Professional Learning & Technical Assistance

Get in Touch to Discuss Your Needs

Learn about upcoming professional development opportunities, customizing a training for your group, organization or staff, or partnering with us to bring a course to your region.

Email [email protected] to begin a conversation.

Vermont FEED offers a range of professional learning and technical assistance opportunities to school districts, farms, professional organizations, child nutrition programs, non-profit organizations, and practitioners to support the development of robust farm to school programs.

Our staff offers expertise in farm to school and early childhood program development, local procurement, curriculum design, community outreach, and more. If you’re looking for help with a topic or skill outside our specialties, we’ll connect you with the right partner for that work.

Learn about annual offerings that we both offer and support, or connect directly with us to make an individualized plan.

 

Educators work outdoors at a picnic table

Photo: Andy Duback

 

Annual Workshops & Programs

  • Northeast Farm to School Institute
    Our year-long professional learning opportunity for Northeast school, district, and early childhood teams. Since 2010, the Institute has been bringing teams together to build relationships, skills, and a collaborative action plan for their schools. With the support of a coach, teams spend the school year putting their plans into action and strengthening their capacity to impact classrooms, cafeterias, and communities, with change that lasts.
  • Farm to School Institute Adaptation Program
    We’re supporting adaptations of our Farm to School Institute model in states across the country, engaging new cohorts of leaders who can share their learning and experience. The program is an opportunity for farm to school leaders across the country to adapt the model to their region and grow farm to school in their state.
  • ABCs of Farm-Based Education
    Co-presented by Shelburne Farms Institute for Sustainable Schools and the Farm-Based Education Network, this three-day workshop is designed for farmers, farm-based educators, and non-formal educators. Fill your toolbox with kid-tested activities as you join a community of peers from around the region while you explore Shelburne Farms’ dairy, farmyard, garden, and forest classrooms.
  • Cultivating Joy & Wonder
    A professional learning program for early childhood educators offered by the Shelburne Farms Institute for Sustainable Schools. This five-day program uses the working farm campus to explore place-based learning and hands-on activities to inspire your curriculum with fresh ideas.
  • Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets Farm to School & Early Childhood Capacity Grant
    A competitive, state-wide grant opportunity to develop and expand comprehensive farm to school and early childhood programming. Vermont FEED offers curricular support and technical assistance during the course of the grant.
  • Farm to Early Childhood Workshops
    We offer farm to early childhood workshops annually. Please contact Farm to Early Childhood Education Partnership Coordinator Cynthia Greene at [email protected] for upcoming opportunities.
     

school nutrition professionals learn together in the cafeteria kitchen

Photo & Banner: Sarah Webb

 

Connect with Us to Make a Personalized Plan

No two districts, schools, early childhood programs, or farms are the same—we’ll craft a program to support your challenges and learning.

Our offerings include consultations, stand-alone workshops, workshop series, graduate-level courses, mentoring, and more. These opportunities can also be facilitated in partnership with your local or regional farm to school organization.

Get in touch to discuss your needs! Reach out to [email protected] to begin a conversation. 

Browse our offerings below to learn more about how we can work with you:

Professional Learning Topics

All topics can be facilitated at multiple levels of experience—work with us to get started with farm to school and early childhood, or deepen existing programs. 

Introduction to the 3Cs of Farm to School

  • Community connections, classroom context, cafeteria and school nutrition
  • Case studies and stories of farm to school

Curriculum Connections

  • Explore early childhood K-12 curriculum ideas
  • Align farm to school with existing school policies, priorities, and mandates
  • Design integrated food systems and agricultural education into your existing curriculum, eg field trips, food, nutrition, cooking and taste tests

Farm- & Garden-Based Education

  • Integrate school garden and alternative growing spaces into the classroom and cafeteria
  • Connecting farm visits to learning experiences

School Nutrition & Taste Testing

  • History of school food programs, commodity (USDA Foods) and distribution
  • Local food purchasing and values-based tiered buying
  • Taste tests & FFVP snack program

Technical Assistance Topics

Farm to School Action Planning
If you’re ready to take farm to school to the next level, then action planning is for you. 

Vermont FEED uses an established action planning process to help you build a diverse and committed farm to school team, clarify goals, develop strategies, and create change. Whatever stage your program is in, we can help you strengthen your activities and spread the benefits even further.

Local Purchasing
Incorporating local foods into school nutrition programs is easier than you may think. And, the benefits can far outweigh the challenges! When students are served fresh, skillfully prepared foods from local producers, the result is often increased participation, which leads to greater revenue for the school meal program, improved student nutrition, and increased connection to the community.

Incorporating local foods into your school or early childhood program is a long-term effort that requires a systemic approach, creativity, and collaboration.

Topics include:

  • values-based purchasing
  • developing relationships with local farmers and producers
  • sourcing and procuring local food
  • strategizing your local foods budget with other school meal funding opportunities like USDA Foods, DOD Fresh, The Local Foods Incentive Grant and the Local Foods for Schools Grant 
  • food safety and farm fresh products
  • scratch-cooking with fresh, local ingredients
  • incorporating local food into recipes and menus
  • marketing a local food program
  • introducing new foods to students

Vermont Local Foods Incentive
Vermont FEED can support you in taking advantage of Vermont’s Local Foods Purchasing Incentive Grant. This program provides a direct financial incentive to school districts and supervisory unions that meet local purchasing targets in their school meal programs, allowing them to serve more fresh Vermont food on their menus.