​Brighten will partner will The School Gourmet for our school meals beginning this year!

All balances with SLA (School Payment Portal) will be transferred to School Gourmet's platform. Parents will access the same platforms as last year, no change on that even though the food provider is now School Gourmet.  We anticipate that School Gourmet will have a portal in which families can electronically apply for free/reduced meals,  in which families can electronically apply for free/reduced meals, in addition to monitoring charges and making payments. The award letter is posted HERE for public review.

Please direct all questions to Mrs. Tonetta Pugh at [email protected].

Does your student have a food allergy?

If your student has a food allergy, for which they should receive food substitutions from the cafeteria, you must complete an accommodation form, linked below. This helps us to document nutritional substitutions in conjunction with our required filings to the Georgia School Nutrition Program.

Meal Assistance Applications

Families who are seeking free/reduced meal pricing must complete a Meal Assistance Application EACH school year.  Your application helps us apply for grant opportunities as well.  Paper Copies will be available from the BACS front office throughout the school year.  Brighten uses an electronic platform for application processing; please contact us if you are experiencing any difficulties.  Students who were previously approved for free/reduced meals continue to receive those benefits for the first 30 days of school (around mid-September). All of our lunch financials are separate from Douglas County Schools. If you receive a notification of meal benefits from DCSS, please provide Brighten with a copy so that we can review it as documentation for your Brighten student(s).

To make payments and check transactions, you will need a parent account for school Meal Payment Portal and the school's zip code of 30135.

Application Instructions

If you prefer to complete a paper-based application, you can download this file or stop by our front office.
Questions?  Check out these FAQ documents!
  • Want to understand how the Free & Reduced Application benefits all children in the State of Georgia? Listen to the FuelCast Episode below with Dr. Linette Dodson, State School Nutrition Director and ​​Dr. Ken Banter, Georgia Department of Education Senior Title I Program Manager.​
  • The Importance of Free and Reduced Meal Applications

Making payment on your student's lunch account:

All families should registered at the payment portal through School Payment Portal to monitor transactions and make deposits onto the lunch account.  We do not accept personal checks.  Students and guests cannot make payments in the cafeteria, as it impedes service times. Students and guests can send cash less than $5 or money orders to the front office for processing. No change is provided.  Receipts are provided in the form of online access to transactions through the parent portal website.
In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online through these links (English OR Spanish), from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
  1. mail:
    U.S. Department of Agriculture
    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
    1400 Independence Avenue, SW
    Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
  2. fax:
    (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
  3. email:
    [email protected]
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Brighten Wellness Plan

The Food Safety and Wellness Plan is being revised as part of an annual review process.  The plan will be presented at the December meeting of the Governing Board.  Please feel free to join us then or contact Kelly Bemus to review the draft copy and provide feedback.

Comments, questions, or concerns should be sent to Kelly Bemus.