Farm to School

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Comment by Amanda Beal on July 29, 2009 at 11:42am

Something that may be of interest: Maine College Dining Summit at St. Joeseph's College in Standish on August 5th, 2009

Maine DiningSummit2009.pdf

Comment by Amanda Beal on July 29, 2009 at 9:43am

Just a reminder - it's not too late to register!

Connecting Classrooms to Cafeterias:
From Arugula to Zucchini
A Conference for K-12 Educators

August 7, 2009 – 9:00 to 4:30

Gorham Middle School

106 Weeks Road, Gorham, Maine 04038

Conference registration is $15.00 per person – includes a delicious local lunch!

* 1.0 CEU is available – if interested, bring a check along on the day of the conference for $20.00, made payable to the University of Southern Maine.*

AGENDA

9:00-9:30 Registration - garden open for self-tours
9:30-9:50 Opening remarks
10:00-12:00 Workshop Session 1 (see choices below)
12:00-1:30 Maine Harvest Lunch & Panel Presentation
1:30-3:30 Workshop Session 2 (see choices below)
3:30-4:30 Garden open for guided or self-tours


Workshop Session 1

A: Integrating School Garden Activities into Classroom Curriculum – Grades 6-12 (Heather Russell Whitaker, Gorham Schools, Jessica Rhys, Maine School Garden Network & Cultivating Community)
A session for grades 6-12 educators who already have school gardens or are interested in starting
one with their students, and are looking for ideas to link activities to various subjects. Weather
permitting, this session will include time outside in Gorham Middle School’s garden.


B: Maine Foods for Maine Kids Curriculum Program Training - Grades K-5 (Sarah Plummer,
Cumberland County Soil & Water Conservation District)
A session for grades K-5 educators that will delve into the progressive local foods curriculum
program developed to support the Maine Harvest Lunch program in schools.

C: The Making of a Maine Harvest Lunch Cooking Class (Cheryl Wixson, Maine Organic Farmers &
Gardeners Association)
A hands-on class using locally grown, seasonally available foods. Cheryl has taught this fun and
enlightening class to many school food services staff, teachers and students in support of the
Maine Harvest Lunch program.

D: Classroom Composting (Elizabeth Patten, Healthy Foods from Healthy Soils)
The author of Healthy Foods from Healthy Soils - A Hands-On Resource for Teachers, Elizabeth will
teach participants about classroom composting and vermiculture, as well as discuss the basics of outdoor
systems.


Workshop Session 2

E: Integrating School Garden activities into your Curriculum – Grades K-5 (Heather Russell Whitaker,
Gorham Schools, Jessica Rhys, Maine School Garden Network & Cultivating Community)
A session for grades K-5 educators who already have school gardens or are interested in starting
one with their students, and are looking for ideas to link activities to various subjects. Weather
permitting, this session will include time outside in Gorham Middle School’s garden.

F: Maine Foods for Maine Kids Curriculum Program Training - Grades 6-8 (Amanda Beal, PROP’s
Communities Promoting Health Coalition)
A session for grades 6-8 educators that will delve into the progressive local foods curriculum
program developed to support the Maine Harvest Lunch program in schools.

G: Taste Testing Activities for Students (Local Sprouts Cooperative)
Educators from Local Sprouts Cooperative will share recipes and techniques that engage and
encourage students to try new foods as a strategy for shifting food preferences toward healthier
options.

H: Preserving the Harvest (Kathy Savoie, University of Maine Cooperative Extension)
Kathy will teach the basics of food safety and preservation in a kitchen setting, and discuss
Cooperative Extension resources for educators.


REGISTER AT:
www.mofga.org - select HOME, then CALENDAR and scroll to August 7th

INQUIRIES may be directed to:
Amanda Beal at abeal@propeople.org or 207-553-5838


Conference co-sponsors: Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association, Cultivating Community, Maine School Garden Network, Cumberland County Soil & Water Conservation District, University of Maine Cooperative Extension and PROP's Communities Promoting Health Coalition (A Healthy Maine Partnership).

Comment by Amanda Beal on June 25, 2009 at 6:23pm

Hi All,

Just wanted to alert you to an event happening in Gorham on August 7th:
Connecting Classrooms and Cafeterias: From Arugula to Zucchini - A Conference for K-12 Educators. Check out the ELFC calendar or MOFGA's online calendar (www.mofga.org) for more info.

Thanks,
Amanda

Comment by Heather Albert-Knopp on February 27, 2009 at 12:22pm

Mount Desert Elementary School (in Northeast Harbor) was featured on Martha Stewart Living in January! You can watch the clip online at this link (look on the right side of the page for Mount Desert School and click there) --

http://www.marthastewart.com/show/the-martha-stewart-show/detox-your-diet-with-dr-andrew-weil?autonomy_kw=Mount%20desert%20Island%20School

Comment by Ken Morse on February 21, 2009 at 12:23pm

Oops, Sorry, the Legislation is called Maine Food for Maine Students.

Comment by Ken Morse on February 21, 2009 at 12:22pm

The Maine Farm to School Work Group is working with Jeff McCabe, new Rep from Skowhegan to introduce Farm to School legislation. It's called Maine Food for Maine People and it endorses the work of the Work Group which is a group of representative of local, regional and state organizations and state departments working to create a framework to support the growth of Farm to School efforts in Maine.

Comment by Sharon Kitchens on February 19, 2009 at 5:28pm

Who can tell me about what is going on in Maine to encourage the state's school system to cut out junk food and get farm fresh/local/nutritious made meals in? With the lobstermen suffering so this past fall I've been thinking a lot about how Maine school children could have been eating lobster rather than french fries!

Comment by Jessica Bean on January 22, 2009 at 3:46pm

This new MSGN is now looking for volunteer members for an advisory board. Being a member of this board will be an opportunity to shape the Maine School Garden Network as it is being rebuilt, and to create support for school gardens and green school initiatives all over the state.

One and two year board membership opportunities are available. We are looking for some college and high school age members, and also for members with fundraising experience or expertise. Most of all though, we are looking for individuals with vision, optimism and passion for school gardens and green schools with the ability to be dedicated.

Board membership duties will entail regular monthly or bimonthly meetings, and periodic volunteer work outside of meetings to support development of the organization.

For more information please contact Jessica Rhys at pondmountain@hotmail.com or 207-831-5655.

Comment by Jon Berry on September 4, 2008 at 6:05am

i'm interested in seeing what is being done about getting local food into Maine schools.

Comment by Amanda Beal on September 2, 2008 at 1:52pm

Please help to spread the word about this great field trip opportunity!

School Groups are welcome at the 2008 Common Ground Country Fair - FREE Admission for school groups on Friday, September 19, 2008.


Travel stipends are available!


This year’s Common Ground Country Fair takes place on September 19, 20 & 21 at MOFGA's Common Ground Education Center in Unity. The Fair presents a wonderful opportunity for a school field trip, offering many fun and educational things to see and do for school groups of all ages.

To encourage school attendance, MOFGA always opens the gates of the Fair to school groups (including homeschoolers) for free on Friday, September 19.

In addition, MOFGA recognizes how tight school field trip budgets are and appreciates the additional costs incurred by school groups traveling to the Fair. Thanks to the generosity of Fairpoint Communications, MOFGA is able to offer travel stipends to help defray these costs.

Stipends are available at the rate of $1.00 per mile for full size school buses and $0.50 per mile for smaller vehicles. More information about the Fair and MOFGA's School Group programs is available here: http://mofga.org/tabid/524/Default.aspx
or by calling 568-4142.

ALSO on Friday at the Fair, there will be a Farm to School Meet-up from 12:00-1:00 in the Ag Demo # 2 tent. This will be an opportunity for students, teachers and others interested in Farm to School topics to come together and learn about each other’s efforts.

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