Hands Off: Speaking Out in Support of Local Food

The thriving national movement to provide locally-sourced, nutrient-dense food to children has taken a terrible hit due to federal government cuts issued this past month.  In March, the USDA cancelled over $1 billion, $670 million dollars supporting local food, farmers and childhood nutrition. 

Speaking at the Hands-Off! Rally on the Brattleboro Commons on April 5th, Food Connects Interim Director Lee Halpern described the impact: 

“That’s $1 billion in funding to help food banks and food hubs distribute local foods to low income consumers through the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement; $660 million to ensure local foods are in school cafeterias through Local Food for Schools and Child Care; and, $10 million to connect kids to local foods and farms through the Patrick Leahy Farm to School grant.” 

All three programs were cancelled. 

To understand the state and local impact of these cuts, cancelling Local Food for Schools and Child Care eliminated $1.2 million in federal grant funding destined to purchase local foods for Vermont schools. Fourteen schools in Windham County used this grant in the 2023-24 school year to bolster school meal programs, support local farmers, and stimulate Vermont’s rural economy.

A 2016 UVM study at the Center for Rural Studies demonstrated that for every dollar spent on local foods, $1.60 goes back into Vermont’s economy. As Halpern summarized, “Now that’s a pretty efficient return. If these cuts were really about efficiency, DOGE got their math wrong.” 

Food Connects has joined its voice with the state and national movement to fight for these programs that prioritize children’s health, build resilience in local agriculture, and strengthen the regional economy. 

For more information and to contribute your voice as well, see the March 25th The Commons article and calls to action from the National Farm to School Network. 

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Written by Kris Nelson

Tapping Into Motivation: Why Farm to School Works

Engaging high school students isn’t easy—especially when it comes to encouraging them to try new things or engage with hands-on learning.

But with climate change accelerating and global supply chains growing increasingly vulnerable, traditional skills like food production and land-based knowledge are more vital than ever.

That’s why, in the first week of March, Leland and Gray offered a three-day, project-based intensive course centered on maple syrup production.

We called the course Boiling Point: A Maple Mastery—an immersion experience hosted at the Rafters Lodge in Jamaica, Vermont by the Hazelton Family.

With perfect sugaring weather, students got to fully immerse themselves in each step of the process, gaining hands-on experience and a deep appreciation for the effort that goes into producing maple syrup.

Six students attended the course under the leadership of Drew Hazelton, Jenna Webb, Steve Ovenden, and myself.

Leading up to the event, I wasn’t sure how students would react to being off-grid or taking on the demanding tasks involved in collecting sap and turning it into syrup. But by the end, I realized just how motivating maple syrup could be. 

But enjoying maple syrup was only a byproduct of the course. In actuality, it was the students who rose to the occasion—proving just how impactful hands-on, land-based learning can be.

Braving the rain and trekking through steep hills covered in knee-deep snow, every student dug deep and made the most of the experience.

As one student reflected, "I feel that programs like this can trigger layers of inspiration... in future jobs or through art. It creates a new atmosphere which creates new brilliant ideas."

This quote gets to the heart of why Farm to School programming matters.

By stepping outside the classroom and away from traditional learning models, immersive experiences open endless pathways for students to discover inspiration.

In turn, inspiration fuels motivation, and motivation drives learning.

For me, the most rewarding part of this experience was stepping back and watching that learning unfold—independent of instruction.

Whether it’s learning how to identify trees, recognizing the unique traits that characterize each species, or uncovering the rich history each one holds—the forest will always be the best teacher.

As we helped make syrup come to life through evaporation, hard work and patience were at the top of the curriculum in lessons learned.


In the end, we couldn’t have asked for a more well-rounded experience.

The weather cooperated fully, allowing students to engage deeply in every step of the process and walk away with a newfound appreciation for the syrup on their plate the next time they dig into a stack of pancakes.

As one student put it, "It teaches them to respect the hard work that goes into making products—also, it teaches them the old ways."

In the end, it seems this is what the students were most hungry for:

An opportunity to independently discover what it means to have a hand in producing their own food.

To step beyond the confines of the classroom and absorb lessons at their own pace.

And a chance to join the ranks of countless Vermonters before them in the sacred practice of making maple syrup.

Written by Devan Monette

Want to see the students in action? Watch this short video and feel free to like and share!

Expanding Trauma-Informed Trainings Across Vermont

Since 2019, Farm to School lead coach Sheila Humphreys has been offering workshops on Trauma-Informed Approaches to Farm to School to schools in WSESU and at regional and national Farm to School events. During the 2024-2025 school year, these workshops have expanded to other schools and districts around Vermont. These workshops are built around the central question, “How do we raise awareness about food and trauma and how do we understand how our actions impact others so that we aren’t unintentionally creating stress for our students?” and they invite participants to be vulnerable, share food stories with each other, learn how to support their most vulnerable students, and unpack their implicit biases around food.

In November, 10 para-educators from WSESU attended the training on their professional development day. In January, 16 school wellness leaders in WNESU attended the training and 24 school wellness leaders in Springfield School District received the training.  In March, 15 teachers at Central Elementary School in Bellows Falls and 6 school staff members from Northfield Schools in CVSU received the training.  All in all, this training has touched the lives of 5,525 students in 4 different school districts in Vermont.

One of the participants from Northfield reached out to Sheila after the training with these words, “I have to say, your workshop was very well organized, thought out, heartfelt, and honestly one of the best FTS workshops I have attended in a very long time! Thank you!” Overall, the training has been very well-received by educators throughout the state, who are seeing an increase in trauma in their students and looking for ways to address it.  “It is a privilege to share this work with educators around the state, and to know that the information is having a positive impact on Vermont youth,” says Sheila.

If you are interested in bringing this training to your school community, please contact Farm to School Program Director Kris Nelson, kris@foodconnects.org.


Good Neighbors: Vernon Elementary School’s Bulk Milk Partnership with Miller Farm

An Interview with Mary Ross and Shannon Connolly, by Kris Nelson

On February 10th, I attended a ribbon cutting ceremony at Vernon Elementary School, where they celebrated the installation of a bulk milk dispenser in their cafeteria, with milk supplied from their neighbor, Miller Farm, the first of its kind in WSESU. The groundwork was laid for this in October 2023 when bulk milk dispensers were installed in the WNESU schools, with milk from Miller Farm in Vernon through a partnership between NOFA-VT and WNESU and support from Food Connects.

With the coming changes to the food service in WSESU next year, I wanted to learn more about how Vernon secured the milk dispenser and why it was important to them to persevere in this effort. Recently I spoke with Vernon Elementary School Principal, Mary Ross, and Vernon Kitchen Manager, Shannon Connolly, to hear the story. We sat in the school cafeteria near the newly installed bulk milk dispenser and piles of new cups. This interview is lightly edited for clarity. 

Farmer Pete Miller of Miller Farm oversees the official ribbon cutting of Vernon Elementary School’s new Organic Bulk Milk Dispenser

KN: First, congratulations on your new bulk milk dispenser, right here next to us. Mary, when we chatted at the ribbon cutting, you indicated that the school had been working hard at this for a while. I wanted to hear more about how that came about. I get the impression that the two of you were pretty tenacious. 

MR: (laughing): She found a word that describes us! 

KN: Okay, great. Well, tell me what “tenacious” looks like. 

MR: Let’s see. How many years has it been? 

SC: For me it’s been four years. When I first started, I was curious why we would go on field trips to see Miller Farm but then we would not have his milk. 

MR: Similarly, one of our staff members shared an article with me when Windham Northeast was getting the grant. She said, “Wouldn't this be nice for us?” And I said, “Oh, I've been working on this for a while now.”  

KN: And why were you working on that?

MR: I look out my window at a community-owned family organic farm that has a wonderful product. These are community partners that are always lovely with us. They've donated products in the past to our school. They've been welcoming of kids coming over for field trips. When Pete Miller was in here for the ribbon cutting ceremony, you saw a kiddo run up and give him a huge hug, because he's seen as a community farmer and a leader and a source of comfort, I guess. During COVID, supply chains being what they were, there were times when I was going in my vehicle to pick up milk at another school because the milk couldn't be delivered since we were short-staffed. There were times when in delivery one of the milk containers would burst and a lot of the milk containers got sticky. And so, okay, that's the world of the global food supply chain, but I knew it could be different. 

Watching Windham Northeast go through the process, it became even more frustrating since we've been asking the food service company for years to find a way to do more local food and find a way to have Miller Farm as a community partner. The answers we got over the years were per USDA regs. We need to have two kinds of milk. I kept asking myself, if Windham Northeast is under the same regulations, how is that possible? I'm not in charge of food service, but that's something that's been coming out of my mouth for many, many years, and is a goal I have for our school. How can we make it happen? Our Vernon school board has been supportive of that as well. 

From Left: Pete Miller, Shannon Connolly (Vernon ES Kitchen Manager), Danielle Sage (Vernon Kitchen Staff Member), Susan Grabowski (WSESU Food Program Coordinator).

SC: Yes, they’ve been very supportive.

KN: They’ve been supportive of switching to bulk milk? 

MR: Yes, and asking the question over the years: “Hey, I saw this article, hey, I saw the story, why aren't we doing this?” And me saying, “I'm doing my best.” We even put it as an open agenda item over a series of school board meetings to kind of follow up and see if there had been any progress. And so, very recently, I was told by the food service company that it was possible and that if we wanted to go forward with it, we could.

And so then, Shannon, you worked with Pete and maybe you could talk a little bit about the many forms and processes that were required of him to get it to this point. It was pretty arduous for him. 

SC: It was hard, yeah. Kris, when you came a year and a half ago for a Food Service Advisory Meeting, you had given me Harley's name (Harley Sterling, WNESU Director of School Nutrition), so I reached out to Harley. And then Pete had given me everyone up in Windham Northeast, all their numbers to try and get the ball rolling. But there was grant writing and all sorts of crazy hoops that we had to jump through and it was not feasible for one person. So I reached out to Susan (WSESU Food Service Coordinator Susan Grabowski) and Mary also did a lot of researching and talking to people. It was just easier for the food service to say let's just get Hood Milk. It's just easier this way. 

KN: Can you say more about what were some of the barriers? 

SC: So the USDA states that you have to offer a child skim milk and 1%. I wish it was whole. We should be getting milk that has more fat in it. You need that fat for brain development. Anyway, so we always had the 1% and the skim milk from Hood and now Miller does skim and 1%. Pete’s 1% milk is not homogenized, so you get that little cream line at the top, so you gotta shake the bag. He doesn't do skim milk in the big bags, but we get skim milk from Hood so that we have it on hand. I think with Miller Farm milk, it's a start to really getting local Vermont products. But it was rough trying to get people to understand that we literally look out the window and see Pete's cows. Like, why wouldn't we have that milk? Why wouldn't that have just been like a staple to start out with? 

MR: And that's why I'm excited that we're going to an independent food service. Because Shannon, you get up really early every morning and you sometimes are by yourself and you do hard things for kids. Like, that's what we do. We make these decisions to work in school so we can do hard things in support of what kids deserve. And I think that when that's the goal instead of profit being the goal, you're gonna see a difference, right? 

SC: Absolutely. And I have a nursing background, so when I see the ingredient list for something and it's got three times the amount of sodium that a child should have in one day, it literally makes my eye twitch. I'm really trying to stop using canned tomato sauce, for example. I roast vegetables and tomatoes and make my own sauce. It's literally just roasted vegetables and I puree everything and the kids are like, “Wow, this sauce is so great. This is really good sauce.” And they have no idea that there's Brussels sprouts, that there's mushrooms, that there's peppers, that there's onions and things that I have to serve per the guidelines of the district. But they won't eat cauliflower. They won't eat Brussels sprouts. But they love everything “tomato sauce.” So on their pizza they're getting mushrooms and peppers and cauliflower and broccoli and they don't even know, but they love it. 

KN: You are making it happen. 

SC: Yeah, trying to. 

KN: There’s the goal of the students eating these things, and you’re saying, “I know how to do that.” 

SC: Right, yeah. Give me some freedom and I'll make it happen. I think going independent is going to be so much better with the food coming out of the kitchen. 

MR: And it's already pretty great. 

SC: Thank you. 

MR: I've said publicly, the work that our staff here has done, the work that, Shannon, you've done with your leadership, has insulated us from challenges that other schools have had. 

SC: Thank you. 

KN: It does often take that person in that job to work the system and to be creative.

SC: I’ve been written up many times. 

KN: Oh, really? And not in a good way!

SC: No, no. I don’t follow the recipes. But I'm not adding extra sugar into things. Like the tomato sauce, I don't add sugar to it, I add carrots. Makes it sweeter. And it's natural. I'm so grateful that Harley is coming because I feel like that's not something I would have to beg him to do or to try.

KN: You're gonna have an ally. 

SC: Yes. Exactly, but it's something I had to beg for. 

KN: And possibly get written up. 

SC: Yeah. 

KN: What seems so great is that Vernon getting a bulk milk dispenser, and developing a partnership with Miller Farm, intersects so nicely with the recent decision that was made about the independent food service. The stars are aligning in a certain way because you were successful in getting this right about the same time, so perhaps there’s an evolution that we’re seeing. 

SC: There's so many chemicals in our food that we buy. I don't know what these kids eat at home, but I know that I can provide them with something that's not full of chemicals, that's good and nutritious and that they want to eat. So that's my motivation. I wouldn't serve it to these kids if I wouldn't serve it to my own child. Making the sauce is a big deal because they like it, and it's good and it's healthy for them and they're getting things that they might not be getting at home. So, that's my motivation: to give them something good and healthy and something that they'll eat. 

MR: I was a reduced lunch kid myself as a kid. I think that food is more than food. It's an opportunity to gather. It's an opportunity to nourish your body so you can work and learn throughout the day. It's an opportunity to care for other people. When kids see that Shannon and Danielle have prepared delicious food for them, they feel cared for. To look out the window and see community partners and know that this milk I'm drinking came from that cow over there, that’s not abstract. It's not the same as the sticky carton that came from I'm not sure where. I know Mr. Miller. I've seen those cows. That's how I'm getting this nourishment for my body. It is pretty special. 

"Carrot Kimchi" and the Relationship between Food and Culture

Do you have a student or neighbor whose family is from another country? About 28,000 Vermont residents are foreign born (about 4.3% of the total population).¹   You may be interacting with someone who cherishes their comfort foods as a link to a distant home. There are two main things I wish to say about this experience: sharing cherished foods with Americans can be a sensitive topic and it can be challenging to find traditional ingredients in stores around here. 

I cherish Russian and Korean dishes which I grew up eating but which are not common here in Vermont. However, I hesitate to share these foods with friends or coworkers. When I share these foods, it does feel special, sensitive, and personal because it’s linked to home.  

Too often, I’ve heard comments about the ingredients or flavors which make me self-conscious or sad, even if they’re not meant to be hurtful. Usually people will compare the food to something familiar (“this tastes like watered-down macaroni and cheese,” “this tastes like Sprite”) or comment on the ingredients (“Seaweed? Herring mixed with mayonnaise? Quail eggs?”).  

How can we support a student, friend, or neighbor to talk about the food that they love, without making them feel judged or shy because it doesn’t fit the flavor palate of Vermont? An invitation from the author: Don’t comment, just experience. 

Here are a few tips on how to respectfully try food from someone else’s culture:

  1. Try not to compare “this is the X version of that”. Let it stand on its own, rather than being a foreign “version” of something you’re familiar with.

  2. Just take it in: the smells, textures, flavors, sounds. Eat silently; maybe throw in a “wow this is delicious” or if it’s not delicious just say, “wow, thank you for sharing, I’ve never tried this before”.

  3. When it’s time to break the silence, ask the person questions about their personal experiences, such as “Is this food connected with any specific memories or events for you?” “Is this difficult to cook or buy?”

Another issue that first or second generation immigrants to VT may be dealing with is access to ingredients. After 6 months of living in the Pioneer Valley, I am increasingly hungry for (dare I say desperate for) food that is tangy, spicy, sour, fermented, and not-oily, all at the same time. Unfortunately, the nearest Asian food market is over 30 minutes away by car and it doesn’t always have the ingredients I’m looking for.

Perhaps many of the 28,000 foreign-born residents of Vermont are feeling the same desire for that “ahh, home” feeling that comes from eating the dishes your grandma used to make. 

This doesn’t just happen for foods from your family’s culture. When I lived in the Middle East, Korea, and Australia, I found myself really craving burritos. A lot of restaurants were offering a salad wrapped in a tortilla and calling it a burrito. It turns out, the deliciousness of Mexican food is proportional to your proximity to Mexico. 

Reflecting on her own memories of West Indian and Chinese home meals, Lachelle Antonia-Gray of Hunger Free VT noticed that "food is a thread that connects us to our heritage cultures, and it's usually one of the last things to get severed." 

When people get uprooted, their connections to places, ingredients, language, and clothing all tend to fade away as people assimilate into their new communities, but food traditions tend to stick around a few generations longer. If someone knows about the food of their grandparents, they can more easily connect with the people, traditions, and emotions of their heritage cultures. 

Assimilation is not always voluntary. A state like Vermont may not have the ingredients you had at home, forcing you to stop using traditional ingredients. Making a Thai curry last night, I had to substitute worcestershire sauce for kaffir lime leaves. It tasted…okay. 

This is an experience that immigrants have been navigating for thousands of years and all over the world. In the 1930s, Stalin forced Korean immigrants onto trains bound for Uzbekistan, bringing only what they could carry. Holding on to their traditions of making kimchi, these Koryo-saram started making a non-spicy kimchi out of carrots because there was no napa cabbage or chilies to be found. Perhaps they, too, tasted a spoonful of their new creation and said “I guess it’s…okay.” This dish is still served across Russia and Central Asia, appearing on menus as “Korean carrots”.

Blending Korean traditions with Russian ingredients helped this culture survive. To this day, I personally know many Koryo-saram who can’t speak Korean but who can cook “Korean carrots”. I can even buy this side-dish at the Russian grocery store in downtown Greenfield, MA where I live. 

So, if you’re interacting with first or second generation immigrants, two things they may be experiencing are: sharing cherished foods with Americans and creating new “fusion” dishes by substituting traditional ingredients with ingredients you can buy at Hannafords. 

Here are some projects Vermont communities have done to address food access for new Americans:

By Adelaide Petrov-Yoo

Connecting Expeditionary Learning Education with Farm to School

Schools throughout Windham County are implementing a new language arts curriculum called EL Education. At Food Connects, we’re looking for ways to support local educators in linking this curriculum with hands-on food, farm, and nutrition experiences in the garden, classroom and cafeteria. 

What is EL Education?

EL, or Expeditionary Learning, is a language arts-focused curriculum that intersects with other subject areas like science and social studies. It provides a great opportunity to link with current Farm to School (FTS) programming because it, “emphasizes hands-on, experiential learning and the integration of academic content with real-world experiences.”

EL is the curriculum currently being used in Windham Southeast Supervisory Union (WSESU), Windham Northeast Supervisory Union (WNESU), and West River Education District (WRED). From K-8th grade, there are four modules per grade. At the high school level, EL starts with a guiding question, and there are several components, including: classroom expeditions, experts, fieldwork, community engagement, Intensives (3-4 days that are not curricular and are focused on team building), and an authentic product at the end.

How are teachers integrating FTS with EL?

Whether it’s 2nd graders at Academy School reading about India and then working together to make vegetable tikki masala, 3rd graders at Grafton Elementary School learning about overcoming learning challenges and experimenting with seed saving while reading the book Zoe and the Seed Garden, 8th graders at Dummerston School using the EL anchor text The Omnivore’s Dilemma to launch a study the local food system including visits to Bunker Farm and Walker Farm, or high schoolers at Leland and Gray participating in a maple sugaring intensive co-led by Devan Monnette of Food Connects, there are many ways that FTS can enrich the EL curriculum. 

There are even opportunities to link these EL modules to the Big Ideas of Farm to School. Recently, Food Connects facilitated a community of practice group discussion for FTS focused educators in WSESU, WNESU, and WRED interested in digging deeper into the connections between EL and FTS, and Oak Grove School recently worked with Food Connects and Shelburne Farms to create a professional development workshop focused on strengthening the connections between FTS and EL.

How can FTS support EL?

Schools with active FTS programs are well-positioned to integrate with the EL curriculum, because FTS education, with its emphasis on gardening and cooking with students and connecting students to local farms, is inherently experiential, hands-on, and connected to real world experiences. Contact us for more information on making connections like this at your school.

800 new class pets at Brattleboro Union High School!

Do you have a worm guy? Brattleboro Union High School (BUHS) now does. Thanks to a generous donation from Brattleboro’s Rich Earth Institute, 25 students in the BUHS Student Educational Assistance (SEA) program received compost-eating worms, compost bedding, and a worm bin. All these ingredients add up to a new lesson in food systems: vermicompost.

Vermi (worms) compost (compost) is a beautiful synergy between students’ food waste and red wiggler worms. Though red wigglers are in the spotlight, crucial supporting actors include: potworms, red & white mites, centipedes, beneficial bacteria, and fungi. This micro-community of digesters will usually show up in your compost naturally or tag along with the worms when you purchase them.

Worms don’t have teeth (or eyes, or ears, or lungs), so they need these other decomposers to help break down the food into soft, gum-able pieces. As the food passes through the worms, it turns into “worm castings,”  a rich, dark soil amendment that will add nutrients into your garden.

Classroom Connections: Soil Lessons That Stick

This vermicompost hands-on learning is part of a larger curriculum on soil health.  Students will learn about soil microorganisms, soil structure, and soil chemistry.

For today, students involved in the Youth Empowered in Agriculture program at BUHS helped put air vents in the worm bin lids, mix together some worm bedding and food scraps, and made signs showing what the worms can and cannot eat. While not all the students wanted to look at the worms, all the students enjoyed hearing that worms gum, rather than chew, their food – like “grandpa shark” from the famous baby shark song. 

Rain is a factor for Vermont farmers, increasingly flooding as well. So, any food systems or agricultural education for students needs to include soil health as part of its curriculum. Soil structure is especially important in light of recent VT flooding, as some soils erode into the watershed less than others. 

Worms, along with fungi and bacteria, help give soil structure and “glue” soil particles together, helping protect against soil erosion in rain and flood conditions.

To set up your own worm bin, this list (and your local Farm to School coach) can help you get started:

  1. Find ~1 pound of red wigglers, a plastic or wood bin with small drainage & air holes, and some bedding (ex. shredded cardboard & free coffee chaff from Mocha Joe’s) enough to cover the bottom of the bin about 3” below and 3” above the worms. Make sure you have a drainage tray or stack 2 bins together to catch any water that drains out.

  2. Mix ingredients into the bin. Moisten the bedding until it holds its shape when you squeeze it. Always keep the bedding at this moisture level.

  3. Worried about the worms escaping? They run away from light, so keep an indirect light on for the first few days until they settle into their new home.

  4. Worried about smell? Make sure fruit & vegetable scraps are fully covered with bedding. They eat ½ their weight per day, so don’t add too many scraps. Don’t let the bedding stay too wet.

Classroom or home activities you can try with your worms:

  1. Use the water runoff caught in your drainage tray or bottom bin (aka compost “tea”) as fertilizer in your garden or hydroponic system.

  2. Look at the castings or tea under a microscope (look out for nematodes and other microscopic organisms).

  3. Use soda bottles and a strainer to do a slake test comparing the structural integrity of worm castings, soil mixed with worm castings, and non-enriched soil samples.

  4. Plant two peas in two cups, compare growth of the compost-free and compost-enriched soil. 

Nourishing Minds and Bodies: Supporting Students with Trauma-Informed Food Practices

Imagine you’re staring at a slice of double chocolate cake. What’s the first thing that comes to your mind? Rich, decadent, indulgent, or off limits? Perhaps you associate it with a special occasion or a negative comment.

Now, what if I told you that your instant reaction to this cake could be influenced by implicit bias and that bias could be playing a significant role in how educators and administrators engage with students and food in school settings? Understanding these biases is crucial when we think about trauma, especially when it comes to school cafeterias and Farm to School programs. Trauma affects how we relate to food, and our unconscious assumptions can shape how we support or unintentionally harm our students.

On a sunny afternoon at Springfield High School, Farm to School Coach Sheila Humphreys led a training on trauma-informed practices to an eager group of educators from across multiple schools in the Springfield School District. She explained that trauma can be influenced by various factors, such as:

  • Food insecurity

  • Lack of access to nutritious meals

  • The stress of eating in an environment where students feel judged or unsafe

Trauma is more than just a single event; it’s the meaning we attach to an event, the associations formed during those experiences. It’s the emotional, physiological, and behavioral response we have when we feel unsafe, often based on past experiences. Trauma can take many forms, including but not limited to: students with food allergies, chronic illnesses, language and/or cultural differences, those who have experienced neglect or abuse, neurodivergent or students on the autism spectrum, individuals with eating disorders, students with incarcerated family members, those in foster care, students who have lost a loved one, Jewish and Muslim students, those who have experienced war or political instability, LGBTQIA+ students, and BIPOC students affected by historical trauma. One significant factor is food insecurity, which deeply impacts many students’ experiences in schools. In fact, 2 out of 5 Vermonters experience food insecurity, leading to a variety of emotional and physical responses related to food and mealtimes.

Throughout the two hour session Humphreys provided multiple ways to increase awareness about how food and trauma intersect and how our actions, often unconsciously, can either support or exacerbate trauma. She asserted the need to be mindful of how food is presented, discussed, and offered in school settings, as well as how trauma-related triggers, such as food scarcity or discomfort in school cafeterias can impact a student’s experience.

One framework that can help schools and communities address trauma is the Circle of Courage, presented by Martin Brokenleg. This model is designed to help us turn intergenerational trauma into resilience by focusing on four core needs: belonging, independence, mastery, and generosity. By recognizing these needs, we can design supportive school environments that address trauma and help students build resilience through Farm-to-School programs. The following responses to each category came as a result of a large group discussion:

Image c/o Starr Commonwealth

  • Belonging: Food is a powerful connector, and featuring students' home cultures in school cafeterias is a great way to help them feel valued. Offering culturally relevant food options and growing food together in gardens creates a sense of community and inclusion, helping students develop a connection to the food they eat. A teacher shared her own experience of belonging: “It could also be a religious thing... Some of their foods are, like, you know the corn dogs? I found out the ones they served [at her school] were turkey. I was so excited! I’m Jewish, so I’m grateful for that.” This moment underscores how crucial it is to offer food options that respect and reflect the diverse needs and beliefs of students, helping them feel seen and valued in a meaningful way. 

  • Independence: Giving students the freedom to make food choices, whether it’s through salad bars, cooking clubs, or having roles in school gardens, encourages them to take ownership of their meals and their health. Farm-to-School programs can create opportunities for students to exercise this independence by learning about food sourcing and preparation.

  • Mastery: Building skills is key in helping students feel empowered. Culinary programs or horticultural/agro initiatives within schools allow students to gain practical, transferable skills—whether it's learning how to cook or how to grow food. These experiences help students feel more capable and confident, reducing the effects of trauma by building competence.

  • Generosity: Generosity helps students feel connected to their communities. Programs like farm-to-table harvest dinners or shared community resources, such as share coolers, allow students to experience the joy of giving and receiving, further fostering resilience and connection.

During small group breakout sessions, educators shared personal experiences and insights about how trauma influences their students’ relationship with food. Many teachers spoke to factors like the availability of fresh food, access to kitchen tools, and the affordability of ingredients can create barriers to learning and growth for their students.

A crucial takeaway from the workshop was that trauma isn’t just a one-time event. It’s the meaning that a person attaches to an experience, and that meaning can affect their behavior, emotions, and interactions. For students dealing with food insecurity or past trauma, it’s essential that educators help provide stability, safety, and security in their food environments.

One simple but impactful way to support students is by implementing the Don’t Yuck My Yum principle. This concept encourages students and adults alike to approach food with an open mind and to avoid shaming others for their preferences. It emphasizes that just because someone doesn’t like a particular food, it doesn’t mean they are wrong or less than. Encouraging curiosity and trying new foods can help students overcome biases and trauma-related triggers.

In the final breakout session, educators shared practical recommendations for creating trauma-sensitive school food environments. These included:

  • Fresh Fruit and Veggie Taste Tests: Offering all students a taste of local fruits or vegetables, as a way to introduce healthy food choices and increase exposure to fresh, farm-grown options. Many schools already participate in the USDA’s Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.

  • Changing Discipline Policies: Ensuring that student behavior doesn’t negatively impact their ability to access or enjoy lunch. This might mean offering more time for students to eat or modifying policies that might cause stress during mealtime.

  • Supporting Post-COVID Social Skills: Recognizing that some students, particularly those affected by the isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, may feel uncomfortable eating in large groups or making food choices independently. Creating smaller, supportive groups where students can eat together in a less intimidating setting could help build comfort and confidence.

Supporting students who experience food-related trauma requires a multifaceted approach. By raising awareness of how trauma impacts students’ relationships with food and making intentional changes to school food environments through Farm-to-School programs, fresh food exposure, and community-building practices, we can create safer, more inclusive spaces where students can thrive.

As the workshop came to a close, educators reflected on the work ahead. While they acknowledged that the journey to supporting students is ongoing, they left with renewed inspiration, the right tools, and a strong sense of community. Sheila’s passion for this cause and her dedication to sharing this vital information empowered them to see the many ways they can make a lasting difference in the lives of their students. With the right infrastructure in place, educators are equipped to help transform their school environments, offering not just food, but healing, connection, and hope for the future.

Written by Elyse Morckel

Nora’s Garden Ecosystem at Winston Prouty

Several young children are gathered under the broad leaves and bright, heavy blossoms of a sunflower house enjoying the shade. They are making nature art with found objects, while a few more cluster together over a huge mound of composted soil, digging and looking for worms. In another part of the garden, children nibble edible herbs and flowers like mint and dahlias as butterflies flit from bloom to bloom in the afternoon sun. A group of children giggle while juices from ripe cherry tomatoes drip down their chins. The resident toad watches quietly from a shady corner, and occasionally, a luna moth perches on a colorful blossom and rests its wings.

The garden tended by Nora Harrington and her students at Winston Prouty’s Early Learning Center is teaming with life. “We have a little ecosystem going on. The kids are part of it and I am part of it,” says Nora. Together, they have designed a safe space for small children to explore and learn about the world around them. During the 2 seasons that Nora has worked as the garden coordinator, she has developed a program that values experiential learning and emergent curriculum, engaging her young students (ages 2-5) in every part of the process. From choosing what to grow to sprouting seedlings indoors, students help with transplanting and tending the garden all the way through harvesting, cooking, and eating the bounty.

In addition to growing vegetables, Nora features edible flowers and perennials in the garden. “I think it’s important to have flowers in an ECE garden. It’s about creating space as well as encouraging them to taste food. A big part of the experience is noticing what plants, animals, and insects do. Down the line this has an impact on what kids eat. For a lot of the kids, a big part of the experience is to be in a really pretty space that they made themselves, and I appreciate that I get to be in that space too.”

Nora grew up in Washington DC and wasn’t exposed to gardening or farming in her youth. After she moved to Vermont as an adult, she developed a fascination with soil and began growing plants in her home. As her green thumb blossomed, she started gardening outside. In her work as an early childhood educator, Nora was exposed to the benefits of gardening with young children when she worked in home childcare settings with gardens and farm animals. When she applied for a position at Winston Prouty, part of what drew her was their active Farm to School program and school garden. When an opening appeared for a garden coordinator, Nora was eager to apply.

Nora says that tasting foods in the garden is key. “I think the really fun part about eating vegetables in the garden for kids is that there is no pressure and they are much more likely to try something in the garden than if you bring it back into the classroom and cut it up and put it on a plate.” Cultivating a tasting garden for young children means “being conscious of not putting things in the garden that would be unsafe to munch on,” so priority is given to vegetables that can be eaten raw and edible flowers and herbs. Nora says that cherry tomatoes were a huge hit last season, as were cucumbers, carrots, and green beans. Her students particularly love mint, a perennial herb that grows in the same spot each year, and allows them to develop confidence knowing and identifying it.

The students haven’t developed a taste yet for radishes or turnips, and Nora understands. “I was a really picky eater as a kid. I didn’t like vegetables very much. I remember trying carrots when I was younger and not liking them. I tried a carrot at age 23 that my partner grew on the farm they worked at and I thought ‘Wow, this is one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. Why haven’t I tried this before? Maybe I have only had bad carrots?’ 

Nora continues, “The context where you are eating matters so much. Eating something that you grew yourself, I think it does actually taste better, but the whole emotional experience of it makes it SO much better. Even adults can put pressure on themselves to eat healthy and in the context where you are growing your own food that aspect of it isn’t part of the equation. It’s just fun to think, ‘I did this! Look at this cool thing I grew.’ I want kids to have that experience. I think if I had that experience earlier I would have been more open to trying new foods. Now I like to eat everything!”

If a student refuses to taste something, there is no pressure to do so, and they have other options. “They can smell it, touch it, look at it, or just pick flowers if they want to. It’s totally fine. They are so young. Just knowing that a food exists and understanding where it comes from might make them more open to trying it one day. Not all kids are going to want to eat kale, and I wouldn’t have eaten kale either when I was that age, but I probably would have put a flower petal in my mouth just to see what it tastes like, out of curiosity.”

The garden is currently blanketed in snow, however, the remains of the sunflower house stand as a reminder of the rich outdoor learning experiences in the garden that will come again this spring. In the classroom, one reminder of the fall’s harvest is still in daily use, dried cobs of brilliant glass gem corn that are a prop in the play kitchen. This corn, the seeds of which were donated by the family of a student, gave hours of enjoyment in various stages, from playing among the stalks in the garden to the sensory experience of exploring the silk and husks to the many uses in the classroom during pretend play. As spring approaches, Nora is eager to start looking at seeds with her students and decide together what colors and flavors they will cultivate in their outdoor classroom this year.

Expanding Trauma-Informed Trainings

Trauma-informed approaches to school nutrition are expanding across Vermont this winter, thanks in part to Food Connects Farm to School Coach Sheila Humphreys. Since joining the FC team in 2018, she has built on her expertise in the field and has been a key part of a regional movement to highlight the critical link between trauma and food, particularly in school environments. By emphasizing an increase in professional development opportunities, these trainings enable educators to integrate a trauma- and food-sensitive lens into their lesson plans.

With increased capacity, these trainings will reach a broader audience of educators, impacting students across four school districts in Southern Vermont: Springfield School District, Windham Southeast Supervisory Union, Windham Central Supervisory Union, and Windham Northeast Supervisory Union. 

"I am thrilled to be able to offer this training to more educators around the state. Raising awareness among school staff about food and trauma increases sensitivity to these issues and helps reduce stress experienced by students in our cafeterias and classrooms.” says Farm to School Coach Sheila Humphreys.

Giving students a say in what and how they eat has a powerful impact on their relationship with food and their overall sense of control and agency in their own lives. By establishing judgment-free spaces, students who have complicated relationships with food due to a variety of factors, including food insecurity, food allergies, eating disorders, sensory issues, or cultural differences, can work toward developing a neutral or positive connection to food. Engaging in food-related activities allows students to learn where their food comes from, how they can prepare it themselves, and discover foods that might be culturally unfamiliar, making them more likely to try new foods. By providing students with tools and opportunities to make food choices for themselves we can create change that can impact a student for the rest of their lives.

Stay tuned for Sheila’s reflections following the upcoming trainings across the state. We are excited to witness the positive impact of these transformative practices and the lasting change they will bring to school nutrition and student well-being.