Leadership Job Aids

The ICN Leadership Job Aid Series is based on relevant leadership topics and focuses on skills that child nutrition leaders need to perform their job duties. This series is intended for all child nutrition professionals and programs.

Click to view or download these job aids.

Other Leadership Resources

Introduction To School Nutrition leadership

ICN Leadership Academy

All Categories

All Categories
*Utilizing the Cafeteria as a Classroom
*Food Safety Resources
**Employee Health and Personal Hygiene
**Family Child Care Food Safety Kit
**Responding to a Food Recall
**Handwashing Posters
**Food Safety Basics
**Writing, Updating, and Revising a HACCP-Based Food Safety Plan for Schools Workshop
**Food Safety Videos
***A Flash of Food Safety - Spanish
***A Flash of Food Safety - English
**Employee Health and Personal Hygiene for Child Care
**Manager’s Corner
**Food Safety Standard Operating Procedures
**Food Safety for Summer Meals
**Water Emergency Preparedness
**Norovirus for Schools
**Food Safety Mini-Posters
**Food Safety Fact Sheets
**Food Safety SOP Logs
**Food Safety SOP Resources
**Food Safety in Schools
**CARE Connections: Food Safety
**Seguridad de alimentos en las escuelas
**Food Defense: Developing A Biosecurity Management Plan
**Cool It! Methods for Cooling Foods Safely
**Recursos en Español
*Social Media Marketing for School Nutrition Programs
*Training Culturally Diverse Groups
*Foundations For Training Excellence 4 hour
*Introduction to School Nutrition Leadership
*Documenting Last-Minute Substitutions to School Meal Menus
*2022 Strategic Planning Documents
*Step-by-Step Recipe Standardization Guide for the CACFP
*Orientation to School Nutrition Management
*Produce Safety
**The Produce Lab Videos - Good Agricultural Practices (GAPS)
**The Produce Lab Videos - Quality and Condition
**Produce Safety Videos - What Went Right and What Went Wrong
**Commodity Specific Fact Sheets
**Produce Safety Best Practices Fact Sheets
**Produce Safety Printable Posters
**Produce Safety University Graduate Training Resources
**The Produce Lab Videos - Culinary Techniques
*Marketing Your School Nutrition Program
*Weights and Measures
*E-STAR
*RFPs
*CACFP iTrain Simple Lesson Plans
**iTrain Slides
**iTrain PDFs
*Menus of Flavor
*ICN's Leadership Academy - Proof
*Basic Culinary Math for School Nutrition Professionals
*Research Documents
**Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for School Nutrition Managers - Phase II
**Financial Management Issues and Practices in School Nutrition Programs
**Knowledge and Skills Needed for State Agency Child Nutrition professionals in the 21st Century
**School Wellness Policy Readiness of Principals to Implement Changes
**Determining the Job Functions of Child Care Providers in CACFP Operations
**Competency-Based Performance Appraisals for School Nutrition Managers and Assistants/Technicians
**Focus Group Discussions with Elementary School Foodservice Directors, Teachers, and Parents Regarding the School Breakfast Program
**Marketing the School Nutrition Program Resource Guide for School Nutrition Professionals
**Secondary Analysis of the School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Data Base A Two Part Study
**Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for School Nutrition Managers
**Cost Variables Associated with Producing and Serving a Reimbursable National School Lunch Program (NSLP) Snack for Children in Afterschool Care Programs, 2006
**Going Green! A Case Study Approach Examining Green and Environmental Conservation Practices in School Nutrition Programs
**Middle/Junior High School Participation and Non-Participation Survey Guide Internal Benchmarking for School Nutrition Programs
**Serving the Nutritional Needs of Pre-Kindergarten Children in the Public School Setting Best Practices
**Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills of Effective School Nutrition Assistants/Technicians
**Wellness for Child and Adult Care Food Programs
**Got Milk! Exploring How Student Preferences Impact Their Milk Selection in Schools
**National Survey of School Nutrition Directors' Web-Based Training Needs
**Steps to Nutrition Success Checklist A Program Self-Assessment Checklist for Family Day Care Home and Child Care Center Providers Participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program
**Determining Factors Impacting the Decision of Middle/Junior High School Students to Participate in the National School Lunch Program
**Developing and Sustaining Green/Environmental Conservation Practices
**NFSMI Research Agenda Conference 2013 Linking Research to Practice
**Succession Planning for Management Level Staff in the School Nutrition Programs
**Determining the Perceptions, Practices, and the Perceived Barriers Associated with School Professionals Serving the Nutritional Needs of the Pre-K Child in the Public School Setting
**ICN Applied Research Division SNA ANC 2016 Poster Session
**Nutrition and Wellness in Child Care Centers Participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program
**Sustainability of School Wellness Policy Initiatives
**Development of Middle/Jr. High School Student Surveys to Measure Factors that Impact Participation in and Satisfaction with the National School Lunch Program
**Increasing Middle/Junior High School Student Participation and Satisfaction
**Nutrition Information at Point of Selection in High Schools Does it Affect Entree Choices?
**Team Nutrition Local Wellness Demonstration Project
**Emergency Preparedness
**ICN Best Practices for Serving Students with Special Food and/or Nutrition Needs In School Nutrition Programs
**Overcoming Barriers to Participation in the Summer Food Service Program - An Identification of Best Practice Solutions
**Training and Educational Resource Needs of Child Care Professionals Participating in the CACFP
**Examining Diversity in the School Nutrition Workforce
**Identification of Issues Associated with Operating School Nutrition Programs in Districts with Less Than 30,000 Student Enrollment
**Practices and Perceptions of School Nutrition Professionals Toward Obtaining the HealthierUS School Challenge Award
**Unpublished Dissertations and Theses in Child Nutrition Programs and School Aged Children
**Exploring Nutrition Literacy and Knowledge Among School Nutrition Managers
**Implementation of HACCP-based Food Safety Programs in School Nutrition Programs
**Ready, Set, Go! Creating and Maintaining a Wellness Environment in Child Care Centers Participating in the CACFP
**Afterschool Care Program NSLP Snack Service
**Exploring School Nutrition Professionals Preferences of USDA Recipes and R4HK Competition Recipes for Meeting New USDA Meal Pattern Requirements
**In Classroom Breakfast Programs Best Practices
**Research Related to Child Nutrition Programs
**Determining the Job Functions of Child Care Providers in CACFP Operations
**Exploring Standard Child Nutrition Key Performance Indicators
**Investigation of Factors Impacting Participation of High School Students in the National School Lunch Program
**Sustaining and Strengthening Local Wellness Initiatives
**Identification of Available Training Resources Appropriate for Family Day Care Home Providers
**Exploring the Impact of Productions and Equipment Decisions on the Operation of School Nutrition Programs
**Investigation of School Professionals' Perceptions and Practices Regarding Issues Influencing Recess Placement in Elementary Schools
**School Nutrition Experiences for Dietetics Students
**Job Functions/Duties, Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills of Sponsor Monitors Participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program
**CKS for Child Care Providers in CACFP
**Exploring the Uniqueness of Child Nutrition Programs in Large School Districts
**Investigation of the Job Functions and Training Needs of State Agency Child Nutrition Professionals
**School Nutrition Professionals' Perceptions Regarding Their Role in Supporting and Contributing to School Wellness
**Management Issues Impacting Family Day Care Homes Operating Within the Child and Adult Care Food Program Guidelines- A Review of Literature
**CKS for District-Level School Nutrition Professionals
**Farm to School Identifying Applied Research and Operational Resource Needs and Issues of Farm to School Programs
**Job Description Template for CNP Director/Supervisor/Administrator
**School Nutrition Professionals’ Involvement in the Equipment Purchasing and Facility Design Process
**Training and Educational Resource Needs of Child Care Professionals Participating in the CACFP
**Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for School Nutrition Managers - Phase I
**Financial Management Benchmarks for School Nutrition
**Job Functions and Training Needs of State Agency Child Nutrition Professionals
**School Nutrition Program Utilization of the NFSMI FUNDamentals Financial Management Software
**Procurement Practices Influencing Programs Operating Within the Guidelines of the Child and Adult Care Food Program: A Review of Literature
*Key Performance Indicators
*Emergency Readiness Plan: Guide and Forms for the School Foodservice Operation
*Food Preparation Tools
*Focus on the Customer for Directors and Managers
*Family Child Care Food Allergy Fact Sheets
*Child Care Center Food Safety Guide
*Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills of School Nutrition Assistants/Technicians
*Financial Management: A Course for School Nutrition Directors 2nd Edition
*Basics at a Glance
*S.T.A.R.
**September 2018
**October 2018
**January 2019
**February 2019
**March 2019
**April 2019
**STAR August 2019
**STAR September 2019
**Para Directores en Espanol
**June 2018
**July 2018
**August 2018
*Inventory Management and Tracking
*State Agency
*Capacitacion del cajero: comidas escolares reembolsables
*Emergency Response Pocket Guide
*CNRB Screenshot
*Financial Management: A Course for School Nutrition Managers
*Buy American: U.S. Agriculture Supporting Healthy School Meals
*School Nutrition Mini Posters
**School Meal Pattern Mini-Posters
*ARD A-Z
**Developing and Sustaining Green Practices
**Increasing Middle/Jr High Student participation
**Checklist for Implementing or Assessing Recess
**Sustaining and Strengthening Local Wellness Initiaives
**School Nutrition Experiences for Dietetic
**Environmental Scan and Formative Research of Student Engagement Practices in Support of School Meal Programs - Phase I
**Exploratory Investigation of the Roles, Responsibilities, and Impact of Chefs Working in School Nutrition Programs
**Evaluation of ICN Training Program: Nutrition 101 (Online Mode)
**The Impact of ICN's Nutrition 101: Voices of Participants
**Marketing for School Nutrition Programs
**CQI for the School Nutrition Environment
**Data Driven Decision Making
*Managing Personalities and Conflict
*USDA OFS's COVID-19 Webinar Series Resources
*Designing an Emergency Preparedness Templates
*2023 RFP #725
*Strategies, Training, Action Plans, Resources (STAR) Webinar Fact Sheets
*Procuring Local Foods for Child Nutrition Programs
*USDA Recipes for Schools
*Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for Child Care Provers in CACFP
*Essential Key Performance Indicators for School Nutrition Success
*STAR Webinar Resources
**STAR July 2020
**STAR August 2020
**STAR September 2020
**STAR April 2020
**STAR May 2020
**STAR June 2020
*STAR Back to School Tools and Strategies To Address Supply Chain Challenges
*Assembling and Managing a Student Nutrition Advisory Council
*Inventory Management and Tracking
*Videos
* Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for District-Level School Nutrition Professionals
*ICN internal documents
*Training and Professional Development Needs Assessment for State Agency Child Nutrition Programs Who Work Primarily with School Nutrition Programs
*Spanish Family Child Care Food Safety Kit
*Planning Reimbursable School Meals
*Mock Health Inspection
*Applied Research Division Publications
**Other Resources
**Technical Reports
**Manuscripts
**Poster Sessions
**Research Briefs
*eLearning How-To Documents
*Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for State Agency Child Nutrition Professionals
*Key Performance Indicators Mini Series
*ICN's Leadership Academy
*Planning Reimbursable School Meals for Menu Planners: Micro-Trainings
*Designing and Delivering Training Programs (formerly Foundations for Training Excellence)
*No Time To Train:Short Lessons for School Nutrition Assistants
*ICN Strategic Plan
*Food Allergies Resources
**Food Allergies Child Care Resources
**Food Allergies for School Nutrition Directors - Managing Food Allergies
**Food Allergies in School Nutrition
**Food Allergy Fact Sheets
**Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers and Staff
**Food Allergies for School Nutrition Directors
*CNAAT agenda
*Food Varieties Galore
*Food Safety Spotlight: Food Allergies
*Shaking it up landing page - Proof
**Student Acceptance of New Lower-Sodium Menu Items
***Worksheets
**Culinary Approaches to Reduce Sodium
***Worksheets
**Sodium Reduction in School Meals
***worksheets
*Healthy Cuisine for Kids - Fifth Edition
*Non-Resource PDFs
*ARD Tools and Templates
**Middle/Junior High School Student Survey Guide and Tools
**High School Student Survey Guide and Tools
*Food Allergies Post
*Manager's Corner
**Spanish
***Comunicación_Mercadotecnia
***Nutrición
**Nutrition
**Operations
**Communications/Marketing
*CICN Spice Blend Posters
*Reimbursable School Meals from Introduction to School Nutrition Leadership
*Planning Reimbursable School Meals for Menu Planners
*Food Purchasing for Child Care
*Mealtime Memos
**2017 Mealtime Memos
**2018 Mealtime Memos
**2019 Mealtime Memos
**2020 Mealtime Memos
**New category 4
**2024 Mealtime Memo
*Team Up For School Nutrtion
**June 2016
**January 2018
**February 2016
**March 2018
**July 2016
**August 2016
**March 2016
**September 2016
**February 2017
**March 2017
**April 2017
**May 2017
**June 2017
**July 2017
**August 2017
**September 2017
**January 2016
**October 2017
**May 2016
**February 2018
**April 2016
**November 2017
*Job Description Template
*COVID-19 Resources
*ESTAR Resources
**Manager's Corner
*Native American Advisory Committee Newsletter
*iLearn How To
*Healthy Me! The Preschoolers Guide
*Connect: The Cafeteria to The Classroom
*Food Waste Resources and Tools
*S.T.A.R. Resources
*Manager's Corner Spanish
*Child Nutrition Wellness Initiative
*Leaderhsip Academy
*2023 - State Agency Presentations/Files
**12/04/2023 - Monday
***6.Physical Safety in Summer Meal Programs,
***7.FNS’s Approach to Grant Funding
***9.Summer EBT Panel with State Agencies
***4.Innovative Menu Planning for Summer Meals
***3.USDA Food 101
***5.Child Nutrition Schools are the Nutrition and Local Food Hub of the Community
***1.Opening General Session and USDA and ICN Updates
***8.Community Eligibility Provisions Work Session MidYear Implementation & Preparing for SY 2024-25
***2.Supporting FNS Programs Through Clear and Effective Messaging
**12/05/2023 - Tuesday
***9.Healthy Meals Incentives Initiative Spread the News
***6.Healthy School Meals for All Best Practices & Strategies
***2.Who’s Responsible Managing Sponsors with Unaffiliated Childcare
***4.Capital Expenditures
***7.Conducting Reviews in the CACFP 101
***8.Best Practices for Non-Congregate Summer Meals
***3.Data Visualization
***5.Procurement
***10.Integrity Rule Overview
***1.State Agency Funding
**12/06/2023 - Wednesday
***5.Streamlining Between Different Programs and Closing General Session
***4.SFSP Streamlining
***3.Making the Grade Best Practices for Co-Mingled Meal Service in School
***1.Serious Deficiency Guidance Best Practices
***2.How to Determine if an Entity is in Good Standing
*Norovirus Resources
*Food Safety for Summer Meals
*Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills for School Nutrition Managers
*Cooperative Purchasing for State Agency
*School Nutrition Staff: You Are A Team
*Adult Day Stay Fact Sheets and Supplemental Resources Adult Day Stay Fact Sheets and Supplemental Resources
*Child Nutrition Programs, Fall 2021: Challenges Faced and Solutions Found
*ICN CACFP National Advisory Council
*USDA Recipes for Healthy Kids
*Forecasting the Procurement of Foods
*Overview of USDA Child Nutrition Programs Online Course & Presentations
*STAR Digital Binder
**Nutrition and Menu Management
**Manager's Corner Curriculum
**Strategies
**Templates
**Action Plans
**Facilitation
**Resources
**VILT
**STAR Initiative Overview
**Meal Preparation Module
**Procurement and Inventory Module
*NAAC
*Adult Day Care Food Allergy Fact Sheets
*Job Aid Series
*CACFP Sample Food Safety Standard Operating Procedures (SOP)
*HealthierUS School Challenge: Smarter Lunchrooms
*Child and Adult Care Resources
**Child Care Mini-Posters
**Menus for Child Care
**Ready Set Go!
**USDA Recipes for Child Care
**CACFP Training Resource Checklist
**CACFP Meal Pattern Resources
***CACFP Meal Pattern Posters and Infographics
***CACFP Meal Pattern Tip Cards
***CACFP Fact Sheets/Tip Sheets
***Optional Best Practices Training
***Infant Meal Pattern Requirements Training
***Child and Adult Meal Pattern Requirements Training
**Grab in 5
**Menu Planning Basics: A Guide for CACFP Operators in Child Care
**Cycle Menus for Child Care- Preschoolers
**Family Child Care FUNdamentals
**Introduction to Happy Mealtimes in Child Care Settings
**Food Safety in Child Care
*Ground Rules for Training Mini-Posters
*Portions
*Procurement of Foods: Cooperative Purchasing Groups
*Steps for Emergency Preparedness
*Child Care Center Food Allergy Fact Sheets
*Strategies for Addressing Labor Shortages Infographics
*CACFP Food Safety Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) Sample Logs
*Nutrition 101: A Taste of Food and Fitness - 4th Edition
*Financial Management Information System
*Tools and Tips for Trainers
**Ground Rules for Training Mini Posters
**Meals and Breaks During Training
**Meeting Accessibility for People with Disabilities
**Nutrition Fact Sheets and Activities
**Physical Activity During Training
**Presentation Development
**Training Techniques
**Communication
**Environmentally Friendly Meetings
**Food Service Management Skills
*Spanish
**Comidas escolares reembolsables
**Centros de Cuidado Infantil - Guía de Seguridad Alimentaria
**Cuidado de niños (Child Care)
***Mini-Cartels generals (General Posters)
**Nutrición escolar (School Nutrition)
***Mini-cartels generals (General Posters)
***Mini-Cartels sobre seguridad de alimentos (Food Safety Posters)
***Capacitación (Trainings)
***Ficha técnica sobre seguridad de los alimentos (Food safety fact sheets)
**Mealtime Memos en Español (Mealtime Memos)
***2011 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
***2012 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
***2016 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
***2015 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
***2008 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
***2009 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
***2010 Issues of Mealtime Memo in Spanish
*Got Milk! How Student Preferences Impact Their Milk Selection in Schools
*CACFP Grab and Go Lessons
**Health and Safety
**Nutrition and Meal Management
**Education and Training
**Administration
**Procurement
**Compliance
*Shaking it up landing page
**Worksheet Series Hyperlink Addresses
**Planning Lower-Sodium Meals
***worksheets
**Student Acceptance of New Lower-Sodium Menu Items
***Worksheets
**Using Speed-Scratch Food Preparation to Reduce Sodium
***Worksheets
**Culinary Approaches to Reduce Sodium
***Worksheets
**Procuring Lower-Sodium Products and Ingredients
***worksheets
**Sodium Reduction in School Meals
***worksheets
**Other Resources
***other resources
****videos
***CICN Herbs and Spices Posters
*State Agency 2022
*School Lunch Hero Day