2013

Robin Forte, Island Grown Schools’ Harvest of the Month guest chef for the Edgartown School, moved through the lunch room with a tray of asparagus roll-ups for students to try. As she moved from table to table she saw a pattern emerging, one that has become familiar through the course of this first year of our Harvest of the Month program. The children at first would politely say “No, thank you” to the taste test. Then one student would venture, “I’ll try it,” and then each person in turn around the table would say the same thing.

Spring is here at last, and Island Grown Schools celebrates the appearance of the first spring greens in school gardens across the Island.

We dedicated April to greens in our Harvest of the Month program, with taste tests at every school and school meals featuring local and regionally grown greens at least twice throughout the month.

As we wait for the first crops of the new growing season to appear in school gardens, Island Grown Schools’ Harvest of the Month program celebrates winter squash, one of the best storage crops to help sustain us through the long months between fall’s bounty and the first crops of spring.

Thanks to a collaboration between Vineyard Nutrition and Island Grown Schools, Island families have seen their resources for healthy eating multiply in the past few months. With funding from a Mass in Motion grant, registered nutritionists Prudence Athearn Levy and Josh Levy co-wrote Vineyard Family Cooking, a booklet featuring recipes that are easy to prepare, tasty and healthy. The grant also covers the cost of a family cooking class series, taught by Mr. Levy and featuring recipes from the booklet, that began last month.

“What is it?” a student asked at an Island Grown Schools taste test this month. “It’s a potato,” said the IGS school coordinator, who was giving out little samples of roasted potatoes with rosemary for the students to try. “A what?” asked the student. “You know, French fries are made out of them,” said his friend standing nearby. “Oh, French fries, I know French fries,” the young student said. “Would you like to try it?” asked the coordinator. “No, no,” said the student, shaking his head decisively.

A principal from Nauset Regional Middle School was looking for fund-raising ideas for a new greenhouse. School garden coordinators wondered how to keep their plots going during the summer months. A parent spoke about how to create better snack options during school hours.

And they all looked to Island Grown Schools, the Vineyard’s farm-to-school network, for answers.

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