Written by: Lydia Yamaguchi, FoodCorps Service Member with Oakland Unified School District
This piece is an overview of FoodCorps service in one of the largest school districts in California (i.e. Oakland Unified School District). Lydia takes us a on walk through of a “typical day of service” and how Oakland Unified is promoting farm to school through direct education and weekly farmers’ market stands. Continue reading
Written by: Aislíng Mitchell, FoodCorps Service Member with Oakland Unified School District
I’ve always loved working with school gardens to grow healthy, happy kids. But I want to make sure our hard work continues outside of our garden walls. My new strategy started when I discovered our school’s farmers market always had leftover kale. I questioned our local parents and discovered that the parents in our community did not believe their kids would eat this dark green leaf. Continue reading
After serving with AmeriCorps*National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) and working with various non-profits, Michelle Pinter-Petrillo decided to serve another year with FoodCorps California and Oakland Unified School District. As a garden educator, Michelle manages two high school youth while simultaneously leading lessons in school gardens at East Oakland Pride (EOP) and Martin Luther King, Jr. elementary schools. Continue reading to learn how Michelle is empowering youth from these Oakland communities.
Watching a 2nd grader’s first bite of lettuce straight from the garden is a rewarding experience, but watching Oakland high school students develop and lead a lettuce tasting activity for Oakland elementary students was a service defining ‘a-ha’ moment for me.