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August 2013 Newsletter
IN THIS ISSUE
2013-2014 VT FTS Institute
Professional Development Update
VT FTS Network Wants YOU!
October is National FTS Month
Healthy & Happy You from BCBS of VT
Upcoming Events
Jr Iron Chef Logo 2013 Save the Date!

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We are especially excited about the start of this coming school year because this fall, Vermont FEED will celebrate the publication of a new cookbook of national significance - New School Cuisine: Nutritious and Seasonal Recipes for School Cooks by School Cooks.

 

Thanks to a USDA Team Nutrition grant and a partnership with the School Nutrition Association of Vermont and the Vermont Agency of Education, we bring you this colorful cookbook developed by school cooks with kid-tested and approved recipes. All recipes are accredited and meet new USDA dietary guidelines while featuring local, seasonal foods. Every school in Vermont and Childhood Nutrition Programs in all 50 states will receive a copy of the cookbook in October. It will also be available for FREE online on the Vermont FEED and Vermont Child Nutrition Program websites.

Cover of New School Cuisine Cookbook  

Vermont Farm to School Institute
Kickoff a Big Success

Our staff was busy late June with the closing of the year-long Nutrition Education Institute and the opening 3-day workshop of the Farm to School Institute. For these two events, a total of 19 school teams from across Vermont converged at Shelburne Farms to develop action plans for implementing food, farm, and nutrition education across their K-12 curriculum. 

 

Participants were grateful for the opportunity to work together in an inspiring location as evidenced by these comments for participants:

 

"Truly excellent! Pushed us and got us focused. I hope the momentum continues and can be expressed to the rest of our school staff, students, and community;" 
 
"Thank you for the amazing support, resources, and personnel that you provide to teachers." 
 
The Institute was a funded by the Vermont Community Foundation with additional support from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont. We also would like to thank Food Connects, Green Mountain Farm-to-School, Hunger Free VT, School Nutrition Association of Vermont, Upper Valley Farm to School, and the Vermont Community Garden Network for their help in producing the Institute. Visit us on  Facebook for more photos.
2013 FTS Institute participants
2013-2014 Farm to School Institute Participants
 Professional Development Courses

Vermont FEED professional development courses offer school communities an opportunity to expand their knowledge and experience related to Farm to School, nutrition, classroom cooking opportunities and garden-based education.

Teacher stirs beets 

This past January through June, we offered two graduate level courses in Chelsea and Windham County. The Windham course, "Curriculum Connections: School Gardens, Nutrition Education & the Common Core," was presented in partnership with Food Connects (formerly Windham County Farm to School) and had 30 educators from 11 different schools and communities. Over the course of 6 months, participants developed comprehensive standards-based Farm to School units and action plans.

 

"It was a great course. I learned a lot and tried some things I would have never tried on my own! I plan to continue the work that I started in the course throughout this next school year." ~ Windham County Participant 
 
Our courses include a balance of hands-on cooking, networking, guest expert presentations, small group activities, and work sessions. This coming year, we are planning courses with Berlin Elementary, Upper Valley Farm to School and another course with Food Connects in Windham County. To learn more, contact, Danielle Pipher, Education & Professional Development Coordinator: dpipher@shelburnefarms.org.
 
 Teachers cooking
Vermont Farm to School Network Wants YOU!

 

VT FTS Network logo

The Vermont Farm to School Network now has its very own website - vermontfarmtoschool.org. 

 

Stand up and be counted! Add your Farm to School program to the Vermont FTS map so we can get an accurate picture of where programs are across the state. Have an event you want to share? Add it to the calendar. It's easy!

 

Help us grow the Vermont Farm to School listserv as an easy way to share resources, news, events, and ideas. Sign up TODAY on the top right of the Network homepage.

 

October is National Farm to School Month

Join the party! To celebrate Farm to School Month this fall, programs across the country will host harvest festivals, movie nights, fun runs, and farm field trips. How will you be part of the fun? 

 

Visit farmtoschoolmonth.org for lots of ideas and to take the Farm to School Counts Pledge (which gives you a chance to win a CASH prize for your FTS program). Once you plan your event, post it on the Vermont Farm to School Network calendar.

National Farm to School Month Logo  

 

A column to share health and wellness tips and nutrition advice by Vermont FEED's sustaining sponsor Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont. 

 

Changes Coming to Vermont's Health Care System

 

In 2014, the federal Affordable Care Act requires that each state have a health benefit exchange where individuals and small businesses can compare and purchase health benefit plans. Here are some facts about the upcoming changes:

  • Vermont's new state-run health benefit exchange is called Vermont Health Connect.
  • Vermont is the only state to mandate the purchase of health insurance through the exchange.
  • Beginning in October of this year, nearly 100,000 Vermonters will be required to transition to Vermont Health Connect for their health care coverage. Those Vermonters include small businesses with fewer than 50 employees, sole proprietors, Vermonters who participate in the Catamount program and individual purchasers.
  • Medicare and Medicare supplement products are not affected by the exchange.
  • The deadline for enrolling is March 31, 2014. If you don't purchase coverage, you will pay a penalty at tax time.
For more information from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont and to learn more about Vermont's health benefit exchange, call (800) 255-4550 or visit www.bcbsvt.com/vtreform.

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