Your school sends school meal applications home at the beginning of each school year before granting free or reduced price benefits. Due to the year-long duration of eligibility, households are not required to report changes in income, household size, or their participation in a program that impacts their child’s eligibility status. However, people may choose to report changes or apply for school meals for the first time any time during the school year by submitting an application directly to your school or district.

The information in this article is meant to help you establish eligibility determinations as well as provide you with the details necessary for understanding what happens to a child's eligibility status when you import an eligibility file using the Eligibility Import Wizard.

Carryover of Previous Year’s Eligibility

Carryover refers to a child’s eligibility from the previous school year being carried over into the current or new school year. A child’s eligibility from the previous school year (before July 1) carries over for up to 30 operating days into the new school year or until a new eligibility determination is made, whichever comes first. The 30 operating days begins on the first operating day of school. Operating days are the days on which reimbursable meals or milk are provided by a school or another program sponsor. Carryover applies to eligibility established through a household application or through direct certification. Meals served during the carryover period are claimed at the appropriate rate, depending on the individual child’s eligibility status from the previous school year. Carryover allows children to continue receiving school meal benefits while families complete and submit their application for the school to process.

When children from schools participating in a Special Provision (i.e., Provision 1, 2, or 3 or CEP) move to a non-provision school, at the State agency’s discretion, you may carry over children’s eligibility for free reimbursable meals for up to 30 operating days or until a new eligibility determination is made.

Best Practice

When uploading an eligibility file, do not change the end date. The end date is defined in the FRAM Preferences tool in the Default Expiration Date field. Typically, this date is set to 30 days into the next school year. If you change the end date to something prior to 30 days into the next school year, eligibilities may not import correctly. It is the district's responsibility to ensure the upload file only includes current eligibilities and does NOT include eligibilities from a previous year. For example, do NOT import eligibilities that have a 9/30 end date into the 2018-2019 school year if the eligibilities apply to the 2017-2018 school year.

Determining Eligibility During the School Year (Eligibility Import Wizard)

Families may apply for school meals or report a change that increases their benefits at any time during the school year. When your district uses the Eligibility Import Wizard to update these eligibilities, Campus uses the following logic to determine whether a child should be assigned a new eligibility.

If the imported Certification is...	Then Campus...
a higher rank than the child's existing certification	updates the child's eligibility record to the higher certification.
a lower rank than the child's existing certification	does NOT update the child's eligibility record. A subsequent direct certification contact indicating that a child is no longer receiving benefits from an Assistance Program or other Categorically Eligible program does not change the child's eligibility status for the current school year. The child remains eligible for free school meals through the end of the school year and for up to 30 operating days into the subsequent school year, due to the year-long eligibility requirement.

If the imported Certification is...

Then Campus...

a higher rank than the child's existing certification

updates the child's eligibility record to the higher certification.

a lower rank than the child's existing certification

does NOT update the child's eligibility record.

A subsequent direct certification contact indicating that a child is no longer receiving benefits from an Assistance Program or other Categorically Eligible program does not change the child's eligibility status for the current school year. The child remains eligible for free school meals through the end of the school year and for up to 30 operating days into the subsequent school year, due to the year-long eligibility requirement.

If the Non-Direct Eligibility Overwrite checkbox is marked in FRAM Preferences, new non-direct eligibilities imported from the Eligibility Import Wizard will overwrite existing non-direct eligibilities regardless of current eligibilities and dates.

This logic only applies when you are importing eligibility files during the school year. If it is a NEW school year, Campus updates all eligibility statuses regardless of the old status or dates. New eligibilities are effective as of the start date in the upload file.

Rank	Certified Type	Source	Eligibility
1	SNAP	Direct	Free
2	TANF or FDPIR	Direct	Free
3	Runaway, Foster, Medicaid, Homeless, Migrant	Direct	Free
4	Runaway, Foster, Medicaid, Homeless, Migrant, Head Start, Even Start	Non-Direct	Free
5	Income, RCCI, Override, SES	Non-Direct	Free
6	Runaway, Foster, Medicaid, Homeless, Migrant, Head Start, Even Start	Non-Direct	Reduced
7	Income, RCCI, Override, SES	Non-Direct	Reduced
8	Declined, Denied, Did not Apply	Non-Direct	Reduced
9	Paid	N/A	Non-reimbursable
10	Adult	N/A	Non-reimbursable

Logic Used During the School Year (Eligibility Import Wizard)

When importing eligibility files, it is important to consider the dates included in the file.

This logic only applies when you are importing eligibility files during the school year.

If it is a NEW school year, Campus updates all eligibility statuses regardless of the old status or dates. New eligibilities are effective as of the start date in the upload file.

Date Logic

Campus always creates a new record for the dates not covered by the previous record.

As part of this process, Campus will add an End Date to the current eligibility if

the eligibility has not changed, campus will add an End Date to the current eligibility if the new imported End Date is after the existing End Date.
the eligibility of the new record is better than the previous record, campus will add an End Date to the current eligibility if the imported End Date is the same or after the existing End Date.
the eligibility has not changed, and the start date of the new record is before the start date of the current record, a new record for the time not covered by the previous recorded will be added.

Direct Certification Import Logic

A new Direct Source Type eligibility will overwrite an existing Non-Direct Source Type eligibility for the same school year if the Start Date is the same or before the existing Non-Direct Source Type eligibility. This includes Non-Direct Source Types of Homeless, Migrant and Runaway. Only those marked as Direct Source will not be overwritten. On the Eligibility Import Report, the student appears in the Updated Records section with the Statuses of New or Removed when Include Detail is selected.
A new Direct Source Type eligibility will add a new consecutive eligibility to an existing non-Direct Source Type eligibility if the new direct certification start date is after the existing non-direct certification start date. On the Eligibility Import Report, the student appears in the Updated Records section with statuses of New or Ended when Include Detail is selected.

3rd Party Eligibility File Import Logic

If the Non-Direct Eligibility Overwrite checkbox is marked in FRAM Preferences, new non-direct eligibilities imported from the Eligibility Import Wizard will overwrite existing non-direct eligibilities regardless of current eligibilities and dates.
A new Direct Source Type or Non-Direct Source Type eligibility with the same or earlier Start Date will overwrite an existing Non-Direct Type eligibility, including non-Direct Homeless, Runaway and Migrant. On the Eligibility Import Report, the student appears in the Updated Records section with the Statuses of New or Removed when Include Detail is selected.
If the Start Date for a new Direct Source Type or Non-Direct Source Type eligibility on file is after the existing Non-Direct Source eligibility, the import ends the existing Non-Direct Source eligibility the day before the new eligibility Start Date making the dates consecutive. On the Eligibility Import Report, the student appears in the Updated Records section with statuses of New or Ended when Include Detail is selected.
If the import contains matching Non-Direct Source Type eligibility and matching dates on file, then no change is made to the record. On the Eligibility Import Report, the student appears in Existing Eligibility Records section when Include Detail is selected.

Extending Direct Certification to Other Students in a Household

Only SNAP, TANF and FDPIR Direct Types may be extended to other students in a household. If the FRAM Preference option is set, users may also extend the Medicaid Direct Certified Type.

When extending Direct Certification to other students in a household, the tool considers the following:

Primary household members with enrollments in the School Year selected AND
Primary household members who also have household membership within the span of their enrollment Start and End Dates within the School Year.
If there is another household that has the same address as a household which has students on the file, they will also receive Direct Certification Eligibility.
If a direct certified file contains household members with more than one Direct Type of SNAP, TANF, FDPIR or Medicaid (when FRAM Preference is set), then the tool extends the Direct Certification to other student members in the household using the following ranking logic:
1. SNAP
2. FDPIR
3. TANF
4. Medicaid (When FRAM Preference is set.)

Example
Mary is on the direct certification file. Mary is part of a household where John has a current enrollment but has a future Household Member Start Date within the school year when he is scheduled to move into the household (custody situation, adoption or foster care possibly). John will be extended the direct certification eligibility in this circumstance because he has a current enrollment in the school year and will be part of the household within his enrollment Start and End Dates.

If there is any concern about extending eligibility to a household member with a future member start date who may not end up joining the household, it is recommended the district review the additional direct certified eligible students updated on the Eligibility Import Report.

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How To

Reference

Classic View: FRAM Eligibility

Search Term: Eligibility

Documents can be uploaded to the Eligibility tool if the administrator has enabled the document upload feature. This feature is useful for things like saving additional income verification data.

For more information about managing documents, see the Managing Document Attachments article.

To upload a document on the Eligibility tool, click the Documents button on the action bar then complete the following steps.

Click the Upload Document button. Click the Add Files button.
Locate the file(s) you want to attach and click Open.
Result
Campus adds the file(s) to the list of documents. Repeat this step until you have selected all of the files you want to attach.
Click the Upload button.
Result
The documents appear in the Document List.

Tool Search: Eligibility Import Wizard

The procedures described here allow you to import a Direct Certification file using the Eligibility Import Wizard.

When using the Eligibility Import Wizard, please keep the following in mind if you are importing a Direct file in the current year. If the eligibility record in the file includes a record that is the same rank as the pre-existing record but is a different Certified Type, Campus updates the pre-existing record to the new Certified Type. For example, if a child's current Certified Type is Foster (Free Direct) and the import file includes an eligibility record that is Runaway (Free Direct), Campus updates the Certified Type to Runaway.

If you are importing an eligibility file from a 3rd party system, see the Importing a 3rd Party Eligibility File article.

Step 1. Starting a New Import

To start the import process, create a mapping between the data file and the Campus database location in which the data values should be stored.

Click the New Import Mapping button from the setup screen.

Result
Step 2 of the Wizard displays.
Go to Step 2. Entering Import File Details.

Step 2. Entering Import File Details

Step 2 of the wizard allows you to name the new import mapping and set specific parameters.

Enter a Name for the new import. This name should represent the type of data the file contains.
Select the School Year for which data is being imported.
Select the format of the import file from the File Type field. The acceptable file formats are:
- Fixed Width
- Comma Separated Values
- TAB Delimited
Select the student identification option contained in the import file from the Which field(s) in the data file will map to student identifiers? field. One of the following types of student identification must exist in the import file and be selected in this field:
- State ID
- Student Number
- Person ID
- Last Name, First Name, Birth Date (all three required)
- SSN (Social Security Number)
Indicate that you are importing a direct certification file by selecting Yes under the question Is this a Direct Certification file?
If importing a file with a combination of direct and non-direct/application eligibilities or if they are planning on using the file for scheduled imports, No should be selected. If Yes is selected when uploading those types of files, they will not upload correctly.
This option is not available to state-level users unless the user is a district-level user signing into a State Edition site.
Indicate whether the first row of the import file contains headers (identifying the content of each data column) by selecting Yes or No under the question Does file include headers?
The wizard does NOT import values from the header row.
Click the Browse... button to select the data file to be imported and click the Open button to return to the import wizard screen.
Click the Upload & Continue button to save this screen.
Result
Step 3 of the Wizard displays.
Go to Step 3. Mapping Student Identifiers.

Step 3. Mapping Student Identifiers

Step 3 of the wizard allows you to map the contents of the import file to the Campus database. The contents of the import file are previewed in the Raw Data File box. After you map a column, it appears in the Mapped Data Field(s) box.

After you upload the file, Campus maps the file contents to the database through the student identifier:

Verify that the student identifier shown in the mapping editor reflects the student identifier contained in the import file (i.e., if the Name column of the mapping editor lists Student Number, the import file actually contains student numbers). The value selected on the previous screen for the Which fields in the data file will map to student identifiers? is the data element(s) appearing in the mapping editor (i.e., State ID, Student Number, Person ID, Social Security Number, or the set of Last Name, First Name and Birth Date).

Enter the Raw Data File column number(s) containing student-identifying information in the Seq in Data File field(s) of the mapping editor.
Fixed-width Files Only
If importing from a fixed-width file, enter values related to the student identifier in the Start Position and Characters Long fields.
Mark the checkbox(es) in the Strip Leading Zeros column of the mapping editor if the student identifier values of the data file start with zero(s) that should be removed before importing.
Click the Map Fields button to save the mapping of student-identifying data from the import file to the Campus database.
Click the Next button.
Result
Step 4 of the wizard displays.
Go to Step 4. Entering Values.

Step 4. Entering Values

Step 4 of the wizard allows you to identify the Direct Certified Type(s) to be imported.

Answer Yes or No to the question "Is the eligibility the same for all students?"
- Select Yes to set the same eligibility value for all students on the file.
- Select No to map a unique value for each student on the file.

Answer Yes or No to the question "Is the Direct Certified Type the same value for all students?"

If the Direct Certified Type is...	Then...
the same for all students	select the type from the dropdown list.
unique for each student	enter the column number of the Raw Data File that contains certified type data and click the Set Value button. The Field Map window displays. Map the value from the file to a value in Campus by selecting an option from the Campus Direct Type dropdown list.

Enter the first day on which the Eligibility is active in the Eligibility Start Date field.
Enter the last day on which the Eligibility is active in the Eligibility End Date field.
Click the Next button.
Result
Step 4 of the wizard displays.
Go to Step 5. Confirmation Review.

Step 5. Confirmation Review

After values from the import file have been mapped and saved, the import can be reviewed, tested and imported. Fields on this screen display according to previously selected options.

Field Descriptions

Field	Description
Exclude Applications	If a household application associated with a student import file should be excluded, mark the Exclude Applications checkbox. Marking this checkbox will compare the students in the import file to the students on the household application; if the students match, the application will be excluded from the Verification process. For example, Direct Certification applications should not be processed, but a district may process a number of applications for households of students included in the Direct Certification file before it is received. These applications should not be included in Verification. If the Exclude Applications checkbox is used, these applications will be excluded and will not be included in Verification. If the Exclude Applications checkbox is not used, these applications may be included in Verification unless a user manually deletes or excludes the application. If all students match and the Start Date entered for the import is before or the same as the Start Date entered on the Household Application, then the Household Application will show on the Eligibility Import Report under the section Excluded. If all students match and the Start Date entered for the import is after the Start Date entered on the Household Application, the Household Application will not show on the Import Report. If not all students on the Household Application match the students appearing on the file and the Start Date entered for the import is before or the same as the Start Date entered on the Household Application, then the Household Application will show on the Eligibility Import Report under the section Not Excluded with a reference in the Action column to the students on the application who were not included on the import file. When the Exclude Household Application checkbox is NOT selected by the user, any Household Applications that have all of the same students as the import file and also meet the Start Date criteria previously mentioned will show on the Eligibility Import Report under the section Not Excluded. This gives users the option to review these applications for possible manual exclusion.
Extend Direct Certification Status to Additional Students in Household	If all students in the same household as the import student should be assigned a Direct Certification eligibility status (even when not included in import file), mark the Extend Direct Certification Status to Additional Students in Household checkbox. Marking this checkbox will compare the student in the import file to the student(s) listed in the primary household or at the same address.Students in the household who do not have existing eligibilities will be assigned the same eligibility status as the student included in the import file. If the FRAM Preference option is set, users may also extend the Medicaid Direct Certified Type. Districts Importing Direct Certification files for Medicaid: When using the Eligibility Import Wizard and selecting the option for Extending benefits to additional students in the household, this option will only extend benefits to students in the same household who are NOT included in the Direct Certification file. If you are importing a Medicaid Direct Certification file containing both Free and Reduced eligibility, a best practice is to split the Direct Certification file by Free status and Reduced status. Once split, upload the files in order of the most advantageous status first (Free first, then Reduced) and mark the Extend benefits to additional students in the household option. This will ensure that, students in the same household with differing Free/Reduced statuses on the Direct Certification file are extended the Free eligibility along with any student household members not on the file.
Include Updated Records Detail on Report	Mark this checkbox to display names and details of students affected by the import on the Eligibility Import Report.
Report Format	The Eligibility Import Report can be generated as a PDF or Comma Separated Values (CSV) file. Large files, 15,000 records or more, must use the CSV option.
Batch Import Options	This option is only available if the Batch Queue tool is enabled. These radio buttons determine whether the Batch Test or the Batch Import button displays.

Testing and Importing the File

Remember, when testing the upload, the test results may not match the final upload if the upload file includes multiple/duplicate entries for the same student. The test logic looks at the final entry in the upload file and uses that eligibility whereas the final upload applies additional logic. See the FRAM Eligibility Standards and Guidelines for important information.

Follow the procedures for one of the following options.

Option	Description
1	Test and Import a Standard File This option is best for average files (less than 3,000 rows).
2	Batch Test and Import Large Files If you are testing and importing large files (3,000 rows or more), the standard test and import process may time out because of district browser and router settings. Instead, Infinite Campus recommends using the Batch Queue and Scheduled Import tool. If you do not have Batch Queue enabled on your Campus site, you can contact Campus Support and request the Batch Queue tool be enabled.

Option

Description

1

Test and Import a Standard File
This option is best for average files (less than 3,000 rows).

2

Batch Test and Import Large Files
If you are testing and importing large files (3,000 rows or more), the standard test and import process may time out because of district browser and router settings. Instead, Infinite Campus recommends using the Batch Queue and Scheduled Import tool. If you do not have Batch Queue enabled on your Campus site, you can contact Campus Support and request the Batch Queue tool be enabled.

Option 1–Test and Import a Standard File

Infinite Campus does not recommend importing data without first using the Test feature to review the anticipated import results. Imports cannot be reverted.

Click the Test button to generate the Eligibility Import Report preview of how the values of the import file will be imported to the database.
The import mapping is automatically saved and may be imported at a later time. If a student appears multiple times on the import file, the student will appear multiple times on the Eligibility Import Report.
Adjust the data file contents and/or mappings if necessary.
Click the Import button.
Click OK on the pop-up window to confirm the import.
Result
A PDF or CSV report is generated and indicates import results. Eligibility values are imported to student records on the Eligibility tool.

Option 2–Batch Test and Import Large Files

The Batch Queue tool must be enabled to use this option. If you want your users who import large files to enable the Batch Import/Batch Test High Priority and Keep until I delete checkboxes, your users need Tool Rights to Ad Hoc Reporting > Batch Queue > Set Task Expiration and Set Task Priority. If a user does not have these Tool Rights, the boxes will appear but not be active. In addition, a user without access to System Administration > Batch Queue will not be able to check on the status of the import, and will only know if it runs successfully when the Eligibility Import Report appears in their Process Inbox.

Select the Test option in the Batch Import Options field to generate the Eligibility Import Report preview of how the values of the import file will be imported to the database.
Click the Batch Test button.
Result
The Batch Queue Reporting Options window displays.

Use the following information to complete the configuration options on the Batch Queue Reporting Options window.

Field	Description
High Priority	Mark this checkbox if running this report is considered a high priority. Reports designated as "high priority" by this checkbox will take precedence over other reports in the Batch Queue that are not designated as such. This checkbox can only be marked if a user has the proper tool right access (i.e., at least R rights to the Set Task Priority sub-right located in the Tool Rights index under Ad Hoc Reporting > Batch Queue).
Keep Until I Delete	Mark this checkbox if the completed report results should continue to appear on the Batch Queue and Admin Queue tools until manually deleted by a user. If this checkbox is not marked, the completed report will be cleared from the Batch Queue and Admin Queue tools based on the frequency for the Batch Queue Maintenance task set within the Task Scheduler. This checkbox can only be marked if a user has the proper tool right access (i.e., at least R rights to the Set Task Expiration sub-right located in the Tool Rights index under Ad Hoc Reporting > Batch Queue).
Start Date/Time	Indicate the date and time at which the Batch Queue should begin to generate the report.

Click the OK button.
Result
The Success window displays.
Click OK to submit this report to the Batch Queue. While waiting for the Batch Test to complete, exit the Eligibility Import Wizard.
Result
The report will wait for the date and time scheduled for generation. Upon completion, the Eligibility Import Report is available in the Process Alerts (formerly Process Inbox) for your review.
The import mapping is automatically saved and may be imported at a later time.
Return to Step 1 of the wizard and select your Saved Import Mapping.
Example
Click the Edit button.
Adjust the data file contents and/or mappings if necessary and continue to Step 5 of the wizard.
Select the Import option in the Batch Import Options field.
Example
Click the Batch Import button.
Result
The Batch Queue Reporting Options window displays.
Repeat steps 3-5.
If the batch is still in Pending status in System Administration > Batch Queue and you change the School Year criteria for the import, the School Year will change for the Pending import in the Batch Queue. Do not change the criteria for any import in Pending status in the Batch Queue.

Tool Search: Eligibility Import Wizard

The procedures described here allow you to import eligibility from a 3rd party system that may have a combination of non-direct and direct certification eligibilities.

If you are importing a direct certification file, see the Importing a Direct Certification File article.