Nutrition Services

We are pleased to announce that all North Clackamas School District students who attend a school that serves breakfast and lunch may receive breakfast and lunch at no cost in the school year 2025-2026. This amazing news is thanks to the expansion
of the National School Lunch Program's Community Eligibility Provisions (CEP) in
Oregon.

What does this mean for you and your children?

● Families do not need to complete any paperwork to receive free or reduced-price meals.
● Elementary schools will only collect money for stand-alone milk purchases.
● Middle and high schools will only collect meal money for a la carte purchases not part of a full breakfast or lunch purchase or for purchases of a second meal.

If you need a letter that explains your student is eligible to receive school meals at no cost, please contact your Nutrition Services Team at 503-353-6034 or email freeandreduced@nclack.k12.or.us, we will be happy to provide a copy of the letter.

All North Clackamas School District schools qualify for the Community Eligibility Provision for the 2025-2026 school year. Therefore, All Students may receive one breakfast and one lunch (including milk) each school day at no cost. 

All students may purchase milk individually for $.75. Only complete meals are offered at no charge.

Elementary school students are not offered second meals or a la carte Smart Snack and beverage purchases.

Secondary school students may purchase additional breakfasts for $2.95 and lunches for $4.50.

Secondary school students may purchase a variety of Smart Snacks and beverages.

Adults may purchase breakfast for $3.25 and lunch for $5.20.

Students and adults cannot charge their accounts into a negative balance for any item except for one milk per meal per day. 

Cash and checks can be deposited at schools to prepay for milk, additional meals, or a la carte purchases. 

Your LinqConnect account can be used to make deposits online to prepay for milk, additional meals, or a la carte purchases.

Please note that receipts are not issued for Nutrition Services transactions made directly at our schools. No change or cash back will be provided. 

To make an online payment to your student's meal account, follow this link: LINQ Connect

To set up your LINQ Connect account, see Supporting Documents below. 

If you are having trouble logging into your LINQ Connect account, please contact Support@linqconnect.com or 1-844-467-4700.

Please note that receipts are not issued for Nutrition Service Transactions made directly in our schools. No change or cash back will be provided.

MEAL ACCOUNT REFUND: 
To receive a refund from your student's meal account, please submit a completed Student Meal Account Refund Request Form, (available below). Please note that only the listed parent or guardian on the student's meal account will be granted a refund. The refund request form is below.

Refunds may take up to 4 weeks to process.

MEAL ACCOUNT TRANSFER: 
If you would like to transfer a meal account balance from one student to another, please utilize your LINQ Connect. You will need to have your student's ID number. You can get your student's ID number by contacting your school directly.

DONATE MEAL ACCOUNT BALANCE: 
If you would like to donate your remaining balance to help those with a negative balance please email to culpl@nclack.k12.or.us make the donation. 

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS

Meal Account Refund Request Form

Federal regulations require Child Nutrition Programs Sponsors to offer to all participants’ breakfasts, lunches, suppers, snacks, and milk that meet the meal requirements identified in the individual program regulations. Federal regulations further require Sponsors to make substitutions to the standard meal requirements for participants who are considered disabled and whose disability restricts their diet. A Sponsor may, at its discretion, make substitutions for individual participants who are not "disabled persons" but are unable to consume a food item because of medical or other special dietary needs. Below are forms, resources, and guidance to be used for special dietary needs.

Medical statement forms for medical participants with disabilities can be found below or on the Oregon Department of Education CNP Special Dietary Needs Form Page.

Medical Statement Participants with Disabilities (see forms below)

Part I: Write your child's name
Part II: This section can only be completed by your child's physician

Every section must be completed: 

• Diagnosis 

• Does the disability restrict the patient's diet? Yes or No

• If Yes, list how

• Foods to be omitted from diet

• Foods to be substituted

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS

Medical Statement to Request Special Meals and/or Accommodations - English

Medical Statement to Request Special Meals and/or Accommodations - Russian

Medical Statement to Request Special Meals and/or Accommodations - Simplified Chinese

Medical Statement to Request Special Meals and/or Accommodations - Spanish

Medical Statement to Request Special Meals and/or Accommodations - Vietnamese

Use of Kitchen Requests

Groups requesting the use of a kitchen must complete the attached Kitchen Use Application.

The Kitchen Use Application is completed and submitted to the building Principal. These requests are reviewed and approved or denied by the building principal.

Please refer any further questions to Greg Collins at the Nutrition Services Department at 503-353-6068.

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS

Kitchen Use Request Application

A letter explaining your SNAP benefits will be sent to you by email. If you do not receive a letter confirming your SNAP benefit eligibility status, please contact:         

freeandreduced@nclack.k12.or.us

• Families qualifying for SNAP, TANF, or FDPIR benefits receive a NCSD Direct Certification approval letter. If a confirmation letter is not received or students are missing in the notification, please call the North Clackamas School District Helpline at 503.353.6034 or email freeandreduced@nclack.k12.or.us

Access to Meals

According to Oregon law, any student who requests a meal shall receive a meal.

North Clackamas School District students who attend a school that serves breakfast and lunch may receive both a breakfast and lunch at no cost thanks to the expansion of the National School Lunch Program's Community Eligibility Provisions (CEP) in Oregon.

Oregon law specifies that when a student requests a meal during meal service, they shall receive a meal regardless of the ability to pay. For clarification purposes, the cost or balances of meals are the responsibility of the parent or guardian.

• Due to provisions current laws, the school district is unable to establish a charging limit for students requesting complete meals. 
• Nutrition Services does not provide alternative meals to students that have a charging limit imposed by the parent or guardian or have a negative balance on their meal account.

Charging

Account Management and Collection of Delinquent Debt

The school district allows for the prepayment of meals directly at the school or online using the LINQ Connect.

• School office staff are able to receive cash or check payments for student meal accounts. No change can be provided. Meal prices are posted on our menus, our district website, and the Nutrislice Menu mobile application.
•  The online account management service, LINQ Connect  enables management of student accounts online. Features include transaction history, online payments, auto-payments, payment reminders, low balance warnings and more. This tool is a voluntary option for families and a service charge will apply for online payment processing.

Handling of Delinquent Debt 

When a payment is overdue or when funds are not present to cover the cost of a meal that has been served and charged on a student’s meal account, the monetary credit extended is considered delinquent debt. The North Clackamas School District will pursue efforts to collect unpaid meal charges or delinquent debts.

• Negative Balance Notifications – The district initiates an automated phone call to households every week notifying of balances owed on the student meal accounts.
• Email notifications are also sent during the school year.

End of Year Student Account Balances

All student meal account balances (positive and negative), automatically to the next school year. If a student(s) has funds and no longer attends North Clackamas School District, families can: 

• Request in writing the funds be donated to Nutrition Services to help other families with negative balances. To submit a request, send an email to freeandreduced@nclack.k12.or.us
• Request a refund check on our website at: Meal Account Refund Request Form. NOTE: Refund checks may take up to 4-6 weeks to process.
• Request in writing the funds be transferred to a sibling’s student meal account. To submit a request, send an email to freeandreduced@nclack.k12.or.us
• NOTE: Funds that have not been used for two (2) consecutive school years are considered inactive accounts and money is sent to the State of Oregon as unclaimed property. 

HB3454 INFORMATION

On August 8th, 2017 House Bill 3454 into law. The bill outlines practices and communication that are not allowed in Oregon school cafeterias. The law is intended to reduce or remove practices and communications that have been deemed as “shaming” to students regarding the collection of funds in exchange for meals or identification of balances for unpaid meals. Key points of the bill include:

• Must provide written permission to withhold meal from student or establish a charging limit.
• The school district shall contact households to determine Free or Reduced-price eligibility; repeat contact if owing more than five (5) meals. Offer assistance in completing Free or Reduced-price meal applications.
• Not publicly identify who cannot pay for or owes money for
• Not serve an alternative meal to a student who cannot pay.
• Shall communicate about monies owed to parent or guardian and not students.
• May not assess fees related to agencies to parent or guardian.

Current impacts of this bill include an increased balance of unpaid meal charges for students of all income categories. For the specific language of the bill, click here.

For any information or questions, please call the Free and Reduced Helpline at 503-353-6034 or email freeandreduced@nclack.k12.or.us

THIS INSTITUTION IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROVIDER.

Learn about summer Food Options Here

In accordance with federal civil rights 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 (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, 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.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.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:

1. Mail:
   U.S. Department of Agriculture
   Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
   1400 Independence Avenue, SW
   Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
2. Fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
3. Email: program.intake@usda.gov

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English.  Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the North Clackamas School District or where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.