Alaska Agriculture and Schools in the News
Alaska’s Farm to School Program seeks community input in Bristol Bay
The state coordinator for Alaska’s Farm to School program, Jodie Anderson, held meetings around Bristol Bay in early November. The purpose of the meetings in Dillingham and Naknek was to brainstorm with community members on how to increase the amount of fresh and local food schools serve students.
Alaska Dispatch News: A new Pre-K Curriculum aims to Fight Obesity by Teaching kids About Subsistence
Preschool students living on Alaska's Aleutian and Pribilof Islands will learn about healthy eating in a new way this year.
Open Arms Child Development Center
In Fairbanks, Alaska, the Open Arms Child Development Center has a high tunnel that was made from scratch and is full of flourishing plants. By reusing containers for planters and pallets for support and shelves, they are doing a great job at recycling, while being able to plant a whole lot more. This project was created with grant funding from the Farm to Summer Meal program.
Winterberry Charter School
Third graders at Winterberry Charter School in Anchorage, Alaska celebrated their fall harvest of their school garden with a potato and beet soup. We heard it was so delicious there wasn't a drop left! Students also used the harvest as a math learning opportunity by having them guess which vegetables weighed one pound and then conducting actual weight measurements. Now there's a Farm to School story that can't be beet!
West Highschool Community Garden Project
Jenny Kimball, the West High School Social Studies Instructor and IB Garden Community Service Project Coordinator reports they have over 600 square feet of raised beds that they grow veggies for donation to Bean's Cafe. The school was able to get a major grant from Lowe's for a school improvement project. Mrs. Kimball applied for the grant so they could do some hardscape work around the garden. They received $2000 for their projects with the national grant.