Maine School Administrative District 51: MSAD #51 District Newsletter - August 12, 2021

Portland ME

12 August, 2021

6:31 PM

Description

Press release from Maine School Adminstrative District 51: Aug 12, 2021, 1:08 PM To view Superintendent Porter's most recent Blog Post, click here. August 16 - First Day of GHS Fall AthleticsAugust 26 - Grade 9 Orientation and Kindergarten OrientationSeptember 1 - First Day of School (grades 1-12)September 7 - First Day of School (Kindergarten)September 9 - First Day of School (Pre-K) Maine needs all parents and caregivers to take action this school year––by taking the time to complete the confidential Meal Benefit Application through your local school, even if school meals are already free for all students. Families, schools, communities, and our state can greatly benefit from the data that is gathered from the application, and this application is important for a number of reasons. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, when school meals became complementary, there has been a significant drop in Meal Benefit Application returns––meaning less families are filling out the application. The family income data provided by the application informs key funding for school resources. This includes school meal reimbursements, funding for Title I programs, funding and resources for after school programs, funding provided to schools from the Maine State Legislature for essential programs and services at school, funding for special education, teacher loan forgiveness, and much, much more! Federal and state government use the aggregate data from the application to distribute education funding to schools across the county and state of Maine. In other words, if there is no data to inform the needs of the community, it could result in less education funding for your local district and for Maine. By completing the Meal Benefit Application, you are directly investing in your child's education and the children and families in your community. Specific programs that are funded by the data collected from Meal Benefit Application: Title 1 schools Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) Essential Programs and Services (EPS) funding allocated directly to Maine Schools through the Maine Department of Education (State funding) Before/After School Programs Summer School Programs Special academic programming, and grant opportunities initiated by the Maine Department of Education (DOE) Teacher student loan forgiveness How can I complete the Meal Benefit Application?  The application is available through your local school administrative unit (SAU) school nutrition program and it is completely confidential. Most SAUs have the application available to be completed online. Follow this link to access your SAU's online application (if your school district is not listed, please contact them directly). A printed version of the application is also required to be available––it will often be part of beginning of year paperwork that comes home with your child. This past school year has certainly had its challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We are thrilled that, despite these challenges, all Maine children have had the opportunity to access free healthy school meals on a daily basis. We would like to extend our gratitude to Maine parents and caregivers who have participated in their SAUs' meal programs. We know that with the continued support of Maine's incredible families, we can ensure the best for our children. Subscribe to our District's weekly newsletter by clicking here.Follow us on Twitter @SuperMSAD51Like us on Facebook at MSAD #51Find us Instagram @msad_51YouTube Channel MSAD #51  MSAD #51 Board of Directors Information Meetings start at 6:30 pm in the Greely Center for the Arts at GHS unless otherwise noted. August 16 - Regular Meeting Remember you can watch our meetings on YouTube LIVE (http://bit.ly/msad51livevideo). LinksMeeting Dates, Agendas & MinutesBoard of Directors Meeting Videos   Useful Links Employment Opportunities MSAD #51 Website 2018-2021 Strategic Plan District Calendar GHS Athletics Schedule   If you would like something included in our weekly newsletter, please send a brief write up with title along with a JPEG or PNG image of your flyer (if applicable) to Fran Prentice for approval. The deadline each week is Sunday. Any requests received after Sunday will be reviewed for possible submission in the following week's newsletter. All approved submissions will be posted on the district's website. Not all items in this email are MSAD #51 sponsored programs. If you need more information, please contact the group or organization that is sponsoring the event. Sign in|Report Abuse|Print Page|Powered By Google Sites This press release was produced by Maine School Adminstrative District 51. The views expressed here are the author's own.