Developing a Farm to School Program

The Livingston School Districts are progressive in their efforts to use local foods in the school lunch program. The funding secured is used to develop an onsite farm that is managed by the Future Farmers of America (FFA) class. Each school has a garden that is maintained and harvested by the students and used in school lunches. A Farm to School Educator was hired and works to educate students at each school as well as aid in the maintenance of the gardens and farm when school is not in session. Funding activities included, but were not limited to: grant research; application preparation and submission; meetings with potential funders; site visits; collaboration with the City of Livingston; preparing a project management plan; and, coordinating all sources of funding. The total cost of the project was $107,010 and was completed with federal and private funding.

Project Developer and Manager for Nittany Grantworks during the application process of this project.