How to Apply

Eligible Local Education Agencies (LEAs) that are interested in or intend to participate in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) for the upcoming school year must notify the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) by June 30. Notification is completed using the CNP: Coordinated Application. Please contact MickelsonN@michigan.gov or MDE-SchoolNutrition@michigan.gov for more information.

CEP Eligibility

To be eligible to operate CEP, a school or group of schools within an LEA must have an Identified Student Percentage (ISP) of 25% or higher. To calculate ISP, a school must count all the students who are categorically eligible for free school meals and divide by total student enrollment. Students are considered categorically eligible if they are:

• Directly Certified as eligible for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (S), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (T), or Medicaid Free (M), or if they live in a household where another student is enrolled in one of these programs (this is referred to as 'extended eligibility')
• Recipients of the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR)
• Homeless, migrant, runaway, enrolled in Head Start, or directly certified Foster Children. (Note that these categories do not extend eligibility to other students in the household)

Residential Child Care Institutions (RCCIs) are not eligible to participate.