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 First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom (center) celebrates National School Lunch Week during Farm to School Month with statewide partners. Photo Credit: Jennifer Siebel Newsom (Instagram: @jennifersiebelnewsom)
CDFA joins First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom for Interagency Working Group Meeting
As part of CDFA’s Farm to School Month celebrations and ongoing collaboration with California First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the Farm to School team provided a program update during a Farm to School Interagency Working group meeting, highlighting successes from the California Farm to School Incubator Grant Program and the California Farm to School Network and sharing upcoming opportunities for collaboration.
Working Group interagency leaders represented the California Department of Education, California Environmental Protection Agency, California Department of Labor and Workforce Development, State Board of Education, California Health and Human Services, California Department of Public Health, California Department of Ageing, California Volunteers, California Natural Resources Agency, California State Parks, California Department of Social Services, and California State Libraries.
Thank you to First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom for coordinating this effort and championing farm to school across California and the nation.
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Grant Project Highlights
 California Farm to School Incubator Grant Program grantees are hard at work implementing grant projects and transforming the school food system! Read below to learn more about the Plumas Sierra County Fair Foundation's grant project!
The Plumas Sierra County Fair Foundation (PSCF) was awarded California Farm to School Incubator Grant Program funds in 2022 to collaborate with regional food producers and
regional academic institutions, and expand the capacity of schools to offer locally sourced food year-round by providing a central commissary/training kitchen to teach students and staff to procure, preserve, and package farm products.
PSCF has been working hard to achieve these grant project goals! In July, PSCF created meal kits as prizes for kids, families, and community members who played educational games at their fair booth - including answering questions about farming and agriculture, and held cooking demos. In August, PSCF organized a farm field trip for the food service staff at Plumas Unified School District and attended a workshop by partner University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) and UC Master Food Preserver Intermountain Program. In September, PSCF held Try-it Thursdays at four schools, during which students sampled local goodies from Rugged Roots Farm and honey from grant partner, High Sierra Honey!
Do you want to learn more about the California Farm to School Incubator Grant Program? Let's talk! Please email your questions to cafarmtoschool@cdfa.ca.gov.
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Schools & Partners Across the State Join in Celebrating Farm to School Month!
 Photo Credit: Ravenswood Schools (Instagram: @ravenswood_team_cne), Nevada City School of the Arts (Instagram: @nevada_city_school_of_the_arts), West Contra Costa USD (Instagram: @wccusdfoodservices), San Juan USD (Instagram: @sjusdnutrition)
Nevada City School of the Arts (NCSA), San Juan Unified School District (SJUSD), West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD), Ravenswood Schools, and several other California schools participated in California Crunch Day, an annual event coordinated by the Community Alliance with Family Farmers during Farm to School Month to highlight local food, promote local farmers, and inspire students to make healthy food choices.
NCSA connected with local distributor, Yubakami, to bring apples from Butte County. SJUSD elementary sites participated with locally grown fruits and vegetables on garden bars, and 5th graders at Starr King joined in one simultaneous CRUNCH at noon! The students' favorites were Asian pears and Mini lunchbox peppers. WCCUSD students at Ford Elementary crunched on apples from local farm, Nana Mae’s Organic. Ravenswood Schools featured Asian Pears from the Fruit Guys, a local farm in Reedley, CA.
 Photo Credit: Western Placer USD (Instagram: @platefulbyWPUSD), Natomas USD (Instagram: @nusdfood), West Contra Costa USD (Instagram: @wccusdfoodservices), and Center for Ecoliteracy (Instagram:(@center_for_ecoliteracy)
Additional Farm to School Month events included the following by Western Placer Unified School District (WPUSD), Natomas Unified School District (NUSD), West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD), and Turlock Unified School District (TUSD).
- WPUSD held its second annual Guest Server Day, which included district admin, board members, community members, nonprofit partners, vendors, site admin and local politicians helping to serve lunch to WPUSD students!
- NUSD created awareness of local farmers and the great bounty they produce by hosting a farmers' market at Witter Ranch with produce provided by the local Spork Food Hub.
- WCCUSD invited the Dairy Council of California's Mobile Dairy Classroom to Highland Elementary, where instructor Brandon shared information about healthy eating and where milk comes from.
- TUSD hosted a Farm to School Expo, which included fresh produce from local farms, as well as opportunities for students to participate in activities featuring local food and for families to tour the central kitchen, and the option for everyone to take home fruits and vegetables to enjoy!
 To celebrate Farm to School Month, the Let’s Eat Healthy Initiative, powered by Dairy Council of California, hosted its third Community of Practice, Thinking Outside the Classroom: Non-Traditional Partnerships to Amplify Nutrition Education and Agricultural Literacy. These webinars highlighted promising practices and credible resources to activate Let’s Eat Healthy in local communities and inspire transformative partnerships.
Attendees learned about unique partnerships and programs that connect local communities to resources to educate on sustainable food systems and vital role foods play in nutrition security and health. The expert speaker panel below shared various strategies to engage audiences to promote dairy inclusive agricultural literacy and amplify nutrition education:
- Evy Young, Director of Agricultural Programs, OC Fair & Event Center, Centennial Farm
- Katy Young, Executive Director, ImagineU Children's Museum
- Efrain Valenzuela, Director of Dairy Agricultural Education, Dairy Council of California
Click here to watch the recorded webinar.
To get involved and join the farm to school momentum, please visit the About Us dropdown on the CA Farm to School Program page and connect with a farm to school team member in your region.
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San Marcos Unified School District Procures from Local Farm for School Lunch Boxes
 Photo Credit: San Marcos USD Nutrition (Instagram: @smusdnutrition)
San Marcos Unified School District (SMUSD) Child Nutrition Services Department is committed to serving nourishing meals for all students by expanding its scratch, in-house menu items and serving seasonal, locally-grown fruit and vegetables from farmers in San Diego County.
Recently, students at Woodland Park Middle School, were provided with the lunch (pictured above) that included whole-grain crackers, sunflower seeds, creamy hummus, low-fat string cheese, crunchy carrot sticks, and featured fresh Persian cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, sourced locally and sustainably from Dassi Family Farm in Leucadia, CA.
Click here to learn more.
Friends of the Earth Releases Report on Plant-Based Trends in California School Meals
 Friends of the Earth recently released its Plant-Based Trends in California’s School Meals report, which found that climate-friendly, plant-based school lunches have increased 60% in California since 2019 thanks to nutrition service leaders, technical assistance, policy makers and student demand!
In just one month, school districts featured over 100 culturally diverse, plant-based school lunches! Click here to learn more or read the full report.
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Laurel Tree Charter School Hosts 2nd Annual Apple Celebration
 Laurel Tree Charter School, a three-time California Farm to School Incubator Grant recipient, in Humboldt County recently hosted its second annual apple celebration!
Students were provided the opportunity to chop, mash, and press local apples into juice, as well as taste and vote on their favorite variety, make apples from play dough, draw apples, roast apples wrapped in whole wheat dough, and participate in an apple relay race!
Farm to Table Summer Camp at Santa Clara Unified School District
 For over 13 years, Stanford has partnered with the Santa Clara Unified School District (SCUSD) to host a Farm to Table Summer Camp at SCUSD’s 11-acre suburban farm in Sunnyvale, CA. The camp provides students in kindergarten through 8th grade with engaging and empowering learning experiences on the school district farm.
Three week-long camps are offered to kindergarten to third-grade students, and one week-long camp is offered to fourth- through eighth-grade students. Approximately 25 students attend each camp and learn the science behind where their food comes from and get hands-on cooking experiences at the farm. The district farm features several fields, orchards, garden beds and an outdoor pizza oven!
Click here to read the full article.
Life Lab Hosts Engineering in the Garden Workshop
 Last month, Life Lab welcomed educators to its "Engineering in the Garden" workshop at the Life Lab Garden Classroom. Participants engaged in hands-on activities, including designing and building trellises for peas - an ideal project to inspire creative problem-solving for 3rd-5th graders.
Participants also explored fun challenges that demonstrated how to guide students through observing, prototyping, and constructing full-scale trellises, all while aligning with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). In addition, educators gained practical tips for managing active outdoor classrooms and brainstormed their own garden engineering projects.
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Registration Open for California Farm to School Network Community of Practice Call
 November 21, 2024 @ 2 - 3 PM (via Zoom)
Join CDFA, the California Department of Education, and the California Farm to School Network on November 21, 2024, to learn more about California's farm to school movement.
Hosted via Zoom, the call will feature 5-10 minutes of farm to school updates, an overview of open funding opportunities, and facilitated break-out rooms focused on school food, farms + food hubs, early care and education, hands-on food education, and funding.
Click here to register.
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Let's Eat Healthy Community Grant Closes at the End of the Month
 Dairy Council of California is excited to announce requests for proposals for the 2024-2025 Let’s Eat Healthy Community Grant Program are now open! This program has already helped schools and organizations across the state, just like yours, advance equitable access to evidence-based nutrition education, dairy agricultural literacy and nutritious foods like milk and dairy foods. Help bring this opportunity to your community!
Deadline to apply: October 31, 2024
Click here to learn more or apply.
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Del Norte Resource Conservation District Hiring Conservation Planner/Administrative Assistant
The Del Norte Resource Conservation District (DNRCD) is seeking a Conservation Planner/Administrative Assistant to work with landowners and land managers to improve the resiliency and viability of agricultural operations and natural resources in Del Norte County.
This position will work collaboratively with Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) staff from the Smith River Limited Partnership Office and Eureka Field Office, as well as other partner organizations, consultants, and landowners. Essential duties will include a combination of assisting NRCS staff with Farm Bill programs and developing technical conservation plans, attending and organizing outreach at community meetings, fieldwork, and partner coordination. Additionally, this position will be responsible for conducting administrative duties that maintain the DNRCD.
The position is full-time, salaried, and works under the supervision of the DNRCD board president with direction from the DNRCD Board of Directors.
Click here to learn more or email delnortercd@yahoo.com.
Deadline to apply: November 1, 2024
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We Want to Hear From You!
Do you have feedback, ideas or a success story for the CA Farm to School Network? Please reach out to us and share! Whether it's sending us an email or tagging us on social media, we are here to help you grow!
Instagram - @cafarmtoschool
Email - cafarmtoschool@cdfa.ca.gov
It's our goal to support changemakers on the ground however we can, and the best way for us to provide that help is through clear communication! Choose your favorite method to get in touch!
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