Source: UNIVERSITY OF MAINE submitted to NRP
FARM TO SCHOOL THYME: TRAINING HEALTHY YOUTH IN MAINE
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1027570
Grant No.
2021-70026-35911
Cumulative Award Amt.
$224,963.00
Proposal No.
2021-08112
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Sep 1, 2021
Project End Date
Aug 31, 2024
Grant Year
2021
Program Code
[FASIP]- Food Agriculture Service Implementation Project
Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF MAINE
(N/A)
ORONO,ME 04469
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Rural residents of Maine (ME) represent over 60% of the population and are disproportionately impacted by environmental and socio-demographic factors (lower incomes, less access to resources, less availability of healthy/affordable foods) that impact their nutritional health compared to their urban counterparts. Adding to these rural health disparities, the COVID-19 pandemic caused the projected childhood food insecurity rate in rural ME to increase by as much as 33%, resulting in about 30% of ME's rural youth being food insecure in 2020, which is the highest rate in the northeast. Furthermore, almost half (47.8%) of rural ME youth qualify for free/reduced price lunch compared to the state average of 44%. This data demonstrates the need for programming and resources in rural areas to combat food insecurity and improve nutritional health. This proposal addresses these needs by implementing farm to school (FTS) programs in rural ME middle and high schools. Farm to school programs are a proven strategy to address childhood hunger and improve nutritional health. Therefore, the overarching goal of this proposal is to develop a ME FTS Institute that is sustainable and scalable, to provide the professional learning, training, resources, and support needed in rural Maine schools so they may implement FTS activities.To address rural ME community needs and priorities set by schools and stakeholders, five partnering organizations joined together in this proposal, Farm to School THYME: Training for Healthy Youth in Maine, to complement and build on existing efforts to increase capacity for agriculture and nutrition education within rural middle/high schools by creating a ME FTS Institute (ME-FTSI). By implementing this proposal's goals and objectives, ME will scale-up existing FTS initiatives in a significant way and thereby increase knowledge of agriculture and nutritional health, while empowering youth to be leaders of change in their school communities. This will lead to sustainable resources and activities to improve food security in these rural communities.The ME-FTSI will convene 6 school teams for a 3-day in-person intensive workshop, followed by a year-long implementation with TA from an assigned Coach and other ME FTS partners. Through the extensive partnering networks, schools will play an integral role in designing the ME-FTSI by shaping the focus of the 3-day workshop. The ME-FTSI is built on a service learning model that trains college students to mentor middle/high school students and assist them with implementing FTS programming in their own schools. By serving rural schools across ME, thousands of students and families who are currently not reached will be impacted by system and program changes that are proven to improve nutritional health, knowledge of agriculture, and build partnerships with rural producers; holistically addressing school food security.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
70460991010100%
Knowledge Area
704 - Nutrition and Hunger in the Population;

Subject Of Investigation
6099 - People and communities, general/other;

Field Of Science
1010 - Nutrition and metabolism;
Goals / Objectives
The overarching goal of this proposal is to develop a Maine Farm to School Institute (ME-FTSI) that is sustainable and scalable to increase knowledge of agriculture and improve nutritional health of youth living in rural ME communities while building ongoing structures of professional learning and increased capacity for rural ME schools to implement farm to school (FTS) activities.1. Increase capacity for rural middle/high schools to implement a school-wide farm to school action plan by providing a ME-FTSI:a.Increase access to and promotion of Maine-grown foods in school meal programs.b.Increase access to hands-on garden, agriculture, and nutrition education through curriculum support for teachers and classrooms in participating schools.c. Engage community members and form partnerships between school-garden initiatives andcommunity members (including families, farmers, and community organizations and businesses).d. Provide training & technical assistance to ensure successful development of an integrated, school-wide FTS sustainable action plan.e. Increase school and community activities that alleviate food insecurity in low-income households2.Create service-learning opportunities for Maine public school students to engage in school food education and advocacy and gain deeper understanding about food, nutrition, and agriculture.3. Provide experiential learning opportunities for college students to apply learning in real world contexts and develop skills of community engagement.
Project Methods
Goal 1: Increase capacity for rural middle/high schools to implement a school-wide FTS action plan. During the workshop, school teams will work with their coach to develop an action plan to be implemented in year 2. Action plans will consist of goal setting, delegating tasks, timeline mapping, and identifying needed assistance. Teams will receive year-long coaching, a toolkit for success, and funds to support action plan implementation.Goal 2. Create service-learning opportunities for ME school students to engage in school food education and advocacy and deepen understanding about food, nutrition, and agriculture. Middle/high school students will attend a one-day training during the workshop, and be trained using hands-on activities, such as cooking demonstrations, aquaculture methods, food preservation, taste-testing, and gardening. Students will spend time with their college mentors and brainstorm ideas of ways to assess their school food environment, preliminary project ideas that would improve their school community, and a social media plan to document their service-learning activities. The social media plan may include short video reflections showcasing FTS activities, highlights of their findings from the school food environment assessment, nutrition programming, and interviews with fellow students.During year 2, the students will put their plans into action through the support of their college mentor. Potential projects include encouraging increased consumption of fruits and vegetables through taste tests, expanding a portion of the school-garden, and/or implementing a school food pantry or backpack program. Through this experience middle/high schoolers will grow their leadership skills by making healthful changes in their school/community environment and learn skills in assessment, health communication, reporting, and advocacy.Goal 3. Provide experiential learning opportunities for college students to apply learning in real world contexts and develop community engagement and leadership skills. Experiential learning is utilized throughout the project to provide college students opportunities to learn through identifying community needs and implementing agriculture/nutrition based activities in rural schools. During year 1, mentors will participate in 6 training sessions, led by Dr. McNamara, UMCE 4-H, and EFNEP, that focus on working effectively with youth, how to develop and conduct a school food environment needs assessment, and methods for implementing agriculture and school nutrition programming. Throughout year 2, college mentors will meet with their middle/high schoolers in-person and virtually to help them plan, implement, and evaluate their agriculture/nutrition based programming.

Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience:Rural middle/high schools in Maine Changes/Problems:Due to COVID-19 the first cohort of the Maine Farm and Sea to School Institute included only 3 schools instead of the intended 6. Therefore, it was necessary to do a no-cost extension to recruit an additional three schools for the project. After the first cohort of schools, we gained feedback on how to make the three-day academy program more feasible for school teams and based on that feedback we adjusted the program. The biggest adjustment was not to require student attendance at the academy program, but rather bring students on board during the school year to help inform the farm to school activities occurring at their school. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Undergraduate and graduate students have been trained and gained hands-on experience participating in service-learning projects in Maine rural middle schools and high schools. Additionally, schools teams, which were comprised of school nutrition directors, administrators, and teachers gained training and professional development on how to increase their school's farm to school activities. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results have been disseminated back to the schools who particpated in the farm to school institute. All schools recevied their own data, along with deidentfied data of the other schools to see how their school compares. Results have also been disseminated through conference presentations. Seven abstracts have been accepted to showcase the work of the Maine Farm and Sea to School Institute. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Two cohort of schools (N=6) have particpated in the Maine Farm and Sea to School program. Students were trained in service-learning and havevisited all sixschools to assist with service-learning projects. The final evaluations of program impacts were conducted in May 2024 to establish changes in farm to school activities in rural schools in Maine. Undergraduate and graduate students have been trained and gained hands-on experience participating in service-learning projects in Maine rural middle schools and high schools. Through the work of the ME-FTSI the schools have met project objectives and have accomplished the following: • 100% of schools that attended the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS-cafeteria based activities as measured in section 1 on FTS rubric. • 100% of schools that attended the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS-classroom based activities as measured by section 2 on FTS rubric. • 100% of schools that attended the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS-community based activities as measured by section 3 on FTS rubric. • 100% of schools that attended the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS integration/staying power based activities as measured by section 4 on the FTS rubric. • 60% of schools that attend the ME-FTSI increased school food security resources to students. Additionally, 3 undergraduate and 1 graduate student has participated in service-learning opportunities for Maine public school students to engage in school food education and advocacy and gain deeper understanding about food, nutrition, and agriculture.This project has therefore provided experiential learning opportunities for college students to apply learning in real world contexts and develop skills of community engagement.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Kubinsky B, Sullivan A, Roy L, McNamara J. Fostering Healthy Food Choices in Schools: The Influence of Behavioral Economics on Skin Carotenoid Levels. American Public Health Association. 2024.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Roy L, Sullivan A, Kubinsky B, McNamara J. Investigating Food Waste Patterns and Skin Carotenoid Levels in Secondary Education. American Public Health Association. 2024.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Sullivan A, Roy L, Kubinsky B, McNamara J. Schools Improve Farm and Sea to School Activities After Participating in First Maine Farm & Sea to School Institute. Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Knoxville, TN. 2024
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Kubinsky B, Sullivan A, Neptune L, McNamara J. Rural Schools in Maine Have Opportunities to Increase Farm to School Activities. Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2024
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Sullivan A, Roy L, Kubinsky B, Raymond K, McNamara J. Beyond the Lunch Line: Understanding Student Perceptions of the School Food Environment and Dietary Choices. American Public Health Association. 2024.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Sullivan A, Roy L, Kubinsky B, McNamara J. Give us fresh fruit. Students Perceptions of the School Food Environment Compared to Skin Carotenoid Levels. American Society for Nutrition. 2024.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Roy L, Sullivan A, Kubinksy B, Neptune L, McNamara J. Fruit and Vegetable Food Waste is Correlated to Low Skin Carotenoid Levels in Middle School Students. Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior. 2024


Progress 09/01/22 to 08/31/23

Outputs
Target Audience:Rural middle/high schools in Maine Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Undergraduate and graduate students have been trained and gained hand-on experience participating in service-learning projects in Maine rural middle schools and high schools. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Currently, the second cohort of schools are participating the Maine Farm and Sea to School program. Students are being trained in service-learning and are visiting the schools to assist with service-learning projects. The final evaluations of program impacts will be conducted in May 2024 to establish changes in farm to school activities in rural schools in Maine.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Currently, the second cohort of schools are participating the Maine Farm and Sea to School program. Students are being trained in service-learning and are visiting the schools to assist with service-learning projects. The final evaluations of program impacts will be conducted in May 2024 to establish changes in farm to school activities in rural schools in Maine. Undergraduate and graduate students have been trained and gained hand-on experience participating in service-learning projects in Maine rural middle schools and high schools. During the year the following project goals are working to be met. Through the work of the ME-FTSI schools have met project objectives and have accomplished the following: 100% of schools that attend the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS-cafeteria based activities as measured in section 1 on FTS rubric. 100% of schools that attend the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS-classroom based activities as measured by section 2 on FTS rubric. 100% of schools that attend the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS-community based activities as measured by section 3 on FTS rubric. 100% of schools that attend the ME-FTSI achieved a mean score of at least 2 on FTS integration/staying power based activities as measured by section 4 on the FTS rubric. 60%of schools that attend the ME-FTSIincreased school food security resources to students. Additionally, 3 undergraduate and 1 graduate student has particpated inservice-learning opportunities for Maine public school students to engage in school food education and advocacy and gain deeper understanding about food, nutrition, and agriculture. This project has therefore providedexperiential learning opportunities for college students to apply learning in real world contexts and develop skills of community engagement.

Publications


    Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/22

    Outputs
    Target Audience:The target audience reached during this year includes rural middle/high school administrators, teachers, community members, and students. We also reached Maine FoodCorps service members who are working directly with school districts in Maine. Changes/Problems:There were issues with recruiting schools to participate in the Maine Farm and Sea to School Institute. When following up with schools that were interested but did not apply, they reported that the timeframe was difficult and still recovering from issues they had to deal with related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to still reach rural schools in Maine, the CAB invited Maine Food Corps service members to attend the Academy program and work with a coach as they developed an Action Plan for their school district. This allowed additional schools to benefit from the support and tools being disseminated at the Academy program and will prepare schools in the future to form teams and participate in growing their farm-to-school programming. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This project has provided opportunities for school teams (administrators, food service, teachers) to be trained in farm-to-school programming and receive continued techinical assistance from a farm-to-school coach. Additional training in diversity, equity, and inclusion has also been provided to the planning/organizing team of the Maine Farm to School Institute. College students have been involved in training to become 4-H STEM Ambassadors, in which they participate in positive youth development training and experiential learning training. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the next reporting period, school teams will be implementing their farm-to-school action plan, meeting with their farm-to-school coach, and will be invited to participate in virtual training and community of practice calls. College student mentors will work with middle/high school students to implement and evaluate their service learning projects. College students will participate in reflections to assess their experiences. Middle/high school students who participate in the service-learning project will be evaluated to assess their understanding of food, nutrition, and agriculture.

    Impacts
    What was accomplished under these goals? IMPACT:Rural youths' nutrition security is disproportionately impacted due to social determinants of health, including lower incomes, inadequate health care access, lack of public transportation, less social support, and less availability of healthy/affordable foods compared to urban dwellers. All of these put rural youth at greater risk for developmental impairments, social and behavioral problems, struggles in school, and chronic disease. Improving health resources in states such as Maine, where many people live in rural communities, can help combat these disparities, and reduce the gap in health inequality between rural and urban communities. To facilitate healthful changes in rural Maine communities, a community advisory board (CAB) was established to focus on developing, planning, and implementing the Maine Farm and Sea to School Institute. Members of the CAB include the University of Maine, University of Maine Cooperative Extension, and the Maine Farm and Sea to School Network. The Maine Farm and Sea to School Network include members from Cumberland County Food Security Council, FoodCorps Maine, Maine Department of Education Child Nutrition, Maine Agriculture in the Classroom, and other organizations that aim to grow farm-to-school programming in Maine. During year 1 of this project, 4 middle/high school teams, along with 10 Maine Food Corps service members, were admitted into the Maine Farm and Sea to School Institute. 25 people, representing 8 schools/school districts in Maine, attended a 3-day academy program in August 2022 that focused on farm-to-school programming in the cafeteria, classroom, and community. 8 action plans were developed for schools/districts to map out their goals/objectives and achievable "next steps" to grow their farm-to-school programming over the following school year. Additionally, two schools brought students to the academy program for a one-day training. Students were paired with three 4-H trained college student mentors to start the planning of a service-learning project. Middle schoolers decided on a service-learning project they thought their school would benefit from. Having schools/districts/students develop their own programming goals and objectives will ensure that the program is tailored appropriately, sustainable, and important to that community, which ensures that resources are being used efficiently to make changes that will have the biggest impact on the health of the community. By making environmental changes using farm-to-school activities in rural schools, more youth will have access to better nutrition security. Good health plays a major role in improving individuals' quality of life and ensuring an able workforce and economic stability. 1. Increase capacity for rural middle/high schools to implement a school-wide farm to school action plan by providing a ME-FTSI: a.Increase access to and promotion of Maine-grown foods in school meal programs. b.Increase access to hands-on garden, agriculture, and nutrition education through curriculum support for teachers and classrooms in participating schools. c. Engage community members and form partnerships between school-garden initiatives andcommunity members (including families, farmers, and community organizations and businesses). d. Provide training & technical assistance to ensure successful development of an integrated, school-wide FTS sustainable action plan. e. Increase school and community activities that alleviate food insecurity in low-income households Components of this goal were accomplished during the 3-day academy program. School teams participated in workshops that focused on: (a) how to connect with farms, and local food procurement (b) how to incorporate agricultural literacy in the classroom, school cafeteria options and how to use produce in school meals, and school garden and school orchard workshops (c) In the school action planning, school teams outline goals and next steps to further engage community members in farm-to-school programming (d) All school teams attended the 3-day academy program and were matched with a farm-to-school coach that they will be working with during year 2 2.Create service-learning opportunities for Maine public school students to engage in school food education and advocacy and gain a deeper understanding of food, nutrition, and agriculture. Three students from the participating schools attended a one-day training over the summer. Students worked with a 4-H college student mentor to brainstorm a service-learning project that they will implement during year 2. 3. Provide experiential learning opportunities for college students to apply learning in real-world contexts and develop skills of community engagement. Three college students have been recruited and trained as 4-H STEM Ambassadors to facilitate implementing a service learning project in rural Maine schools. By participating college students are gaining skills in program planning, organizing and managing people, and evaluation efforts.

    Publications