the school cafeterias are often one of the few constants throughout the academic journey. Whether they’re at the ready with a spoon, spatula, or welcoming smile, these school lunch heroes go above and beyond to not only serve foods kids love to eat, but to ensure that students leave the cafeteria happier and healthier than they came in. 

We are always looking for talented individuals to join the dining service team with perks including family-friendly schedules, no night or weekend work, hiring incentives, and more. For more information, visit the website - https://www.a2schools.org/Page/555

Through sharing our passion for great-tasting food, instilling a desire for food discovery, and most importantly, providing nourishing meals, we're excited to continue serving up happy and healthy meals to students this year. 

We love hearing from parents, and your feedback is important to us. Please reach out to our team with any questions or comments. We’re looking forward to a great school year!

Food Service Worker (Full and Part-Time)

Careers in Food Service in the Ann Arbor Public Schools

Chartwells is hiring immediately for Food Service Worker positions in the Ann Arbor Public Schools, including cashiers and food service workers. Online applications are only accepted on the link above. The work schedule is Monday - Friday, 6:00AM - 3:00PM - hours may vary. More details during the interview. Requirement: Previous food service experience is a plus!  

 

AAPS & Chartwells Meal Charging Policy

In the event a student does not have sufficient funds in hand or in their account to pay for a school meal, the student will be allowed to charge a meal to their account. This policy prohibits AAPS and food service staff from:

• identifying students who cannot pay for a school meal or owe a negative balance in any way such as wristbands, or handstamps,
• make students perform chores or work to pay for their meals,
• dispose of a meal after it has been served due to an unpaid meal balance,
• have direct communication with students about their unpaid balance unless all communication channels have been exhausted with the parent/ guardian, and
• discuss negative meal balance with the student in the presence of other students.

Parents/guardians are encouraged to pay for the charged meal as soon as possible, as all unpaid balances must be paid in full by the end of each semester (or trimester). Parents/guardians of students who charge for meals will be encouraged to apply for free or reduced-priced meals.  

Food Service Bad Debt Statement

Bad debt incurred through the inability to collect lunch payment from students is not an allowable cost chargeable to any federal program. Any related collection cost, including legal cost arising from such bad debt, after it has been determined to be uncollectible is also unallowable. Bad debt is uncollectible/delinquent debt that has been determined to be uncollectible by the end of the school year in which the debt was incurred. If the uncollectible/delinquent debt cannot be recovered by the school meals program in the year when the debt was incurred, then this is classified as bad debt. The funds may come from the district general fund, state or local funding, school or community organizations such as the PTO, or any other non-federal source. Once the uncollectible/delinquent debt charges are converted to bad debt, records relating to those charges must be maintained in accordance with the record retention requirements in 7 c.f.r. 210.9(b) (17) and 7 c.f.r. 210.15(b). 

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USDA NON DISCRIMINATION STATEMENT

 

 In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, and reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, and American Sign Language) should contact the responsible State or local Agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. To file a program discrimination complaint, a complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, which can be obtained online, at https://www.ascr.usda.gov/sites/default/files/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11- 28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:

mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or

fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; email: program.intake@usda.gov.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chartwells School Dining Services, in partnership with the Ann Arbor School District, offers nutritious meals to children each school day.