Stories

Julia Van Loon has a history of finding creative solutions to daunting challenges. With more than 20 years of experience in Long Island schools, modernizing menus and sourcing local foods, Julia spearheaded an initiative to bring more New York raised beef into schools, partnering with dairy farms to reroute dairy cull cows to local eaters through the public plate. 

The timing of National School Breakfast Week (NSBW) could not be more perfect; it comes on the heels of Black History Month and at the beginning of Women’s History Month. Given the significant role Black women played in shaping school food and the history of school breakfast, it makes sense to celebrate these three histories concurrently.

For a team saddled with unpredicted obstacles, the CAP Cayuga Seneca Farm to School team has not only made it through the year but managed to thrive. The team’s efforts were successful in reaching the entire CAP Cayuga Seneca community, including students, families, staff, and educators.

Brooklyn Urban Gardens Charter School, a participant in the New York State Farm to School Institute, has grown their farm to school programming to their entire student population with hands-on experience growing, preparing, and eating fresh produce from three gardens on campus and visiting urban farms.

In a school year unlike any other, the 10 school teams that participated in the New York Farm to School Institute continued to collaborate and advance their farm to school efforts.

The Forestville Central School District has gone “all in” with their farm-to-school initiative. Depending on the season students can have several local items a day. Eager to maximize the agricultural bounty within their community the school purchased its first farm-raised hog for the 2020 – 2021 school year.

Ellenville Regional Hospital Rural Health Network is one of several community-based entities dedicated to improving health outcomes in Ulster County. This year, the hospital partnered with Ellenville Elementary to apply for the NYS Farm to School Institute to connect kids with fresh fruits and vegetables from local farms.

Edison Elementary, one of ten schools participating in the 2020-21 New York State Farm to School Institute, featured New York apples and adapted to socially distanced activities to promote their farm to school efforts this fall.

For Newcomb Central School’s January Harvest of the Month feature on cabbage, Food Service Director Dave Hughes collaborated with Meghan Brooks of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Essex County to bring cabbage into the classroom with a lesson on the production process behind sauerkraut.