Host
Communities
Spanning over 400 miles between our two furthest service sites, ten local organizations
provide the on-the-ground support, resources, and mentorsship so that FoodCorps
members can thrive.
21st Century Learning Program, Boulder Elementary School
Boulder, MT
Boulder
Elementary School is a K-8 school with 78% of students qualifying for free and
reduced lunch. In this rural town of less than 2000, FoodCorps partners with
local leaders and organizations to find creative solutions to a lack of access
to healthy, fresh foods available for school meals. Examples include coordinating pick-up points with producers in
Helena (30 miles away), working with Sysco (a national food distributor) to
provide Montana products whenever available, incorporating school garden
produce into the menu, and even experimenting with year-round production in a new
greenhouse.
The
school gardens and a network of donated backyard gardens also serve as a
popular outdoor classroom for students and parents alike in the after-school
and summer programs provided by 21st Century Learning. The
FoodCorps member here generally divides her time as follows:
35% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition
education)
25% Engagement (school gardens)
45% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps
Member: Camille
McGoven, camille.mcgoven@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Rochelle Hesford, Rochelle.hesford@gmail.com
LCCDC’s
Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center
Ronan, MT
Ronan, MT
Situated
on the Flathead Indian Reservation, Lake County Community Development
Corporation's Food and Agriculture Center has worked for the past decade to
reduce poverty by providing economic opportunities for area food producers. A
flagship of this effort is Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center, a USDA/ FDA
inspected processing facility, which provides cost-effective processing
equipment and technical assistance for area food entrepreneurs, and processes
local fruits and vegetables for six local school districts and the University
of Montana.
FoodCorps helps MMFEC’s school-based work by focusing main on Ronan-Pablo School District #30 (61% free and reduced lunch rate), Polson School District #23 (50% free and reduced lunch rate), and St. Ignatius School District #28 (69% free and reduced lunch rate). From working with art teachers to afterschool gardening programs to Montana-day meal events, the FoodCorps member here divides her time generally as follows:
60% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition
education)
10% Engagement (school gardens)
30% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Nicki Jimenez, nicki.jimenez@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Jan Tusick
Kalispell District 5’s Farm
to School Program
Kalispell, MT
With
a district-wide free and reduced lunch rate of 42% and 61% of the Flathead
Valley population being overweight or obese, the need for FoodCorps programming
here is imperative. Guided directly by
Kalispell’s central kitchen, FoodCorps here works with
5
elementary schools, 1 middle school, 2 high schools, and 1 county school (Smith
Valley).
The
Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program is a highlight of the Farm to School efforts
here, due in part to the appropriate funding allocated from the federal
government. As well, the fact that the snacks happen in classrooms makes it a
perfect opportunity to integrate food and education, by accompanying each of
the healthy, local foods with “snack facts” that go out to 2200 elementary
students each week.
The
FoodCorps member here divides her time approximately as follows:
15% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition education)
5% Engagmenet (school gardens)
80% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Jessica Manly, jessica.manly@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Jennifer Montague, montaguej@sd5.k12.mt.us
Lockwood Boys & Girls Club
Billings, MT
Billings, the largest city in Montana, is home to the Boys
and Girls Clubs of Yellowstone County. The Lockwood unit is located on the
outskirts of Billings on the campus of Lockwood Schools, which serves K through
8th grade. Though it is not separate from Billings, the community in
Lockwood is very close and many students attend the BGC. The FoodCorps service member organizes and leads after
school nutrition and culinary activities with members of the Boys and Girls
Club. The FoodCorps member also acts as the garden coordinator for an
on-site raised bed school garden and is active in
classrooms at the Lockwood Elementary School during the day teaching nutrition
and garden lessons.
The FoodCorps member here divides her time approximately as follows:
20% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition education)
10% Engagement (school gardens)
60% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Maggie Harkins, maggie.harkins@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Annie Hasiak
National Center for Appropriate Technology & Butte Public School District
Butte, MT
The National Center
for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) was created in 1976 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization with a mission to help people by championing small-scale, local,
and sustainable solutions to reduce poverty, promote healthy communities, and
protect natural resources. NCAT is headquartered in Butte, a town in
southwestern Montana located along the contintental divide.
The FoodCorps service member's main projects include expanding two school
gardens, helping create a school garden at West Elementary School, working with the school foodservice director
to increase local food procurement, and creating nutrition education activities
for the 7th and 8th grade Food Clubs as well as
classes at two elementary schools. The
district is also partnering with the Boulder School District on a Farm to School
project funded by the USDA.
The
FoodCorps member here divides her time approximately as:
50% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition education)
25% Engagement (school gardens)
25% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Andi Giddings, andi.giddings@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Nancy Moore, nancym@ncat.org
Madison
Farm to Fork (F2F)
Ennis, MT
Ennis, MT
A
Southwest Montana community of about 1,000, Ennis is sustained by the ranching
industry and summertime tourism. With fewer than 90 frost-free growing days,
local produce is rarely available, and most residents drive more than 100 miles
round trip for groceries. Madison Farm to Fork works to provide good food,
community, and a nurturing environment to encourage success for Madison Count
food producers.
To
that end, the FoodCorps member here worked with community volunteers, teachers,
parents, and administrators to plant a school garden, which now serves as an
outdoor classroom for weekly nutrition and garden education lessons for 1st
through 4th graders.
The
FoodCorps member divides his time approximately as:
35% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition
education)
40% Engagement (school gardens)
25% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Demetrius Fassas, demetrius.fassas@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Janet Bean-Dochnahl, beandocs@gmail.com
Hyalite Elementary School
Bozeman,
MT
Situated in the Gallatin Valley and in close
proximity to six stunning mountain ranges, it’s no surprise that Hyalite
Elementary emphasizes outdoor education and a close relationship with nature
through a rigorous “no child left inside,” initiative. With 46% of students
qualifying for free and reduced lunch, it also makes sense that the school
garden is a hub for both hands-on learning, as well as education about healthy
and affordable eating.
The FoodCorps member works with elementary students
in almost every grade level to incorporate classroom objectives into garden-based
learning opportunities. She divides her time approximately as:
50% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition
education)
45% Engagement (school gardens)
5% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps
Member: Erin Jackson, erin.jackson@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps
Site Supervisor: Mike Van Vuren, mike.vanvuren@bsd7.org
The
Food Partnership Council, Red Lodge
Red Lodge, MT
A community of 2,500 nestled beneath the Beartooth Mountains, Red Lodge faces a short growing season and a significant distance from a major city. As well, 38% of Red Lodge students qualify for free and reduced lunch. However, with burgeoning Farm to School efforts, cooking classes with after-school programs, and a brand-new Youth Garden, Red Lodge is proving that local food is possible, even at 5500 feet!
The FoodCorps service member placed with the Food Partnership Council serves the Red Lodge Public School District and partner organizations including the Boys & Girls Club and Beartooth Children's Center. The service member divides her time fairly equally between nutrition education, school gardens, and local food procurement in the cafeteria. The service member will also work closely with a community-wide local food network through the Food Partnership Council.
A community of 2,500 nestled beneath the Beartooth Mountains, Red Lodge faces a short growing season and a significant distance from a major city. As well, 38% of Red Lodge students qualify for free and reduced lunch. However, with burgeoning Farm to School efforts, cooking classes with after-school programs, and a brand-new Youth Garden, Red Lodge is proving that local food is possible, even at 5500 feet!
The FoodCorps service member placed with the Food Partnership Council serves the Red Lodge Public School District and partner organizations including the Boys & Girls Club and Beartooth Children's Center. The service member divides her time fairly equally between nutrition education, school gardens, and local food procurement in the cafeteria. The service member will also work closely with a community-wide local food network through the Food Partnership Council.
The
FoodCorps member divides her time approximately as:
45% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition
education)
25% Engagement (school gardens)
30% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Emily Howe, emily.howe@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps
Site Supervisor:
Martha Brown, Mbrown.mt@gmail.com
Missoula County Public Schools
Missoula, MT
Missoula County Public Schools Food
Service is one of the largest school food service operations in Montana,
serving 6,000 meals daily. MCPS Food
Service is committed to serving Missoula kids of all income levels healthy, and
whenever possible, local meals to fuel their education. Garden City Harvest is a non-profit
organization dedicated to building community through agriculture by growing
produce with and for people with low incomes.
Garden City Harvest has built a farm-to-school program in Missoula with
6 school gardens (more to come) and educational experiences for thousands of
MCPS students each year.
The
FoodCorps member here is stationed side-by-side with the food purchaser for the
entire district, and divides his daily duties approximately as:
35% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition education)
5% Engagement (school gardens)
60% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Peter Kerns, peter.kerns@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Ed Christensen, ejchristensen@mcps.k12.mt.us
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North Shore Compact: Somers, Bigfork and Cayuse Prairie Schools
Somers, Bigfork, Kalispell, MT
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North Shore Compact: Somers, Bigfork and Cayuse Prairie Schools
Somers, Bigfork, Kalispell, MT
The North Shore Compact is
comprised of three school districts and four elementary and middle schools:
Somers/Lakeside, Bigfork, and Cayuse Prairie. Spread over about thirty miles,
the schools are each part of small, close-knit communities in the gorgeous
Flathead Valley. Towns with substantial summer populations, Somers and Bigfork
are quiet in the winter, and both schools have gardens on the property (Somers
even has a hydroponic greenhouse for winter growing). Cayuse Prairie is a rural K-8 school located East of
Kalispell made up of hard working individuals who care about their school and
the people in it.
The FoodCorps member here divides her daily duties approximately as:
45% Knowledge (hands-on nutrition education)
35% Engagement (school gardens)
20% Access (Farm to School)
FoodCorps Member: Zoe Tucker, zoe.tucker@foodcorps.org
FoodCorps Site Supervisor: Robin Vogler
