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  • Family Day Care Homes

Family Day Care Homes

The Child and Adult Care Food Program, CACFP, is a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) meal reimbursement program helping Family Day Care Homes (FDCHs) provide well balanced, healthy and nutritious meals and snacks to children in private home settings. CACFP’s role is critical in creating more affordable options for low-income Arizona families.

Non-profit organizations, including Military or Tribal, with an agreement with the Arizona Department of Education may serve as a day care home sponsoring organization for the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Licensed or providers approved to provide care who offer organized nonresidential childcare for children, generally 12 years of age or younger, in a private home may operate the Child and Adult Care Food Program by entering into an agreement with a sponsoring organization.

Family Day Care Home Sponsoring Organization:

If you are a non-profit organization, including Military or Tribal, interested in becoming a Family Day Care Home Sponsoring Organization, please contact Health and Nutrition Services by calling (602) 542-8700, press 1.

Family Day Care Home Providers:

The following information is for in-home childcare providers interested in applying to operate the Child and Adult Care Food Program.

Step 1: Assess Eligibility and Interest

  • Who is eligible to participate in a Family Day Care Home setting?

Any licensed or certified FDCH providers, including Military and Tribal, that meets local/state health, safety and sanitation standards may enter into an agreement with an eligible Sponsoring Organization. The provider should offer regularly scheduled, organized enrichment/educational activities to children in a supervised environment.

  • What age of children qualify?

Children ages 12 and under may participate as well as migrant children 15 and under and disabled children as defined in 7 CFR 226.2.

  • Is the CACFP right for me?

The following are basic expectations of providers operating the CACFP. To successfully operate the food program, you must be comfortable with the following:

  • Attend trainings and comply with Federal regulations.
  • Serve meals that meet the CACFP meal pattern
  • Complete and maintain paperwork on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis including but not limited to sign in and out sheets, meal participation records, menus, applications, etc.
  • Receive announced or unannounced home visits by auditors, ADE/USDA staff persons, and sponsor monitors.

Step 2: Find a Sponsoring Organization

  • What is a Sponsoring Organization:

A sponsoring organization is a non-profit organization, including the Military or Tribal, that has an agreement with the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) Health and Nutrition Services (HNS) Unit and provides services to FDCH providers.

  • How do I find a Sponsor for my home:

Click here for Family Day Care Home Sponsoring Organizations. ADE recommends you contact and invite several sponsoring organizations to your home to become acquainted and comfortable with them before entering into an agreement. They will explain the rules and requirements and you will select only one.

  • What are the responsibilities of a Sponsoring Organization:

Sponsors will recruit, monitor and reimburse the providers and conduct in-service training to FDCHs. This includes assessing compliance of meal pattern requirements, keeping records of procedures, verifying provider’s household income and determining eligibility of their own children (if in the program) and classifying homes for reimbursement as Tier I or Tier II. They will visit your home at least three times during the year.

Step 3: Work with Sponsoring Organization to Receive Training and Apply for the CACFP

After selecting a sponsoring organization to work with, you will collaborate with your sponsor contact to schedule a time to receive training and apply for the CACFP.

All Family Day Care Home Sponsoring Organizations are required to renew annually. Each year, you will be contacted by the Arizona Department of Education with specific renewal details, including renewal training requirements.

The following forms and resources are available to assist in the completion of your renewal application. These items will be updated as needed by ADE.

Important Dates and Deadlines:

DCH Renewal Applications are due on or before October 1.

Checklist:

FDCH Sponsor Renewal Application Checklist

FDCH Renewal Application Chart

Forms and Resources for the Management Plan and Budget:

  • Sponsor Information
    • Dun & Bradstreet Webpage lookup or request a DUNS#
    • How to Complete Ethnic and Racial Data
    • Annually Required Training Certificates
      • FDCH FY22 Annual Renewal Training
      • Crediting Grains in the CACFP Using Oz Eq (Slides) (Recording)
      • Civil Rights Compliance Annually Required Training Presentation
      • How to Print Training Certificates
    • FY22 Media Release
    • Free and Reduced-Price Policy Statement
  • Administrative Capability
    • Civil Rights Pre-Award Document
    • FDCH Recordkeeping Policy Template & Review Checklist
    • ADE Template Child Enrollment Forms (English) (Spanish)
    • ADE Template Provider Application Form (English) (Spanish)
    • Building for the Future Poster
  • Financial Viability
    • Procurement Guidelines, Standards, and Procedures with Code of Conduct
    • Authorized Principals Letter
  • Budget
    • Reimbursement Rates

All Family Day Care Home Providers are required to renew their participation in CACFP every two years. Your Family Day Care Home Sponsoring Organization will guide you regarding the specific renewal details, including which forms, licensing requirements, and renewal training requirements.

  • Child and Adult Meal Pattern
  • Infant Meal Pattern

ADE must conduct compliance reviews of all sponsoring organizations operating the CACFP at least once during each three-year review cycle. The objectives of the compliance reviews are to:

  • Determine whether program requirements are met
  • Provide technical assistance
  • Secure any needed corrective action
  • Assess fiscal action and, when applicable, recover improperly paid funds.

 

Sponsor Administrative Review Procedures

  • ADE’s Day Care Home Compliance Manual
  • Monitoring Compliance in Family Day Care Homes Quick Guide (English) (Spanish)
  • Food Buying Guide
    • Creditable Foods Guide - May 2018
  • USDA - Guidance for Management Plans and Budgets
  • USDA - Serious Deficiency, Suspension, & Appeals for State Agencies & Sponsoring Organizations
  • USDA - Health and Wellness Tips for Young Children Handbook
  • USDA - Family Day Care Home Monitoring Handbook
  • USDA - Adult Day Care Handbook
  • USDA - Infant Feeding Guide

 

Federal Regulation:

  • Code of Federal Regulations:
    • 7 CFR Part 226 – Primary regulation governing the Child and Adult Care Food Program.
    • 2 CFR Part 200 – Uniform administrative requirements, cost principles, and audit requirements for Federal programs.
    • 48 CFR Part 31 – Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR 31) is the primary regulation governing the acquisition of supplies and services with Federal Funds.
  • FNS Instructions:
    • FNS 796-2, Revision 4 – Provides guidance to institutions in developing the financial information needed to comply with requirements of the CACFP.
  • Office of Management and Budget Guidance for Grants and Agreements:
    • 2 CFR Part 225 – Establishes cost principles for State, Local, and Indian Tribal governments.
    • 2 CFR Part 230 – Established cost principles for non-profit organizations.

Click here for Family Day Care Home Sponsoring Organizations. 

 

Resources for Operators

Program Forms and Resources

    Training

    Reimbursement Rates

    • COVID-19: Guidance to Child Nutrition Operators
    • Providing Meals During the School Day
      • National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program
    • Providing Meals/Snacks in Childcare and Adult Care
      • Child Care Centers
      • Family Day Care Homes
      • Adult Care Centers
      • Emergency Shelters
    • Providing Meals/Snacks After School
      • Afterschool Care Snack Program and At-Risk Afterschool Meals
    • Providing Meals/Snacks During the Summer
      • Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Option
    • Peer to Peer Support for Child Nutrition Professionals
    • HNS/USDA Memos
    • Free and Reduced-Price Percentage Report
    • Civil Rights
    • Submit Data Request

    Contact

    • Health & Nutrition Services
    • (602) 542-8700
    • [email protected]

    From the Health and Nutrition Services Blog

    2022 Farm Fresh Challenge Fri, Oct 22 2021

    2022 Farm Fresh Challenge

    Interested in Creating Your Kitchen? Fri, May 7 2021

    The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) is excited to announce a new partnership with the Chef Ann Foundation, Life Time Foundation, and Whole Kids Foundation! These organizations are part of the newly formed ScratchWorks Collective and are dedicated to improving the quality of school meals and love sharing their expertise with school nutrition professionals. These partners look forward to supporting 10 Arizona Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) in a three-phase program to help operators regain their kitchens and menus as they recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chef Ann Foundation will kick-off this collaborative work by sending a culinary trained school food operational expert to each of the selected LEAs for a one-day on-site consultation to create a two-year plan with built-in mentoring designed to transform your kitchens, develop your staff, and take control of your finances to support the menu of your dreams. 

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