Vermont FEED offers professional development and technical assistance opportunities to schools and communities to support the development of robust and sustainable Farm to School programs. We tailor all of our services to fit your school’s unique needs.
Not all Farm to School programs are alike, which is why Vermont FEED offers a variety of professional development and training opportunities ranging from half-day consults to graduate-level courses—all customized to meet the unique needs of your school and community. Outlined below are the types of services we offer and what you can expect from them. Please contact us to discuss what opportunity is the best fit to enhance your Farm to School program.
Vermont FEED offers consultation to schools and communities to support them in developing robust Farm to School programs.
Some examples of how Vermont FEED offers Technical Assistance include:
Starting Up! An Introduction to Farm to School
- Learn about specific examples and trends in the Farm to School movement.
- Come away with an understanding of available resources, best practices, and network opportunities for making Farm to School happen in your community.
Farm to School Community Action Planning
- Develop a vision for your Farm to School program.
- Determine the tools and training needed to create a successful Farm to School program.
- Create a Farm to School action plan, timeline, and next steps.
- Identify and connect with local resources.
Curriculum Development Consultations
- Discover creative ways to integrate seasonal, local foods into your curriculum and school community.
- Create a plan and framework for how you might integrate food and nutrition education into your existing curriculum and/or school community wellness plan.
- Identify curriculum connections for your specific subject area (Standards, Vital Results, GE's, Assessment Plan).
Food Service Training and Consultation
- Discover strategies for how to make your food program part of the educational environment and how to make community connections.
- Receive assistance in making connections with local farmers and using local and seasonal foods.
- Discover strategies for engaging food service personnel, students, and staff in school food changes.
- Receive consultation on equipment for processing local food.
- Learn new techniques and recipes using local, seasonal ingredients.
Tools and Resources
In addition to workshops, courses and technical assistance, Vermont FEED offers a comprehensive multimedia toolkit to fuel your Farm to School programs. The toolkit includes the following resources: VT FEED Grow Up Fresh DVD, Guide for Connecting Local Farms to Schools and Communities, Guide for Using Local Foods in Schools, and Taste Test Guide. We are continually developing tools and sharing best practices here on our website. All of our tools can be downloaded for free in our "Tools and Resources" section.
Vermont FEED Workshops
Vermont FEED offers workshops focusing on using the "3 C’s" model for building Farm to School
Programs. These workshops are offered for a single school, a school district, or a region. Vermont FEED believes in the power of building Farm to School capacity on a local level and often partners with a local organization or agency when doing a workshop. These workshops introduce the "3 C's" model and include: Hands-on activities, group cooking, break-out sessions focusing on taste testing, curriculum development, and local purchasing. A field trip to a local farm can also be integrated into this experience.
