The Arkansas Department of Education (ADE), Division of
Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Child Nutrition Unit (CNU) is accepting
applications for the VIRTUAL 2021 Director Certification Training. This
training is for new district Child Nutrition Directors who have attended the pre-requisite
courses: Culinary Directions Part I and
Part II. Those new directors who will
attend the VIRTUAL 2021 Culinary Directions Part II Training in June may also
apply to attend the 2021 Director Certification Training.
Child Nutrition Directors are required to be certified
through the Arkansas Child Nutrition Unit when they are paid from the non-profit
food service account in Arkansas public and charter schools. All Child Nutrition Directors must meet the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Professional/Hiring Standards.
The 2021 Child Nutrition
Director Certification Training will include:
- One week of VIRTUAL Director Training, July 19-23, 2021. Participants will receive an email with a link to a Zoom Meeting a couple of days prior to the start of the workshop .At 9 am on Monday, July 19, participants will click the link to join the Opening Session. The remaining days of training, participants will click on the same original link to join each day. Districts must ensure that participants have an individual district email address, reliable internet access, a laptop or computer with a microphone and camera, and a quiet space for learning. Attendance will be monitored using the registered email address for each director, so individual computers and learning spaces will be required daily.
This week of training will focus on Program
Administration, Key Performance Indicators, Menu and Nutrition Management, Food
Production/Operation Management, USDA Foods, Food Security/Sanitation/Safety,
Marketing and Communication, Meal Modifications, Contract Management, and
Professional Development. Each morning
session will be from 10am – 12pm, and each afternoon session will be from 1pm –
3pm. Directors will be required to
attend all sessions.
- Fall Team Up for New Directors, October 2021, dates and location to be determined.
- Spring Procurement for New Directors, February 2022, dates and location to be determined.
- Key Performance Indicator (KPI) Project – Participants will submit a KPI Project with Goals approved by the Superintendent and due to CNU by December 31, 2021, and a KPI Statement of Activities approved by the Superintendent and due to CNU by April 30, 2022.
See the attached General
Information for Director Certification and the USDA Professional Standards
for complete details.
Applicants will complete
the Child Nutrition Director Training Application for Acceptance via Google:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfIyfZUIp0AGsqo6hN1GZNpaizkOVIBj6fQJoXmhLTxEwjlXg/viewform?usp=sf_link
The Child Nutrition Unit will review all applications to
ensure all requirements for education and recommendations are included.
The deadline to submit the Application for Acceptance is
May 21, 2021.
Once you have been accepted into the Directors Certification
Program, you will receive an acceptance letter by email with a link to complete
your registration. The registration fee of $200 will be paid to UCA
Outreach during the online registration process. Should you encounter any
problems with the registration process, please call Paula Myers at
501-450-3429.
If you have questions regarding the director
certification process or who needs to attend training, please contact the Child
Nutrition Unit at (501) 324-9502.