[Wsssc] ANNOUNCEMENT: Free/Reduced-Price Meal Pilot Program

Fri Aug 4 17:14:53 PDT 2023

Thanks, Lauren!  This is great news!  We are honored to be chosen and anxious to use these resources to better serve our students and community!  See you in October!

Graydon

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From: wsssc <wsssc-bounces at lists.ctc.edu> on behalf of Lauren Hibbs via wsssc <wsssc at lists.ctc.edu>
Sent: Friday, August 4, 2023 4:13:26 PM
To: Lauren Hibbs via wsssc <wsssc at lists.ctc.edu>
Subject: [Wsssc] ANNOUNCEMENT: Free/Reduced-Price Meal Pilot Program

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Hello and Happy Friday,

We are excited to announce that the SBCTC received 25 outstanding applications for the Free/Reduced-Price Meal Pilot Program! This was one of the most competitive and innovative application processes we have seen and we would like to thank each college that submitted an application for their comprehensive an thoughtful proposals. We saw significant diversity across the proposals – some were very developmental, some had significant infrastructure already built-in, some proposed innovative partnerships with non-profits, K-12 schools, fresh food, and vending, and each of them would certainly bring a lot of value to increasing food security for students.

We are pleased to share the following colleges have been selected to participate in the Free/Reduced-Price Meal Pilot Program as outlined in 2SHB 1559<https://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2023-24/Pdf/Bills/House%20Passed%20Legislature/1559-S2.PL.pdf?q=20230510152407>:

  *   Columbia Basin College
  *   Everett Community College
  *   Grays Harbor College
  *   Walla Walla Community College

In the interests of full transparency, more details about the review process are provided below my signature line in this email and I welcome you to reach out with any follow up questions. The SBCTC will be following up with the selected colleges next week to ensure they have the necessary budget and program information to get started.

Through reviewing applications, the review committee had the opportunity to see the broader landscape of the system as it relates to food insecurity and college/student needs. Through this shared learning opportunity, we are already planning activities to support colleges not selected to make a bigger positive impact on increasing food security across our system and state.

  1.  Creating a learning agenda that identifies what is currently happening and where colleges are needing support;
  2.  Developing a learning community of practice for all colleges;
  3.  Connecting colleges with community partners and advocates directly that can help support their efforts in creating access to food and meet specific needs;
  4.  Priority planning for considering a legislative ask for additional colleges to participate in the pilot program.

The committee and the SBCTC share our sincerest thanks for your hard work, interest, and support in reducing food insecurity and continuing to bridge equity gaps for students!

We are happy to answer any questions and look forward to working with all colleges to find ways to broaden work on food security.

Kindly,

[cid:image005.jpg at 01D9C6ED.F0158030]Jennifer Dellinger
Policy Associate, Student Services

Student Support Programs

WA State Board for Community & Technical Colleges

jdellinger at sbctc.edu<mailto:jdellinger at sbctc.edu> / 360.704.4339

sbctc.edu<https://www.sbctc.edu/> • Twitter: @SBCTCWashington<https://twitter.com/SBCTCWashington> • Facebook: @WASBCTC<https://www.facebook.com/wasbctc/>

Review Process:

The review process for the free/reduced-price meal pilot program aimed to ensure fairness, consistency, and transparency.  The review process involved the use of a rubric for evaluating each application and interrater reliability to ensure a fair and consistent evaluation. The rubric outlined core strategic values, such as current infrastructure and feasibility, community impact, innovation and equity, and sustainability. Each criterion was assigned a rating scale to facilitate assessment. Reviewers, who are experts in the field, completed a comprehensive training on the rubric. The training ensured that all reviewers have a common understanding of the grant intent, evaluation criteria, and know how to assess each application consistently. Each grant application was then independently reviewed by multiple reviewers. This helped to minimize individual bias and provided a broader perspective on the strengths and limitations of each application. After completing individual reviews, the reviewers came together to discuss the applications and compare their assessments. This consensus-building process provided the opportunity to address any discrepancies or variations in scoring. Reviewers engaged in in-depth discussions to clarify differences and reach a consensus on the final scores. The applications were then ranked based on their scores, and the final selection of four colleges (2 on each side of the Cascade Mountains) for the free/reduced-priced meal pilot program was decided according to the predetermined selection criteria.

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