Farm to School Planning Toolkit

Below are helpful resources for each stage of the Farm to School Action Planning Cycle, which we use with our Farm to School Institute. Click the links below to access individual resources. All resources are copyright of Vermont FEED and can be used and adapted with permission. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions.

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Click on the titles below for full desscriptions and how to download. View the full FEED Resource Library here.

Action Cycle for Farm to School Diagram (above)

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Connecting Classrooms, Cafeterias, Communities: A Guide to Building Integrated Farm to School Programs

This Vermont FEED Guide walks you through farm to school action planning, and provides valuable content on classroom curriculum, school meal programs, and community building. The guide is filled with useful templates, curricular design strategies, and creative ways to communicate and celebrate farm to school success.

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Farm to School Rubric

This planning rubric is designed to help farm to school and early childhood teams get a systems-wide view of their farm to school program. It is designed to help assess the stage of your farm to school program, which informs your action planning process, identifying what next steps could deepen your program and give it greater staying power. It can also be used to identify readiness for Farm to School grants and needs for technical assistance.

Download as a PDF
Download as a Google Document (select "make a copy" to access your own editable version)

Farm to School Action Planning Template

These worksheets are designed to help you get going on your farm to school plan. Use it to brainstorm and think through the goals, action steps, group members, timeline, and resources/assistance needed.

Download as a PDF
Download as a Google Document (select "make a copy" to access your own editable version)

Impact & Feasibility Analysis Tool

This tool helps you facilitate a group discussion of options that have the highest benefit or impact for the least effort or cost—in terms of both time and expense. It's similar to a “cost-benefit analysis” that helps you prioritize, match actions to your capacity, and stay realistic about timing.

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A Coaching Guide for Farm to School Action Planning

If you are a new or returning coach in the Northeast Farm to School Institute, this guide will help you to navigate the coaching process, access tools and techniques, and understand the impact of coaching for developing robust and long lasting integrated farm to school programs. In this guide, we outline our Northeast Farm to School Institute coaching practices, the importance of the coach role, and how to build an equity lens that can be applied to any program to help make it more equitable.

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Communications Resources

Select the titles below to download the resources:

Media Tips & Sample Press Release This simple media kit will help you spread the word about your school’s plans and activities and your selection for the Northeast Farm to School Institute. Publicizing your participation in the Institute through local press and communication channels will help build support for your food, farm, and nutrition work—now and longterm. In this kit you’ll find tips for media outreach, social media, and a press release template.
Farm to School Communications & Outreach Planning
Farm to School Institute Communications Planning Template