Families of children enrolled in a school or pre-K center (3K-12th grade) that serves breakfast and lunch through the NYCDOE Office of School Food will receive $420 per child in the form of a food supplement. This supplement is a result of a Federal stimulus package passed in Washington. Families currently enrolled in the EBT/SNAP program will see these supplements added to their existing card in May and June. Families not enrolled in EBT/SNAP, but who receive Medicaid will see supplements added to their existing Medicaid cards later in July.
For families not enrolled in EBT / SNAP or Medicaid, a new EBT card will be mailed to your home in late July or August, pre-loaded with the supplement. There is no application or paperwork to complete in order to receive this supplement. EBT cards are not transferable. Families that would like to donate these funds should spend the supplement and then make a donation to the organization of their choice. For more info on the program, go to NYS’ FAQ page.
How to donate your P-EBT $420: First, make sure you spend the money on your card for food. If you use it at a farmer’s market, you will even get additional “health bucks” back. Then you may donate the full amount or a portion of the benefit from your own funds (that you would have used to buy the food).
If you are interested in donating your P-EBT $ amount to the PS 321 PTA, go to DONATE TODAY on our website’s home page. We thank you for anything you can spare to help our school!
Here is a list, from the Ways to Help section of our website, of local food banks and GoFundMe’s that our sister schools in D15 have organized for their families in need:
Center For Family Life – Sunset Park
Masbia Soup Kitchen – Flatbush, Boro Park, Queens
GoFundMe Pages:
PS516 PTA Covid19 Emergency Aid
NYU Langone Family Health Center Food Pantry
Just added: The Kensington Windsor Terrace Mutual Aid group is a grassroots group formed to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. It provides groceries to approximately 20-30 neighbors every week. To date, it has raised and distributed $60,000 in groceries and emergency cash grants to neighbors in need. They have launched a pledge drive to people to donate some or all of their P-EBT funds to the mutual aid network. Pledge HERE.
EBT cards for families who have never had this benefit in the past will be sent to the home address your school has on file. It is extremely important that your address on file is correct.
How To Check/Change Your Address:
Confirm that the home address is correct for each child (sometimes they are different!) by checking their NYC Schools Accounts (MyStudent.nyc). If you have checked and your address needs updating, send an email to our pupil recording secretary Ellie Connolly with a request to change your address. Include your child’s Date of Birth, Student ID/OSIS and full name, with a scan/pic of a current bill with your name and address. We may be receiving many requests, so your patience is appreciated.
If you have NOT created your NYCSA, do NOT email Ms. Connelly asking for the account code. All PS 321 families who, as of March 16, had not yet signed up for their NYC Schools Accounts were sent emails with their child’s OSIS/Student ID and account creation codes. If you did not set up your child’s account at that time, please go back, find that email and do so now. The email would have been sent between March 16 – 20 by Parent Coordinator Deb Orr, with “Important” in the title. It would have been sent to the email address of the first custodial parent we have on file.
Please, please LOOK for that email before contacting Deb. In the case of nearly everyone who has contacted us for a student ID/account code, an email had been sent within those dates.
