On Saturday 11/2/24, the EFG Team and the Nutrition Services team held a community open house at the Center on West Street. Special thanks to the many staff who came together to plan and put on the event!
Over 120 adults and children from the Oakland community attended and enjoyed tours of the Central Kitchen and the Instructional Garden. Children participated in our November persimmon Harvest of the Month taste test and made bike blender smoothies and Day of the Dead paper marigold flowers. Attendees took home goodies like books, reusable bags, free plants, and lavender sachets. Food was served including wood fired pizzas, a full produce bar, and the Southwest Chicken Taco Salad from this year's secondary school menu.
Summer EBT, also called SUN Bucks, is a new permanent program that helps families with school-age children buy groceries during the summer when kids might not have access to school meals.
Children who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals through a school meal application or an Alternative Income Form, or get CalFresh, CalWORKs, or Medi-Cal, are automatically enrolled. You don't need to do anything to sign up.
Also, children who are attending Head Start, experiencing homelessness, living in foster care or part of a migrant family are also eligible.
SUN Bucks cards are now being mailed to households!
~5.2 million children in CA will be receiving benefits (rolling basis)
Estimated SUN Bucks delivery date:
Last Name A - D: June 2024
Last Name E - L: July 2024
Last Name M - Z: August 2024
Reminder: Children can continue to qualify for SUN Bucks through Aug. 31, 2024! They simply need to:
Submit a meal application or alternative income form, or can be
Newly identified via direct certification
Those identified eligible during summer will receive SUN Bucks cards this fall.
S-EBT Customer Support Center is now LIVE!
1-877-328-9677
Able to assist families with pin setup and card replacements, address changes, eligibility questions, or escalations/appeals.
The CA Meals for Kids mobile application helps you find nearby California Afterschool and Summer Meal Programs Sites through your iOS, Android, or Microsoft devices.
Find sites by physical location, custom map, county, city, zip code and partial site name. Filter searches by service status (e.g. active/inactive) and meal types (e.g. lunch, snacks, etc).
From May 28, 2024 to August 2, 2024, branches of the Oakland Public Library will be offering free lunches for children ages 0-18. Please go to the Oakland Public Library webpage on summer meals to find out more!
Curious about the programs at our Central Kitchen, Instructional Farm, and Education Center located at 2850 West Street in West Oakland? Check out our website and read this OUSD News article about The Center (2/10/22).
OUSD Families: Based on your annual earnings, you may be eligible to receive the Earned Income Tax Credit from the Federal Government (Federal EITC) and also be eligible to receive the California Earned Income Tax Credit (California EITC).
