November 9, 2023

This Week in Farm to School 

Farm to school connects local agriculture, schools, and partners to benefit students, educators, farmers, families, and communities.

Tried and True Food Systems Lessons in the High School Classroom

November 14, 2023 // 4:30 pm ET

Join Vermont Feed and listen in as educators from around the Northeast share what farm to school and early childhood looks like at their site and how they’re creating change, both big and small. Whether you’re looking for inspiration, motivation to deepen farm to school efforts in your classroom, or simply to be in community with other food systems practitioners, this workshop is for you! In this webinar, high school teachers Andrew Margon and Yuka Bell from the High School for Environmental Studies (NYC) will present lessons, themes, or units for you to consider implementing into your classroom. Q+A to follow the presentation.

Learn more and register.

Lunch and Learn: Small Fruits and Tree Fruits for Small-Scale Producers

November 21, 2023 // 12 pm ET

Join Melissa Bell from the Center for Environmental Farming Systems and John Lyttle, NC Cooperative Extension, Durham County – Agriculture Agent (Small Farms & Local Foods) for the next installment of their Lunch and Learn webinar series. During this free virtual workshop, they will discuss propagation, cultivation, and maintenance techniques unique to fruit trees and berries.

Learn more and register. 

School Food Forests Webinar

November 29, 2023 // 1 pm ET

Hosted in partnership with the School Garden Support Organization Network and the National Farm to School Network, this webinar will be for anyone at any stage of interest in school food forests. Dive into the edible and abundant world of food forests at schools with speakers from the Education Fund in Miami, Florida and Growing Healthy Kids in the East Bay Area of Northern California. They'll cover everything from design and planning to implementation and maintenance of this garden design rooted in permaculture, regenerative agriculture and native foraging and foodways.

Learn more and register.

School Meals for All NC 5K Fun Run

December 2, 2023 // Wrightsville Beach, NC

The SMFA Ambassadors are hosting a 5K Fun Run to bring awareness and support for School Meals For All NC. They are offering a virtual run in addition to the in-person event.

Learn more and register.

NC Department of Agriculture Storybooks and Activity Guides

Each storybook tells the story of an NC crop from the farm to the school cafeteria. The activity guide includes activities to use in the classroom and identifies the Standards of Learning they meet.

Learn more.

TEDxYouth@ChavisWay Applications Open

TEDxYouth@ChavisWay is being curated by NC State Extension program #PassTheMicYouth in collaboration with Wake County 4-H, Alliance Health, and John Chavis Community Center. Our goal is to bring together bright young minds to give talks that are idea-focused to foster learning, inspiration and wonder – and provoke conversations that matter. They are excited to announce that applications are open for TEDxYouth@ChavisWay, an independently organized TED event happening in April 2024. Youth ages 10 - 19 are encouraged to apply.

Learn more and apply.

Climate Smart Commodities Project Interest Form 

RAFI, with A Greener World (AGW) and Soil Health Institute (SHI) are recruiting farmers for an exciting three-year project funded through the USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program. This project provides a pathway for farmers to transition towards regenerative practices, improve their farm operations, gain access to regenerative and climate-smart markets, and become part of a growing network of farmers committed to environmental conservation.

Learn more.

How Can I Honor The Indigenous People Whose Land I Occupy?

Anti-Racism Daily shares a few practical suggestions on how to honor Indigenous communities today and repair the wrongs of those before us. It’s important to have these conversations and do the work so that we don’t continue to perpetuate harm, however, this cannot be done in the absence of the tribes and Indigenous people of our region.

Learn more.

Celebrating the Heritage of Hispanic Foods

The ingredients in our favorite foods have deep roots and fascinating histories. Exploring a region’s cuisine with your students gives them a window into its culture, traditions, and social and agricultural history. KidsGardening has created a resource to help you explore and celebrate the history of foods native to Latin America.

Learn more.

NC Farm Bureau Going Local Grants

Deadline: November 15, 2023

The North Carolina Farm Bureau is happy to provide agricultural outreach grants to NC teachers through their Ag in the Classroom Going Local program. These grants value up to $500. Going Local Grants help educators provide Pre-K through collegiate-level students with valuable, real-world education and experiences directly related to the agricultural industry and the NC Standard Course of Study. Teachers practicing in private and public North Carolina schools, colleges, and universities are encouraged to apply.

Learn more.

SeedMoney Grant Challenge

Deadline: November 12, 2o23

The SeedMoney Challenge is a group fundraising activity available to public food garden projects anywhere in the world. The Challenge runs from November 15 to December 15 each year. During these 30 days, participating projects use SeedMoney's free crowdfunding tools and services to raise funds online and qualify for grants from them ranging from $100 to $1000. They have 408 grants available this year. The more a project raises, the larger the grant it can win. Last year, the average amount raised per project was roughly $800 and the highest amount was $16,600. To participate, projects must create an online fundraising page for themselves which serves as their grant application at the same time.

Learn more.

NC Innovative School Breakfast Grants

Deadline: December 1, 2023

Calling all school districts in North Carolina that want to feed more kids! Governor Roy Cooper has directed federal funding to assist schools in expanding school breakfast programs with innovative methods that make it part of the school day! This grant can reimburse your district for up to $50,000 spent on implementing innovative school breakfast programs between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2024. These funds are focused on innovative school breakfast programs, also known as Breakfast After the Bell models, such as Breakfast in the Classroom, Grab and Go Breakfast, and Second Chance Breakfast. Priority will be given to schools that are newly participating in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP).

Learn more and apply.

2024 Youth Garden Grant

Deadline: December 15, 2023

Since 1982, KidsGardening’s Youth Garden Grant has supported school and youth educational garden projects that enhance the quality of life for youth and their communities. In early 2024, fifty organizations will be awarded $500 in funding and a collection of gardening supplies for their youth garden program. Among the fifty winners, ten programs will also receive a specialty award package: five from their friends at Crescent Garden and five from their friends at Garden Tower. The selection of winners is prioritized based on demonstrated need and program impact.

Learn more and apply.

2024 Farm to School Grant

Deadline: January 24, 2024

The USDA Farm to School Program is excited to announce the official release of the fiscal year (FY) 2024 Farm to School Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA). USDA will award up to $12 million in competitive grants to eligible entities through the grant program this fiscal year. Each grant will help implement farm to school programming that increases access to local food in eligible schools, connects children with agriculture for better health, and inspires youth to consider careers in agriculture. 

The RFA includes five tracks - Implementation, State Agency, and three Turnkey grants - to support a variety of projects and implementation stages. A wide variety of entities are eligible to compete for funding through this grant opportunity. Schools and other institutions operating the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Child and Adult Care Food Program, and/or Summer Food Service Program; State agencies; local agencies; ITOs; small- to medium-sized agricultural producers or groups of small- to medium-sized agricultural producers; and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for Farm to School Grants.

Learn more and apply.

Governor Announces Funding to Expand Breakfast Programs in NC Public Schools

Governor Roy Cooper announced that $1.4 million in federal funds will go to support North Carolina public schools in expanding student breakfast programs. The funding will provide grants of up to $50,000 per School Nutrition Program to allow schools to better provide students with innovative school breakfast options, such as breakfast in the classroom, grab-and-go breakfasts, or second chance breakfasts when students have the option of eating breakfast during a break. 

Learn more.

Operationalizing Equity: How State Entities are Targeting Socially Disadvantaged Producers in USDA’s Local Food for Schools and Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Programs

In 2021, the United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) established the Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) and the Local Food for Schools (LFS) cooperative agreement programs to mitigate supply chain disruptions that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study explores how state governments are using LFPA and LFS funding to develop or advance local food purchasing programs that target socially disadvantaged producers.

Learn more.

2023 Farm to School Census

The USDA Food and Nutrition Service released the fourth Farm to School Census on October 2nd and your participation counts! The Census surveys all public, private, and charter school food authorities (SFAs) operating the National School Lunch Program about their farm to school relevant activities. The Census results are publicly available, and the information is vital to help schools, partners, advocates, and producers understand the role of farm to school in supporting resilient local food systems and contributing to student experiences at school.

Learn more.