The 2024–25 Pennsylvania Farm to School (FTS) Institute, coordinated by The Food Trust and the PA Farm to School Network, supported farm to school practitioners representing seven school and early care and education (ECE) teams from across the state in developing collaborative relationships, creating holistic action plans and implementing fun, educational and hands-on experiences that help children connect with their local food systems.
Over the course of the year, these teams built stronger farm to school programs reaching over 8,500 students, strengthened community connections and laid the groundwork for sustaining their efforts.
Across all seven teams, the Farm to School Institute produced measurable, lasting impact. More than 19,000 pounds of local food were served in school meals, connecting students directly to Pennsylvania farmers. Students gained hands-on experience through classroom gardens, hydroponics, and seasonal planting, while Harvest of the Month activities introduced children to a wide variety of local foods and agricultural concepts. Families were drawn into the process through community events, resource tables, and gardening nights, bridging the meaningful experiences kids have with food in both their homes and at school. New partnerships with local farms, food hubs, master gardeners, and nonprofits provided both resources and expertise, while cross-team collaboration among educators, administrators, food service directors, and community members created a foundation for long-term sustainability.
Our children get to see where their foods are coming from, not just thinking that you go to the store and get a bag of apples…They get to see it growing from start to finish. – Erica Lewis, Food Service Manager, The Caring Center
Team Highlights
At 16th & Haak Elementary School, the team worked to bring farm to school directly into the classroom by supporting teachers in setting up garden buckets, giving each student the chance to engage in planting and growing. Morning announcements became a platform for taste test promotions, helping students understand the foods they were trying and their nutritional benefits. The Food Service Department approved the use of the products harvested from the buckets and gardens in district wide school meals. To round out their year of programming, the team designed and implemented a big spring event called the “make and take” night during which families were invited to create their own garden buckets to bring home – ensuring kids experienced a holistic farm to school experience in their classrooms, cafeteria and own homes in their community.
The Tulpehocken School District team expanded their farm to school footprint by installing hydroponic rise garden units in the elementary school cafeterias, allowing students to observe and taste fresh greens grown right where they eat. They also hosted a PA Preferred Day that celebrated Pennsylvania vendors and featured tastings of local beef and apples, helping students make the connection between local farms and their meals. To ensure the work carries forward, the district also developed a Farm to School mission statement and logo to guide future initiatives.
At YWCA Lancaster, educators introduced farm to school learning to their youngest students through hydroponics and hands-on lessons designed for toddlers and preschoolers. Students enjoyed activities and tastings of seasonal products supported by the PA Harvest of the Month program. The team prepared for and installed a new hydroponic system while also developing plans to secure grants for long-term infrastructure, including permanent green spaces and urban gardens.
The team at The Caring Center focused on building food access and gardening opportunities in their community. They planted indoor winter crops such as cauliflower, kale, sweet potatoes, and herbs, while preparing for a larger spring planting that would include fruit trees and expanded garden boxes. Every classroom included lessons about seasonal produce where students participated in taste tests and made recipes with products harvested from their school garden. The team engaged parents picking up their kids by creating a Nutrition Bulletin Board which included PA Harvest of the Month literature, recipes and nutrition resources for families. Families also benefited directly through a local food giveaway, where cases of fruits and vegetables were distributed to parents and neighbors, thanks to partnerships with local food hubs and garden groups. Thinking about long-term sustainability, team leader Erica Lewis seized opportunities to share their success with lawmakers who are making decisions about farm to school related funding.
At California Area School District, Harvest of the Month became a highlight of the year, with students participating in tastings, classroom lessons, and recipes shared at school board meetings and on social media. The district also secured a PA Beef to PA Schools Grant, which brought fresh, local beef into school meals for the first time. Beyond the cafeteria, farm to school efforts were woven into the district wellness committee, ensuring the initiative was recognized as a core part of the school community.
LifeSpan School & Day Care designed a year-round seasonal farm to school curriculum for toddlers through kindergarten, integrating agriculture and nutrition into daily lessons. Teachers incorporated Pennsylvania Harvest of the Month activities into both classroom learning and family events, where parents had the opportunity to join their children in cooking and tasting new foods. One of the most innovative projects was an intergenerational gardening partnership with a nearby assisted living facility, where children and their “Grand-Friends” worked side by side in the garden.
Finally, Lebanon School District took a broad approach by engaging families at a back-to-school event that featured healthy snacks, farm to school brochures, and volunteer sign-ups. Local author, Stacey Woodson, provided a reading of her gardening focused book at an all-school assembly, which was incorporated into the school’s avid readers program. Despite soil contamination at their site, the team creatively pursued solutions, utilizing hydroponics as well as building a greenhouse classroom, to support safe food production. Students at Northwest Elementary school will be able to harvest and eat the produce grown in their greenhouse for use in a new large food cart used as a fresh salad bar for school meals. Lebanon also engaged student advocates to test new and culturally diverse food samples throughout the year, for possible inclusion in the wider cafeteria menu, and utilized Wellness Wednesdays to focus on healthy eating across the curriculum and the cafeteria. In the summer, Lebanon also welcomed student volunteers to assist with their flower garden at Harding Elementary.
Congratulations to all of the Institute participants!
Looking Ahead
The year-long Institute gave participating teams time, structure, and support to develop action plans and turn their ideas into real impact. From classroom garden buckets to district-wide procurement shifts, schools and ECE programs built stronger connections between cafeterias, classrooms, and communities.
This year’s cohort is proof that when educators, food service directors, farmers, and community members come together, farm to school programming can take root and thrive. Teams will carry forward their new partnerships, resources, and strategies, ensuring that farm to school continues to grow for years to come.
I believe the institute retreat unified a lot of good ideas that we had. We were all doing good things just not in unison. The retreat helped us come together and create a shared vision and goal that we could implement district wide. – Chris Hamrick, Principal, Tulpehocken Area High School
The 2024-2025 Institute was supported by Shelburne Farms and NOFA-VT’s Farm to School Institute Adaptation Program and with funding from Shelburne Farms, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and United Healthcare. Learn more about how PA’s Institute was adapted from this time-tested model in this case study.
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