Food Service

The following notification is provided at the beginning of each school year as federally required  notification regarding eligibility requirements and the application process for the free and reduced-price  food services that are listed in Board policy 4:120, Free and Reduced-Price Food Services and 4:140,  Waiver of Student Fees. For more information, see www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/unpaidmeal charges, and/or contact the Building Principal or Program Supervisor.   

When students are unable to pay for their meal services, meal charges will apply per a student’s  eligibility category and will be processed by the District accordingly. A student’s eligibility for free and  reduced-price food services shall be determined by the income eligibility guidelines, family-size income  standards, set annually by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and distributed by the Illinois State Board  of Education.  

Your child(ren) may qualify for free meals or for reduced-price meals. To apply for free or reduced-price meals you may use the paper version of the Household Eligibility Application, which is below. We cannot approve an application that is not complete, so be sure to fill out all required information. For further questions, contact the District Administration Center. 

Fee Wavier Application 2025-2026

Fee Wavier Application 2025-2026 Spanish 

Free or Reduced Lunch Application 2025-2026

Solicitudes de almuerzos gratuitos y reducidos para 2025-2026

Drop off:
The District Administration Center mailbox is located outside of Door 10 near the back of Cary Junior High.  Please be sure to review your form before dropping off or mailing these documents. 

Mailing Address:
Administration Center
2115 Crystal Lake Road, Door 10
Cary, IL 60013

Meal Charges for Meals Provided by the District 

The Building Principal and District staff will work jointly to prevent meal charges from accumulating.  Every effort to collect all funds due to the District will be made on a regular basis and before the end of  the school year. Contact your Building Principal or designee about whether your charges may be carried  over at the end of the school year, i.e., beyond June 30th.  

Unpaid meal charges are considered delinquent debt when payment is overdue as defined by Board  policy 4:45, Insufficient Fund Checks and Debt Recovery. The District will make reasonable efforts to  collect charges classified as delinquent debt.  

When a student’s funds are low or there is a negative balance, reminders will be provided to the staff,  students, and their parent(s)/guardian(s) at regular intervals during the school year. If a parent/guardian  regularly fails to provide meal money and does not qualify for free meal benefits, the Building Principal  or designee, will direct the next course of action. Continual failure to provide meal money may require  the District to notify the Ill. Dept. of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and/or take legal steps to  recover the unpaid meal charges.

How do I make a credit card payment? 

Parents can make credit card payments directly through the Infinite Campus Parent Portal. When paying by credit card, funds become available immediately.  You can verify this by signing into your Portal account and selecting the Account option.

What happens if my stident’s account runs out of money? 

You many send Cash or Check to school with your student 

When sending Cash or Check, please make sure all monies are in a sealed envelope clearly marked with your student's First Name, Last Name, and Grade.  Make all Checks payable to Cary School District 26.  Have your student place any envelopes in the payment box in their school office.  If a payment box is not provided in your building, the envelopes should be given to their teachers.  All funds received before 9:00AM are placed onto the student's account prior to lunch service.

* If you are sending in monies for more than one student please list their full name, school, and how much you would like placed in each account.

NSF Policy: Please note, there will be a $25.00 fee for all returned checks.

What Happens if my student's account has no money and my child forgot to bring in their payment?

The Cary School District 26 NEGATIVE ACCOUNT BALANCE Policy is as follows:

Elementary: Students are allowed to charge lunches to their accounts until their account balance reaches negative $10. If a minimum deposit of $10 is not made into the account, a federally reimbursable meal will be served.  The student's account will still be charged for that lunch (students participating in the Free program will not be charged and students receiving reduced price meals will be charged $.40).  They will continue to receive one federally reimbursable meal until all outstanding charges (IOUs) are paid in full and the account has a positive balance.

Cary Junior High: Students are allowed to charge lunches to their accounts until their account balance reaches negative $10. If a minimum deposit of $10 is not made into the account, a federally reimbursable meal will be served.  The student's account will still be charged for that lunch (students participating in the Free program will not be charged and students receiving reduced price meals will be charged $.40).  They will continue to receive a federally reimbursable meal until all outstanding charges (IOUs) are paid in full and the account has a positive balance.

Please note: Second lunches, snack shop, ala carte, and ice cream purchases are not allowed by any student who has a negative balance.

What is the National School Lunch Program? (NSLP)

The NSLP is a voluntary program available to all public schools, private schools, and residential child care institutions which agree to operate a non-profit program offering lunches meeting federal requirements to all children in attendance.  Through the NSLP, public and non-profit private schools, preprimary classes in schools, and residential child care institutions receive cash reimbursement for each meal served.  Participation in the program is voluntary.  The sponsors of the program must:
- Serve meals that meet federal requirements
- Operate a non-profit program
- Offer free or reduced-price meals to eligible children based on household income
- Not identify nor discriminate against any eligible student
- Operate food service for all students without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability