Annual Conference
Conference Session
2014-11-15
"California Thursdays - A Bite-Sized Implementation Strategy for Serving California Food for California Kids"Key Areas: Communications and Marketing
Session: Session C - Saturday, November 15th: 8:45 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.
- 309
Speaker(s): Karen Brown - Creative Director, Center for Ecoliteracy
Adam Kesselman - Rethinking School Lunch Program Manager, Center for Ecoliteracy
Alexandra Emmott - Farm to School Supervisor , Oakland Unified School District
Objectives: Participants will learn about the power of menu driven regional procurement to offer fresh, tasty food, enhance local economies and protect the natural environment. This breakout session will introduce attendees to California Thursdays and prepare them to successfully implement the program in their districts. In support of districts' implementation of California Thursdays, the Center for Ecoliteracy will provide a toolkit of resources, including scaled and tested recipes, marketing materials, recommendations for professional development, and tips for press coverage.
Description: California Thursdays is a "bite-sized" implementation strategy for serving more California food to California kids. Shifting to more local procurement ensures fresher food, while supporting local economies and the environment. The program, a collaboration between the Center for Ecoliteracy and participating districts, comes with a toolkit of innovative and engaging marketing resources, tested and scaled recipes, and recommendations for effective professional development and student engagement. Piloted in Oakland beginning in 2013, California Thursdays now includes a network of 15 school districts from across the state. Learn about the program and engage with participants to find out how California Thursdays could benefit your district.
Speaker Bio(s):
Karen Brown - Center for Ecoliteracy
Speaker Bio:
Karen Brown is an award-winning designer who hails from a family of inventors, growers, and makers. Her work has been included in the Smithsonian Institution and Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, and featured in The New York Times, Architectural Digest, and dozens of other popular and technical publications as well as on Today on NBC. She has lectured on design and environmental topics throughout the United States, Japan, and Europe. She is a contributor at Etsy.
Adam Kesselman - Center for Ecoliteracy
Speaker Bio:
Adam Kesselman is the founder of The Lunch Trust, a consultancy dedicated to helping schools operate exemplary food programs. He is a former partner in Acre Gourmet, a provider of healthy lunch programs based on-site at schools, where he endeavored to create and support a strong food culture among area youth. Through his work as a restaurant owner and caterer, he has sought to support local producers and highlight their products to his customers.
Alexandra Emmott - Oakland Unified School District
Speaker Bio:
Alexandra (Alex) Emmott has worked for Oakland Unified School District as the Farm to School Supervisor since 2012, where she oversees the Oakland Fresh Produce Market Program and directs the department's purchasing of local and sustainable ingredients for the meal program. Prior to joining the Oakland team, Alex worked on federal grant administration and farm to school projects for Boston Public Schools. Alex has over a decade of experience in the food industry, and before transitioning to policy and school food, she owned and operated an award winning bakery and caf
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