Using School Meal Eligibility to Conduct Public Benefits Outreach Midwest School Health Conference July 24, 2008

The scope of the issue 650+ schools 425,000 students 85% enrollment in Free and Reduced Price Meals

Connection between FRP Meals and Public Benefits Free Lunch: 130% FPL Reduced Lunch: 185% FPL Food Stamps: 130% FPL Medicaid: 133% FPL SCHIP: 200% FPL

Medicaid Enrollment Approximately 225,000 students enrolled in Medicaid 85,000 students with Free and Reduced Price Meals but no active medical card at any given time – these are “targets”

“Targets” May 2008 AreaSchool name Total Students FRP Meal Enrolled Total Medicaid Enrolled % Enrolled Medicaid Both Medicaid and FRM Total Targets % Target 01School A School B School C School D1, School E School F School G School H School I School J1,5421,4381,138731, School K1,2171,

Food Stamp Enrollment Approximately 70,000 CPS students enrolled in Food Stamp Program Scope of under-enrollment could be as high as 200,000

14 Liaisons: 9 bilingual, bicultural One bilingual English/Spanish Hotline Operator Liaisons are located in CPS schools Liaisons complete applications for food stamps, Medicaid, SCHIP and TANF over the phone or in person Attend parent meetings Host school-based enrollment events Train parents and school staff about income support policy Provide case management for families Children and Family Benefits Unit

Large Scale Outreach Flyer distribution – 1.5 million flyers Robocall system – 2 million calls Presentations at city-wide and regional meetings None of this requires data – all done annually

Conducting Targeted Outreach Liaisons located in schools/neighborhoods with significant under-enrollment Work closely with 100 schools with high under- enrollment Mail 50,000 targeted letters each year Make cold calls Provide target information to school staff and administration

THANK YOU! For more information please contact the Children and Family Benefits Unit Hotline KIDS.