More than Just School Lunch! Fill out the Multipurpose Family Income Form for 2020.
The start of school this year feels very different, but some things never change, like filling out lots of paperwork! This year families are being asked to fill all forms out online through ParentVue.
Every Wednesday, a bag of 5 days' worth of meals (including breakfast, lunch, supper, fresh fruits and vegetables, and milk) is available at 19 sites across the city. Meals are now available to all SFUSD students and siblings regardless of free/reduced price lunch eligibility. See locations and details about meal distribution here. Note: It is still very important to fill out the MFIF!
One form that is especially important for schools to get from families as soon as possible at the start of the year, is called the Multipurpose Family Income Form or “MFIF.” This form needs to be submitted each year for every SFUSD student. Here is a link to the form if you want to do it right now!
Resources
Here is a short video that shows the steps for filling out the form online.
Here are step-by-step guides in multiple languages.
Here is the SFUSD Student Nutrition Services website (more info on filling out forms, accessing your bar code, paying for meals, and more!)
https://www.schoolcafe.com/
Why should everyone fill out the MFIF?
Some people have heard that it is only necessary to fill out this form if you want your child to qualify for free or reduced-price school lunch. The truth is that it is important for EVERY family to fill out this form because doing so helps bring much needed additional money and services to your child's school and to SFUSD.
SFUSD receives funding from the state and federal governments to support the needs of low-income students. For each student who qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, our district receives thousands of additional dollars in funding. Studies show that many eligible students, in particular middle school and high school students, do not complete this form each year, leaving hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for SFUSD on the table. Even a small increase in eligible forms collected results in significantly more money to support our schools and students.
What is the Multipurpose Family Income Form?
This form collects basic information about your student so SFUSD can determine his or her eligibility for free or reduced-price breakfast, lunch, and also so that schools can qualify to receive extra money and programs. You may have heard this form referred to in the past as the "School Meal Application Form" or "School Lunch Form." The name has changed because it is really about more than school lunches.
What if my child doesn't want to eat school lunch? Why should I fill out the form?
Even if your child chooses to bring their own lunch, or goes to a school where all students receive free lunch, filling out the form is very important! It ensures that your school gets all of the funding and benefits available to support teachers and students. Also, even if your child does not eat school lunch, students who qualify for free lunch also can receive other benefits like:
Fee waiver for afterschool programs
Free Muni passes
Discounts for your family on utilities and internet service
Reduced fees for SAT and ACT tests and college applications
How does filling out the Multipurpose Family Income Form help my school?
Schools may become eligible for money to fund afterschool programs.
Schools get more money in their budgets to support students.
SFUSD qualifies to receive more money per student from the state and federal government which they can pass on to schools.
Middle schools with high return rates may also help their feeder elementary schools qualify for free afterschool snacks, dinners, and on-site summer meals.
Help! The online form is confusing!
Here are a few tips we have picked up that might help if you are having trouble with the online form:
San Francisco Unified School District not SFUSD: When you are prompted to enter the name of your school district, you need to spell it out.
Student ID: This number, also called the "HO number," can be obtained on ParentVue or by looking at any prior report card your student has received. When you enter the number, you shouldn't include the letters "HO"—just the number. Submitting this number on the form is not required unless you are signing up to make school lunch payments online or to access your meal account barcode.
List all students in a household on one form.
Incomplete forms are “denied” which means Paid status for the family.
Don’t forget Social Security Section (can check “no SSN” but don’t leave blank!) or Adult Signature
Login email: To reduce confusion, use the same email on file with SFUSD/ParentVue when creating an account in SchoolCafe.
Income information:
List MONTHLY income for your whole household.
Not interested in benefits? Some parents have asked if they need to provide this information if they know that they are not eligible for free or reduced-price meals. The online form does require that families enter income. This information is not shared and is required for those seeking free or reduced-price meal eligibility. For families who do not wish to seek free or reduced-price meal eligibility, there is a box you can check that indicates “not interested” in receiving meal benefits. More details on checking “not interested.”
Last 4 digits of Social Security Number: If you don't have a social security number or don't want to submit the last 4 digits of your social, it is OK to mark “No SSN” on the MFIF form and still be eligible for free or reduced-price lunch
Note: If the SSN section of the form is left blank, the application will be denied & result in Paid status for the family.
Applying for school meals or receiving meal benefits is not a risk factor under the new public charge rule.
Is the Information I Submit Confidential?
The information you submit on the Multipurpose Family Income Form cannot be shared by SFUSD Student Nutrition Services.
Personal information submitted on the form is not shared with the state or federal government: only the number of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch is shared.
Principals and teachers are not told which students qualify for free or reduced lunch benefits.
SFUSD does not share information with other organizations that provide benefits. But if your child does qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, you may use the eligibility form provided by SFUSD to qualify for other benefits through providers like PG&E and Comcast.
If your child qualifies and chooses to eat lunch in the cafeteria, the breakfast and lunch process is the same as a student who is paying full price.
What do I need to know about “the public charge rule?”
Some families have expressed concern about the application due to the federal government’s change to the "public charge rule." SFUSD has advised us that the public charge rule will not apply to applications for the school meals program and eligible families should continue to apply to receive these important benefits. As of July the public charge rule on hold by the courts, in response to pandemic, but even if it were to be reinstated, school meals are not on the list of benefits impacted by the rule.
What if I still have questions?
If you run into any problems, you can always contact the SFUSD resource link.