Success Stories

As we wrap up the first year of USDA’s expanded Summer Nutrition Programs for Kids, we’re grateful for everyone – state agencies, tribal nations, and the many partners – who made SUN programs a success this year.

USDA’s Patrick Leahy Farm to School Program, is committed to identifying and rooting out systemic discrimination, ensuring equitable access to programs and services, promoting nutrition security and a healthy environment, and creating opportunity for all. 

Founded in 2004, this small, kindergarten through 6th grade public charter school is more than just a place of learning. It’s a place where the staff and students have developed a passion for eating healthy. 

Donegal School District in Mount Joy, Pennsylvania, created a cooking club this school year for seventh and eighth grade students. The district’s dietetic interns and café managers, take immense pride helping the students learn each week and say it’s been an extremely rewarding experience for everyone. 

During their annual food show, Prince William County Schools showed what’s possible when school nutrition professionals, parents, students, school meals partners, and the food industry work together.  

The USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program supports small farmers and their families. Meet one of the Farm to School beneficiaries, Anna Nakamura Knight, a fifth-generation farmer. 

During summer 2023, Vibrant Hawaii assisted the Hawaii Department of Education with providing meals in rural areas not served by a group meal site.

Born out of both personal and community need in 2015, the Evans Early Childhood Center in Colorado is a pioneer in offering Farm to Early Childhood education and is teaching nutrition and outdoor education to children very early in their lives.

In 2023, USDA awarded National School Lunch Equipment Assistance Grants to Graves County School District, which allowed them to upgrade kitchen ovens that had been in use for over 15 years.

By growing school gardens, serving more local foods in school meals, offering all students breakfast and lunch at no cost, serving healthy summer meals, and more, RUSD is supporting a healthier future for their community.

Individuals like Angela Adkins dedicate their careers to providing kids with delicious meals that give kids the nutrition they need to grow and thrive. Her team of school nutrition professionals dish up meals for over 1,700 students every day in Carroll County, Kentucky.

Plant Powered Fridays, launched by Mayor Eric Adams, is the latest New York Citywide initiative giving more than one million students a new outlook on meals centering fruits and vegetables

Every year, students in Houston County get excited for one of Georgia’s biggest annual events held right in their backyard – the Georgia National Fair. But when a school nutrition program chooses to celebrate the fair, of course, the focus is on the food and fun!

Roseville Area Schools in Minnesota leverages the diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds of their students to create meals from several countries and continents. The school nutrition team continues to learn how to maintain the integrity of dishes while meeting USDA guidelines for specific food groups. Feedback from students, families, and often local chefs informs this entire process.

Despite the many challenges that came with the pandemic and other events leading to increased costs and supply chain disruptions, Montague Area Public Schools in Michigan found stability for their nutrition department by providing free school meals through the Community Eligibility Provision and capitalizing on local foods and its well-established Farm to School education programming to keep kids coming back for more.

With partnerships between community and industry, and support from USDA and others, Hillsborough County’s School Nutrition Program has not just weathered the storm in service to the kids who count on them but has never stopped looking for ways to innovate and improve.