FoodCorps Opens Applications for its Next Class of School Food Changemakers

FoodCorps, a national organization that addresses childhood obesity and food insecurity in underserved communities, opens applications for its second annual class of service members.  The selected emerging leaders will dedicate one year of full-time public service in school food systems – expanding hands-on nutrition education programs, building and tending school gardens, and sourcing fresh, healthy, local food for school cafeterias.

The first class of service members have already made a difference in their local schools.  The Iowa service members have reached thousands of kids with nutrition education, servings of locally grown foods such as apples, carrots and kale, and have catalyzed the start up and revitalization of many educational school gardens.  There are currently two positions in Des Moines and two positions in northeast Iowa.

In its first year FoodCorps gained national attention by attracting 1,229 applicants for just 50 positions, and by providing an innovative, grassroots, scalable approach to solving our national obesity epidemic. Since 1980, the percentage of American children who are overweight or obese has doubled. With one in four U.S. children struggling with hunger and one in three obese or overweight, FoodCorps addresses the root cause of both: access to healthy food.

FoodCorps seeks up to 100 men and women with a passion for serving their country as AmeriCorps service members by building healthy communities in 12 states around the country.  Hannah Lewis, Iowa Program Director, is hoping to expand from four to seven positions in Iowa for the next year.

Applications are due March 25th. Emerging leaders interested in getting more information should go to http://foodcorps.org/become-a-service-member.

FoodCorps is a national service organization that seeks to address childhood obesity by increasing vulnerable children's knowledge of, engagement with, and access to healthy food. Service members build and tend school gardens, conduct nutrition education, and facilitate Farm to School programming that brings healthy, affordable local food into public schools. The program also trains a cadre of leaders for careers in food and agriculture.

Tag: schoolwellness foodsystems