Each day 30 million kids eat at school cafeterias across the country. With one in three school aged children overweight or obese, and diabetes being one of the most chronic illnesses facing kids under 20, something must change.
School food is major player in the battle against diet-related disease among kids. But the reality is that changing school food is changing a system. For decades, we’ve relied on processed food, largely due to financial and operational constraints which leave school kitchens without the ability to cook real food in schools.
That’s why the Chef Ann Foundation is launching the School Food Institute (SFI). These video-based online courses leverage Chef Ann Cooper’s extensive expertise in leading school food programs through a transition to serving whole, fresh, healthy foods to kids. Course topics cover everything necessary to make sustainable change to school food operations. But what really makes the School Food Institute unique is the direct access to Chef Ann Cooper who, as the former Director of Food Services for Boulder Valley School District in Colorado, knows firsthand what it means to transform school food programs.
The institute will initially offer eight courses which cover all key operational components. We recognize those who are truly invested through our certificate program, the only national certificate which recognizes the transition to scratch-cook operations.
Join the movement to make fresh, healthy food available to every child. Enroll in a School Food Institute course or certificate program today, and learn how you can start making changes to support healthier food in schools.