Audit: School Meal Program Missed Funding Opportunities

Colorado’s School Meal Program missed out on federal money and grants that could have been used to help feed students in need, according to an audit released Tuesday. KRCC's Elaina Formby reports. 

The Office of School Nutrition, or OSN, runs the School Meal Program in Colorado and is responsible for monitoring districts’ adherence to state and federal terms.

Auditors showed a forfeit of nearly 700,000 federal dollars and 1.5 million in eligible grants from 2009 to 2012. According to a report from the Office of State Auditors, this money would have helped offset the cost of administrative errors and boosted schools’ lunch and breakfast programs, which provide healthy, reduced-cost meals for children from low-income families.

The report’s authors made several recommendations to OSN staff, including stronger district monitoring, training, and compliance with federal nutritional mandates.