This Week in Farm to School 

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

"I Tried Local..." Training by Growing Minds

March 20, 2024 // 3:30 pm to 4:45 pm ET

Join Growing Minds for a virtual training session to support educators interested in implementing their new farm to school resource: “I Tried Local…” A Toolkit for Engaging Kids with Local Food and Farms. This toolkit is designed for use in early care and education (ECE) through second grade and is divided into 10 units based on crops growing locally in North Carolina. All are welcome no matter what your experience with farm to school is! Register to reserve your spot, and sign up for their newsletter to receive information about future sessions.

Learn more and register.

Indoor Gardening Activities for Any Classroom 

March 20, 2024 // 4 pm ET

How can you get your students excited to garden if you have no outdoor space? In this presentation, hosted by Massachusetts Farm to School, you will learn easy, affordable ways to introduce young people to seeds, plants, and gardening indoors. Participants will explore some fun and simple laboratory investigations that can be done in any classroom, as well as some simple ways to create your own “green” space in a classroom setting. Presenter Heidi Ragno has over 12 years of science teaching experience at the secondary level, specializing in biology, environmental science, and forensic science. 

Learn more and register.

Project Wild Workshop

March 26, 2024 // 9 am to 4 pm ET // Statesville, NC

This workshop, hosted by Allison Woods Outdoor Learning Center, is for formal and informal educators and is open to anyone from any background to learn to connect students to nature through scientific inquiry, bringing nature to the classroom, and giving students exploratory outdoor learning opportunities. Project WILD is an interdisciplinary conservation and environmental education program that emphasizes wildlife. 

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Storytelling and Climate 

March 27, 2024 // 3 pm ET

The National Extension Climate Initiative (NECI) serves as an anchor for Extension professionals, researchers, and partners to collaborate on climate-related issues, share resources, discuss barriers and opportunities for advancing climate change programming in Extension, and engage in professional development opportunities. This hour-long webinar, hosted by NECI, will discuss connecting climate change information to communities through storytelling and interdisciplinary approaches. 

Learn more and register.

‘Remember when kids are fed, everybody wins.’ More from NC Child Hunger Leaders Conference

Kayla Holland, food and nutrition program manager at the Center for Black Health and Equity, led a packed room in a guided visualization. She asked attendees of the NC Child Hunger Leaders Conference to close their eyes and put both feet firmly on the ground. This article was written by EdNC. 

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School Meal for All Graphic Resources

In this article, the National Farm to School Network aims to showcase a selection of graphics employed by state advocates, highlighting the mutual benefits of farm to school programs and School Meals for All policies. These visuals serve as powerful tools in illustrating the symbiotic relationship between farm to school initiatives and the broader goal of ensuring access to nutritious meals for all students.

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Farm to School - Connecting with Extension’s Mission

Morgan King, Farm to School Extension Working Co-Chair and FCS Agent in New Hanover County details the importance of Farm to School. 

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EmbraceRace Podcast Episode #4

In this episode, EmbraceRace speaks with Brigitte Vittrup about the widespread belief that “talking about race makes you racist” - a myth they come across A LOT in their work at EmbraceRace. Brigitte is a developmental psychologist who studies how adults socialize the kids in their families with respect to race. They talk about why ignoring race affects kids of all colors negatively and give examples of how to speak directly and effectively about race with kids instead. 

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Racial Equity Tools Resource List

This section of the Racial Equity Tools website provides curated lists of resources for doing racial equity work. One section offers Tipsheets (created by the authors of their website) for doing racial equity work in communities and groups, as well as evaluating the progress of racial equity work. Another section presents Resource Lists for specific events, specific groups, and particular sectors.

Learn more.

Request for Applications: Supporting the Use of Traditional Indigenous Foods in the Child Nutrition Programs

Deadline: March 18, 2024 

In Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service will award $2 million in total grant funding to up to four (4) organizations to provide regionally focused training and technical assistance (TA) to School Nutrition Professionals on procurement, preparation, and crediting of traditional Indigenous foods, including the use of cooperator and FNS-developed resources and tools. The cooperators, with FNS guidance and approval, will also develop culturally relevant nutrition education materials for students to accompany the traditional Indigenous foods that are served, and the cooperators will train school nutrition professionals and other school staff on providing nutrition education to students.

Learn more and apply.

Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (USDA NIFA) 

Deadline: April 4, 2024

The Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) supports projects that provide education, outreach, and technical assistance for beginning farmers and ranchers in the United States and its territories to enter and/or improve their success in farming, ranching, and management of nonindustrial private forest lands; and provide beginning farmers and ranchers the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to make informed decisions for their operations and enhance their sustainability.

Learn more.

Value-Added Producer Grants (VAPG)

Deadline: April 11, 2024 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is currently accepting applications for grants under the Value-Added Producer Grants program. The grants help farmers and ranchers generate new products, create marketing opportunities, and increase their incomes through value-added activities. Eligible applicants include independent producers, agricultural producer groups, farmer or rancher cooperatives, and majority-controlled producer-based business ventures. The deadline for electronic applications is April 11 and April 16 for paper applications.

Learn more and apply. 

Braiding Seeds Fellowship

Deadline: May 1, 2024

Applications for the 2024 Braiding Seeds Fellowship are now open! This is an 18-month fellowship for BIPOC beginning farmers and land stewards across the Northeast and Southeast U.S. Each of the 10 selected fellows will receive a $50,000 stipend, mentorship, professional development workshops, in-person and virtual cohort gatherings, finance and business plan support, and one on one coaching. They will also be awarding 12 mini-grants of $2,500 each to runners-up. 

Learn more and apply.

2024 Economic County Snapshot for North Carolina

The Economic County Snapshots are one of NC Budget and Tax Center’s flagship annual publications. It provides key economic and social indicators from publicly available sources for all 100 counties in North Carolina, along with a comparison to state-level data, with measures for employment, poverty and income, affordable housing, health, education, and more.

Learn more.

Expanding School Breakfast in NC

Governor Roy Cooper announced $1.3 million in grants to 42 public school districts and public charter schools across North Carolina to expand access to healthy school breakfast for more than 51,000 students. The NC Innovative School Breakfast Grants were funded through federal funds directed by the Governor in October 2023. Access to nutritious school breakfast improves student outcomes and helps students thrive. 

Learn more.