Lunch Payment System


Welcome to Needham Public Schools!

The school cafeterias are open every school day (except early release days), serving many choices of nutritious hot and cold lunches, with lots of fruit and vegetable options. Our goal is to serve fun and healthy meals (with lots of choices) to as many students as possible.  

Needham Public Schools will provide FREE meals permanently to all students due to funding from the State of Massachusetts. Every student will receive a free complete meal (one breakfast and one lunch per day). If the student has enough of a positive balance in their account to cover the cost of a 2nd entree and/or a la carte items, they may purchase those items. If their accounts will become negative with the purchase of these items, they will only be allowed to pay with cash for those items.

In order for students to purchase 2nd entrees and/or a la carte items, funds can be added to a student's account by choosing one of the following options: 

By check:
  • Send or bring a check (payable to NPS Nutrition Services) to your child's school, in an envelope marked 'Cafeteria' for deposit into your child's account.
  • Record on the memo line of the check the student's name and PIN #.
Online: (Credit Card or E-check transfer) -- If you choose to set up an online payment account, you must register your student on the Meal Magic Family Portal. Please use an email address that is associated with your student's PowerSchool record. You will also need your student's 5-digit online payment # which you can obtain from your school's secretary and/or the Nutrition Services Department.
Cash is also accepted.

 
The Nutrition Services Department uses a computerized Point-of-Sale payment system called Meal Magic. 

How the computerized payment system works:

1. When Nutrition Services is informed of your child's enrollment, we automatically enter every enrolled student into the Meal Magic system. A Personal Identification Number (PIN #) will be randomly assigned once your child is in the system. You can find out the PIN # from the cafeteria manager or the Nutrition Services Office within about a day. Students should memorize their PIN # and be reminded that this is a personal code and should not be shared with anyone else

2. Every student will have their own personal lunch account, whether or not they ever use it.

3. Parents/guardians can deposit money into the student's account by check, cash or online (see above).

4. In the cafeteria there is a computer touch-screen cash register and PIN pad for entering the PIN #.

5. Cash sales are still an option, although discouraged, as it slows the line, leaving less time to eat.

6. If your student qualifies for free or reduced price lunches, this information is securely contained within the system, and the meal will be processed just as it is for all other students. There is no need to be concerned for a potentially uncomfortable situation for the student.

7. Students access their accounts at the cash register by entering their PIN # on the PIN pad (just like the number section on a computer keyboard) located at the register. However, if they do not remember it, we are able to access it through the computer register by entering their name.

8. Sales will be automatically deducted from the student's account, and account use is tracked in the system.

9. Money paid into a student's account can be used to purchase meals or one of the healthy snacks and beverages we have available (varies at each school level).

10. Your child's purchases are tracked on the system in an account history.

11. When a student's lunch account gets to $10.00 or below, every Monday an automatic email is sent to the parent/guardian's email address. (We obtain the email address from Powerschool; please make sure you have updated any changes to your email or other pertinent information in Powerschool.)

12. Middle and High School students are notified at the cash register when their lunch account is getting low.

Sincerely,

Emily Murphy, Nutrition Services Director
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