FWPS Nutrition Services: Summer Meals Service Member
START/END DATE: 6/23/2025 - 8/24/2025
FWPS Nutrition Services and United Way of King County are partnering together and seeking a team of full-time Summer Meals Service Members to end hunger in King County. This team will help families and youth access nutritious food during the summer months.
FWPS Nutrition Services: Federal Way Public Schools Nutrition Services partners with OSPI to administer the SFSP (Summer Meal Service Program) outside of the regular school year. The program works to serve meals to all children ages 18 and under in the community and surrounding neighborhoods while also providing a safe and fun learning environment. Our locations include school sites and mobile sites for meal service, and this staff member would work at any or all locations based on need.
United Way of King County: UWKC is working side by side with communities to build an equitable future for everyone by ensuring that everyone has access to resources, quality education, enough to eat, and a safe place to call home. Under our priority of breaking the cycle of poverty, we are committed to ensuring that all families have access to nutritious food.
About Free Summer Meals: Access to good food and supportive relationships shouldn’t end when school is out. In King County, 100,000 low-income students have access to free meals during the school year, but less than 1 in 5 access free meals served during the summer.
The Free Summer Meals Program is a critical resource to ensure that children continue to have access to summer nutrition support, by serving meals in the places where kids live, learn, and play. National studies show that summer meals programs increase food security and mitigate summer learning loss – but less than 15% of low-income youth in our region access Free Summer Meals programs each year. This is due to preventable barriers – including too few sites, lack of awareness about the program, and a lack of activities and incentives to engage kids and teens.
Your Role: As a Summer Meals Service Member, you will be part of a passionate cohort of 60 total direct service AmeriCorps members working across King County in partnership with food banks and community-based organizations to connect families with the food they need. Training will be provided in site management, outreach, youth engagement, de-escalation, and data tracking – these skills will make your summer work influential AND they will look good on your résumé.
Summer meals staff can expect to work indoors or outdoors in various weather conditions serving food, playing games, and supporting meal service operations.
Specific responsibilities will include:
- Serving breakfast and lunch
- Completing production records, temperature records, and food order guides, and meal tally forms
- Friendly customer service to kids, families, and staff
- Cleaning
- Set up and breakdown of service sites
- Being on time and being flexible in regard to duties as assigned.
- Daily thorough communication with site sponsor staff
Desired Qualifications:
- Self-starters who are passionate about supporting their community and public service
- Experience working with children in high-energy environments
- Resourceful and adaptable
- Ability to build relationships and effectively communicate information to a broad audience, including conducting outreach to parents, youth and other community members
- Experience working with diverse populations and an ability to apply a racial equity lens towards anti-hunger work
- Strong verbal communication and outreach to parents, youth and other community members
- Ability to create a fun environment while following site and food service rules
- Must have reliable, daily transportation
- Must be able to lift 30- 40 pounds
- Must be stand for long periods of time
- Must be able to push and pull moderately heavy equipment
- Interest in working with children, nutrition, and working with the public
AmeriCorps Eligibility:
- Must work full-time, 40 hours/week from June 23, 2025 to August 24, 2025.
- Be at least 18 years old upon start date. There is no upper age limit.
- Must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. National, or Lawful Permanent Resident Alien.
- Members will need to provide ID documents in order to enroll (social security card, plus a US passport, enhanced state ID, or green card. If you only have a regular state ID, you will need to provide a US birth certificate or certificate of naturalization).
- Not be listed in the National Sex Offender Registry database as having been convicted of sex-related crimes; and not be convicted of murder
- Be willing to undergo a criminal history background check, including fingerprints. AmeriCorps assesses criminal history on a case-by-case basis when determining applicant eligibility.
- To be eligible for the Segal Education Award, candidates must have a high school diploma/equivalent or be working toward completing one during the service year
- AmeriCorps members may have additional employment outside of AmeriCorps, but this employment should not interfere with service hours.
Benefits and Compensation:
- Living allowance stipend of $1,385.18, every two weeks (pre-tax)
- ACA compliant healthcare
- Unlimited public transportation card
- Paid time off: 2 personal days, 2 sick days, 1 federal holidays
- Eligible to receive Segal AmeriCorps Education Award ($1,565.08 pre-tax) after successful completion of your service year.
- Childcare assistance (will not cover entire cost)
- Member Assistance Program: mental health counseling, and access to personal and professional life resources
- Loan forbearance and interest accrual repayment on qualified government student loans
- Unique cohort experience, including a 3-day orientation