Good Food for Oxford Schools Receives 2017-2018 United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County Funding

Good Food for Oxford Schools (GFOS) will continue its efforts to engage student learning in gardens, provide families with cooking lessons and much more this upcoming school year, thanks to the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County awarding the program $9,250 in grant funds. Good Food for Oxford Schools, a program of the Oxford School District Child Nutrition Department, was recently named a 2017-2018 grant recipient by the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County. 

 

Good Food for Oxford Schools Program Director Eleanor Green says the community grant funds will directly benefit the GFOS Growing and Learning Garden and Health Education Program.

 

“Through GFOS’s Growing and Learning Garden and Health Education Program, student learning flourishes through the presence of school gardens, families participate in cooking lessons and gain confidence in the kitchen, and we offer teacher resources and training through the school district,” said Green. 

 

Also, this specific program within GFOS allows Good Foods for Oxford Schools to host a FoodCorps service member, who is charged with engaging Oxford students in hands-on activities. The FoodCorps service member coordinates GFOS-related school activities, such as gardening and cooking, allowing Oxford students to foster skills and pride around healthy food, while also assisting in cafeteria farm-to-school efforts throughout the school year. 

 

Kyle Brummett, executive director of the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County, is pleased with the positive outcomes the grant awards will generate. Overall $330,000 in grants were awarded to local programs and coalitions, such as Good Food for Oxford Schools, serving the Lafayette-Oxford-University (LOU) community. 

 

The United Way relies on committees, made up of local citizens, who guide the grant-making process by evaluating applications in their primary focus areas of health, financial stability, education and basic needs. Applicants must demonstrate the positive outcomes of their programs as well as the severity of the needs being addressed. Through such community investments and meaningful contributions, the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County advances its mission of improving lives and meeting community needs by uniting people and resources. 

 

The public is encouraged to contact GFOS Program Director Eleanor Green via email,  emcgreen@oxfordsd.org, to find out more about the program and its partnership with the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County. To learn more about the Good Food for Oxford Schools Program or help support the program in its mission to positively impact Oxford school students, visit www.oxfordsd.org/GFOS.

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Courtesy of Oxford School District