Nebraska Farm To School Institute

Heartland Farm to School and Early Care and Education Institute

The Heartland Farm to School & Early Care and Education (ECE) Institute is offered in collaboration with Farm to School and Early Care and Education partners from Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. This initiative is formally led by the Kansas Department of Education, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the Nebraska Department of Education.

Modeled after Vermont FEED’s ‘3 C’s’ approach (Classroom, Cafeteria, and Community), the Heartland Farm to School and ECE Institute is a unique year-long opportunity focused on growing farm to school efforts while providing professional development and networking with peers. The first cohort launched in November 2024 with 5 Nebraska Early Care and Education sites, followed by a second cohort in May 2025 with 3 Nebraska schools. These teams were competitively selected based off of several key factors. Those selected will improve Farm to School and Early Care and Education efforts at their sites for one calendar year with the help of an assigned coach.

Meet the 2025 Cohort

Starting their Farm to School and Early Care and Education initiatives with an official kickoff retreat in June 2025, this Heartland Institute cohort included three teams from Nebraska, three teams from Missouri, and three teams from Kansas. Meet the Nebraska teams below.

Gretna Middle School

St. John Lutheran School

Verdigre Public School

Meet the 2024 Cohort

Starting their Farm to School and Early Care and Education initiatives with an official kickoff retreat in November 2024, the inaugural Heartland Institute cohort included five teams from Nebraska, one team from Missouri, and three teams from Kansas. Explore the impact reports from the Nebraska teams below.

Bergan Early Childhood Education Center

Educare Lincoln

Fremont Children’s Academy

Ruth Staples Child Development Lab

St. John Early Learning Center

Learn more about our 2024 cohort

The Heartland Farm to School and Early Care and Education Institute was featured in Midwest Messenger in March 2025. Learn more about the amazing program and the impacts it is having on early care and education sites across the state.

Read the Midwest Messenger article: Heartland Farm to School Institute connects classrooms, cafeterias, and communities

Nebraska Farm to School Institute

The Nebraska Farm to School Institute was established for school year 2021-2022 to strengthen local food purchasing and education practices within Nebraska school-community teams. Eight school teams were competitively selected to participate in the Institute to engage in training, and to receive technical assistance and coaching support. The Nebraska F2S Institute is modeled after the “3 C’s” Approach, pioneered by Vermont FEED, which integrates the Classroom, Cafeteria, and Community into the development of goals and farm to school action plans.

Meet the 2021 Cohort

The inaugural Nebraska Farm to School Institute was hosted by the Nebraska Department of Education and Nebraska Extension and was supported by USDA Farm to School grant funds. The Institute launched with a week-long intensive virtual training in June 2021. Evaluation from the week-long intensive identified the impact from the Institute content and trainings on the readiness for teams to implement their project plans. See the 2021 Nebraska Farm to School Institute Report for more data, results, and summaries of the Institute training content.