Robyn Wardell, Alumni Manager – FoodCorps https://foodcorps.org FoodCorps connects Thu, 20 Sep 2018 16:20:11 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://foodcorps.org/cms/assets/uploads/cache/2016/08/cropped-FoodCorps-Icon-Logo-e1471987264861/239888058.png Robyn Wardell, Alumni Manager – FoodCorps https://foodcorps.org 32 32 Meet this year’s Alumni Council https://foodcorps.org/meet-this-years-alumni-council/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=meet-this-years-alumni-council Wed, 05 Sep 2018 18:59:32 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=13338 Each year we invite new members to join our Alumni…

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Each year we invite new members to join our Alumni Council to bring fresh perspectives and passions to the group. They are here to support all alumni in launching initiatives they’d like to start, in lifting their voices to FoodCorps’ National team, and in advancing their career goals post-FoodCorps. Meet the Council members below and learn about their goals for the year.

Kendal Chavez, NM ’12-’13: Kendal is the Farm to School Specialist/Nutritionist at the NM Public Education Department. Prior to joining Farm to Table, Kendal served as a service member in the inaugural class of FoodCorps in 2011, and then the state fellow for the FoodCorps New Mexico program. Kendal is a proud Chicana from the San Joaquin Valley of California who now calls the expansive beauty of northern New Mexico her home.

 

 

Elizabeth Esparza, CA ’16-’17: Elizabeth graduate student in the Public Policy program at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo with a focus on Food Policy. Before starting graduate school, I served two terms as a FoodCorps Service Member, with the Pittsburg Unified School District in Pittsburg, CA, and the Community Alliance with Family Farmers in Santa Rosa, CA. This summer, I will also be interning with Los Angeles County Public Health Department on a Food Redistribution Initiative, and also recently started a communications internship with the National Farm to School Network.

 

Tess Johnson, MS ’18: Tess holds a bachelors degree in Community Development from Portland State University. She worked in the nonprofit sector for 8 years with The Boys & Girls Club and The Make A Wish Foundation before leaving work to start a family, she now has 3 beautiful children. Tess and her family moved to Oxford, MS where she served during her service year with Food Corps. She will be going back to school for a Masters Health Promotion in the fall to help her community learn to establish healthy eating habits and rely less on medication.

 

Stefany Stanbury, MA ’17: A transplant from Florida, Stefany currently lives in Maine and works at one of the oldest nonprofit organizations in the state founded in 1828! Stefany currently works in the mental health field, and doubles as a farm feeder for the organization’s educational farm. You can often find Stefany thinking about the number of milkshakes she will drink a day when she finally has enough land to keep cows.

 

 

Kaamilah Mitchell, DC ’18: Kaamilah just finished her second year as a service member in D.C. Beginning in the fall she will be attending George Washington University to obtain a Masters of Public Health with a concentration in Nutrition. In her spare time she likes to binge watch episodes of chopped and hanging with friends.

 

 

 

Molly Burke, MA ’18: Molly served in Chicopee Public Schools in Chicopee, MA last year. She is pursuing a career in nutrition and health policy and lives in Boston.

 

 

 

 

Rebecca Rosencline, MS ’14-’15: Rebecca served with FoodCorps in Jackson, Mississippi from 2013-2015. Since then she has continued to worked in health education, get certified as a Holistic Health Coach and work with hundreds of clients around the country and locally in Texas where she currently resides. Rebecca loves helping tell stories through social media, especially for FoodCorps, and is also in the process of going back to school to become a licensed Functional Nutritionist.

 

 

Kala Cuerington, CT ’13  (Fellow CA ’14): Kala was a corps member in New Haven and served as inaugural fellow in California. She has since worked at the Edible Schoolyard and currently works in the program department at Education Outside in San Francisco.

 

 

Kane Martin, ‘IA ’16: After Serving in Cedar Rapids, IA Kane went on to become the AmeriCorps Program Coordinator at Boys & Girls Clubs of Portland metro where he keeps up his passion for amateur gardening.

 

 

 

Kate Mitchell, DC ’18: Kate work for an organization called Love & Carrots in DC, which installs and maintains urban gardens all around the DC area! In her spare time, she enjoys going to see live music, listening to podcasts, and binge-watching questionable quality shows on Netflix. She’s so excited to be a part of a program that means so much to her, and can’t wait to get to know you all!

 

 

Our Subcommittees & Main Areas of Work

Alumni Grants: The Alumni Council administers our Alumni Grant Program – sending out communications, reviewing applications, and ultimately awarding funds to the most deserving applicants. Interested in learning more? Kendal Chavez chairs this team. Reach out to her on FoodCorps Connect!

Events & Gatherings: This team organizes events & trainings and helps to support and guide the activities of our Alumni Chapters.  Kane Martin chairs this team. Reach out to him on FoodCorps Connect!

Communications & Outreach: From Facebook posts to Kale Mail to Humans of FoodCorps spotlights to assembling our Alumni Zine, the Communications & Outreach team helps you stay connected and informed in creative ways. Rebecca Rosencline chairs this team. Reach out to her on FoodCorps Connect!

 

 

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Investing in Future School Food Leaders https://foodcorps.org/investing-in-future-school-food-leaders/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=investing-in-future-school-food-leaders Fri, 06 Jul 2018 21:28:14 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=12330 This June, FoodCorps brought together 20 aspiring school food service leaders to help them explore careers in school food, build their network, and get hands-on experience working in school food. They traveled from all over the country to learn from leaders in the field. Vanika Jethwa CT '17, an alum who joined us from Keene, NH, shares reflections on her experience at the training. 

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This June, FoodCorps brought together 20 aspiring school food service leaders in New London, CT to help them explore the landscape of careers in school food, build their network with like-minded individuals, and get some hands-on experience living the daily realities of working in school food. They traveled from all over the country to learn from leaders in the field from all over the east coast. Vanika Jethwa CT ’17, an alum who joined us from Keene, NH shares reflections on her experience at the training. 

I grew up loving food—eating it, cooking it and talking about it all the time. So it came as  no surprise to family and friends when back in high school, I decided I wanted to be a Registered Dietitian. The seven years following that decision haven’t been easy, but life has a way of constantly reminding me why I am pursuing this particular path.

I had planned to begin a dietetic internship after graduating from UCONN in 2016, but my application was denied. That’s when I discovered  the perfect way to combine my love for food with helping others: serving for a year with FoodCorps. I was placed in a small Connecticut school district where I worked hand in hand with the food service director and interacted with food service staff on a daily basis. I loved it. There were so many opportunities for growth and change, and I made meaningful connections with individuals both at my service site and across the state I hadn’t seriously considered school food as a career, but after a year of exploring what that might look like, I decided it was the right place for me.

The School Food Leadership Training demonstrated that sometimes our most valuable resources are right next to (or inside) us.

When my service term concluded, I reapplied for a dietetic internship and my experience with FoodCorps proved invaluable as an applicant. I was accepted and started the program in August 2017. My internship allowed me to explore the many pathways I could follow within the dietetics field, which started to blur my understanding of what option made the most sense for me. Serendipitously, I then received an email from FoodCorps offering a training opportunity for school food leadership. I jumped at the chance to delve deeper into the realm of school food and to hopefully gain some clarity on how to use my skills as a future registered dietitian to help facilitate change in the school food community.

Interestingly enough, I didn’t walk away with a defined sense of purpose or a set direction in which to take my career. Instead, I walked away with something better: the tools to navigate along this journey myself, and an expanded network of people willing and eager to support me along the way.

 

Learnings from our first session, run by FoodCorps’ very own Jim Laden, really resonated with me. We discussed the often misinterpreted concepts of talents vs. strengths: a talent is something you are born with, and a strength is something you invest in developing over time. It is a simple concept, yet one I hadn’t taken much time to think about. Having always been told to focus on improving or overcoming my weaknesses, investing in my strengths seemed foreign. I came to understand the importance of recognizing strengths and talents instead of fixating on weaknesses, not only in myself but also within others, and building on those strengths to forge connections and grow the expanding network of school food.

When I think of “networking,” I tend to look up the chain and narrow in on learning from those who I believe have more experience than me or who hold  higher roles. The School Food Leadership Training demonstrated that sometimes our most valuable resources are right next to (or inside) us. I gained perspective from talking to current service members and alums and learning from them about everything from strategies for success in schools to ways to be involved through policy and advocacy.  

One of the speakers over the weekend said, “My students aren’t going to come to your school just because the food is better.” This served as a reminder that there is no reason for schools to be in competition with one another; we are all working towards the same goal: providing safe, inclusive, healthy spaces for children to eat, learn, and grow. Participating in the greater conversation, sharing ideas, and offering advice and help are critical in this field of work. Spending a weekend with like-minded people who are driven to foster change was inspiring and humbling, and I look forward to continuing to build upon the connections I made and celebrating future successes with this group of school food leaders.  

 

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Amarilys Olivo is building a community of worker bees https://foodcorps.org/amarilys-olivo-is-building-a-community-of-worker-bees/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=amarilys-olivo-is-building-a-community-of-worker-bees Thu, 07 Jun 2018 16:30:26 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=12124 FoodCorps is honored to present Amarilys with this year’s Alumni Service Leadership Award. When Amarilys Olivo (NJ ’17) founded a community garden, she decided to call it the “Garden of Worker Bees.” Bees work collaboratively to take care of their community; each bee has its role and contributes to the well-being of the whole. Amarilys wanted to emulate that work ethic to create opportunities for learning, building healthy lifestyles, and connecting with fellow community members.

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Garden of Worker BeesFoodCorps is honored to present Amarilys with this year’s Alumni Service Leadership Award.

When Amarilys Olivo (NJ ’17) founded a community garden, she decided to call it the “Garden of Worker Bees.” Bees work collaboratively to take care of their community; each bee has its role and contributes to the well-being of the whole. Amarilys wanted to emulate that work ethic to create opportunities for learning, building healthy lifestyles, and connecting with fellow community members.

“I partner with all different organizations,” Amarilys says. “There’s a church next door to the garden with a commercial kitchen, so we can teach the community about dehydration, fermentation, and healthy cooking. The church hosts flea markets on the weekends, so people come through the garden. When they see the garden they are reminded of home and share stories about what foods they ate there.”

Amarilys served with Foodcorps in the community where she grew up, where she attended school and where her family lived through civil unrest in the 1960s. She entered her service with the historical context and experience to meet her students where they were at. Amarilys “was able to empower the schools she was in to see a bigger picture around health and wellness,” says Beth Feehan, FoodCorps NJ State Lead. “[She] continues to forge new paths for the Newark communities she works in.”

Amarilys’ passion for helping her neighbors and students lead healthy lives comes from watching her own family’s struggle with diabetes. She has seen firsthand the toll that diet-related disease can take on a person and their community, and that motivates her to work with students and teachers to change the culture of health within a school.

Image courtesy of Garden of Worker Bee’s Facebook Page
Amarilys aims to bring her spirit of community and connection to all parts of her life. She served with FoodCorps for two years at the Greater Newark Conservancy, which promotes environmental stewardship to improve the quality of life in New Jersey’s Urban Communities. Since then she has continued to be deeply involved with building food access and education opportunities in Newark, New Jersey. She wears many hats: as co-founder of Newark Community Food Systems (a resource hub for community gardeners); board member for Slow Food Northern NJ; and a second-year delegate at Terra Madre, an international gathering of food systems leaders.

Amarilys’ primary role is serving as a Green Energy / Urban Agriculture Educator at Essex County Vocational Technical High School (also known as VoTech), where she has built a thriving food education program. There, she helps run a culinary program, a house, green roof project, and school container garden. She’s currently building new partnerships with 4H and Future Farmers of America to help students get their volunteer hours in while providing services to the school, like building chicken coops and garden beds. She’s also looking for ways to partner with the school librarian and shop teacher to make sure all students have access to her programming, regardless of whether they are enrolled in her class.

Teaching at VoTech has given Amarilys a unique perspective on the impact of her FoodCorps service. Some of the high school students she teaches at VoTech were in her middle school classes during her service. When students share their memories of FoodCorps lessons or recipes they cooked together as a class, she sees the imprint those experiences left on their lives.   

Recently, one of her students walked into class and asked, “Ms. O, can we make those root vegetable dumplings with the class?” Reflecting on moments like these, Amarilys reminds herself that “some things you don’t think will impact the kids, but they really do stick.”

Amarilys has carried her FoodCorps experience with her throughout her post-service journey. It deepened her already strong conviction to build a career of meaningful impact in her home community. For her fellow alumni and service members contemplating their next steps, she has this to say:

“Exude confidence in all the things you’ve learned and go out and do the work that you want to do. Don’t feel afraid. You should know that you’re already prepared for what’s going to happen, no matter what career path you want to follow. Whatever skill set you learned, whatever life skills you learned, whatever site you were at—all of those things will translate in some way into your new position. Whatever your passion is, let that drive you in whatever path you want to follow.”

Through her work, her community, and her Garden of Worker Bees, Amarilys is doing just that.

 

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“Here we were understood, here we were safe” https://foodcorps.org/here-we-were-understood-here-we-were-safe/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=here-we-were-understood-here-we-were-safe Thu, 19 Oct 2017 17:25:35 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=10601 Last month we created a space for 15 of our…

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Last month we created a space for 15 of our native, multiracial and alumni of color to come together and build their network, set personal goals and refine their tools for how to navigate, find a voice, and a sense of safety within the predominately white organizations and spaces where they may find themselves. The gathering took place over the course of three days in Atlanta, GA.

We spent the first day learning about the history of Atlanta’s racial and cultural history led by a culinary storyteller from Atlanta Food Walks. After filling their stomachs with samples of fried chicken, barbecue, savory pie, northern white beans, cornbread, Georgia Peach Iced Tea, & banana pudding we headed to the Latin American Association for a panel discussion about Atlanta’s Buford Highway and the impending gentrification of the city’s immigrant community.

The next day was a long and intense story-sharing experience, followed by a training with Theatre of the Oppressed. They spent the evening learning from professional mentors of color from the Atlanta Area. Having thoroughly practiced embodying and giving voice to each other’s stories, the group was ready to create short plays based on racism, sexual harassment, discrimination, and micro-aggressions they’d experienced in the workplace. We were then invited to interrupt the oppressive moments in their plays in order to experiment with different solutions or responses to the problem.

In true FoodCorps fashion, Emilio Botts ’15 commented about the retreat, “I needed these vitamins.”


To give you a window into the retreat’s impact, Tiffany Jones ’16 shared this reflection with us about her experience.

Indigenous Experience
 
It was a life changing moment
So many expectations of what’s to come
Meeting as strangers for the first time
Leaving as an army of one
Indigenous spirits finding kindred hearts
We found common ground in a ground breaking experience
Here we were understood, here we were safe &
in this moment we inhaled the spirit of grace
For the winter we gathered strength, wisdom, & courage
for we recognized the battles that are before us,
for the fall we embrace love, healing,
the finding of self and a family to belong.
On this day our names were spoken, our stories were told,
freedom was rendered & we were called victorious!
Never wanting to let go, we found vulnerability we’ve never known
Our powerful voices we have gained, while conquering the fears of our worlds.
~~Written By: Tiffany Jones-Carlisle

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Meet this year’s Alumni Council https://foodcorps.org/meet-years-alumni-council/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=meet-years-alumni-council Wed, 16 Aug 2017 22:06:48 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=10018 Each year we invite new members to join our Alumni…

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Each year we invite new members to join our Alumni Council to bring fresh perspectives and passions to the group. They are here to support all alumni in launching initiatives they’d like to start, in lifting their voices to FoodCorps’ National team, and in advancing their career goals post-FoodCorps. Meet the Council members below and learn about their goals for the year.  

Kane Martin, IA ’16: After Serving in Cedar Rapids, IA Kane went on to become the AmeriCorps Program Coordinator at Boys & Girls Clubs of Portland metro where he keeps up his passion for amateur gardening.

Kendal Chavez, NM ’12-’13: After serving in Albuquerque, Kendal became the state fellow and then Farm to School Director at Farm to Table, a small non-profit based in New Mexico that focuses on food systems work at local, regional and national levels through community-based programs and policy.

Kala Cuerington, CT ’13 (CA Fellow ’14): Since FoodCorps, Kala has managed a restaurant, worked at The Edible Schoolyard Berkeley and currently manages corps members for Education Outside in San Francisco. Kala is currently into her new sous vide machine, and kayaking in the questionable waters of the bay.

Rebecca Rosenthal, MS ’14-’15: Rebecca served with FoodCorps in Mississippi, and is now a Health Coach and Grad School student with goals of becoming a licensed nutritionist and herbalist.

Elizabeth Esparza, CA ’16-’17: Elizabeth just finished her second term with FoodCorps and is starting grad school this fall at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo pursuing a Master’s in Public Policy with the hope of continuing to work on food systems issues within California.

Amy Kleinman CT ’13 (returning): Recent graduate from the University of Colorado, Denver with her Master’s in Public Health in Health Systems, Management, and Policy. Amy served in Bridgeport, Connecticut from 2012-2013 and currently works in Type 1 Diabetes pediatric research in Denver.

Allison Boyd, NC ’12 (returning): Since serving with FoodCorps in North Carolina remained at her site as a service site supervisor for two years after. Since then she’s worked on Capitol Hill, served as the ED of an urban farm cooperative in Baltimore, and was recently a service site supervisor for a second time as part of her role as a manager at Revolution Foods, a healthy school food provider. Currently, she’s building an organic farm enterprise with her husband, raising chickens, honey bees, and a few acres of vegetables, and teaching yoga.

Alex Freedman, MA ’13 (’14-’15 fellow) (returning): Alex is California boy, by way of Somerville, MA. Having just wrapped up roles doing municipal public health policy and sustainable farming in Massachusetts, he is headed to grad school in Los Angeles for the fall. In addition, he loves gardening, traveling, and obsessing over the Great British Bake-Off.

Tiffany Torres CT ’14-’15 (returning): A native of the Sunshine State, Tiffany returned to Florida after service to work for the University of Florida Cooperative Extension’s Family Nutrition Program as a Food Systems Specialist, where she is part of an amazing statewide Farm to School team serving SNAP-eligible youth and adults throughout Florida. Tiffany enjoys quieter moments in nature, mushroom foraging or tending to her own home garden alongside her cuddly cat Athena. She’s also our Alumni Council Chairperson!

Alyssa Charney MT ’13 (returning): Alyssa is a policy specialist at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) in Washington, D.C. At NSAC she leads the coalition’s work on farm bill conservation policy, and also works on appropriations, climate change, and organic agriculture. Alyssa served as a FoodCorps member for two years in Red Lodge, Montana with the Red Lodge Area Food Partnership Council.

 

 

Our Goals for 2017-2018

Build internal Alumni Council processes that encourage transparency, accountability & realistic goal-setting in order to keep us on a path to success.

Strengthen network of alumni in order to provide professional support and communicate positivity & hope during our current difficult political and social climate.

Embed an equity & inclusion lens into Alumni Council programs in order to support all alumni in being leaders of those values in their work and lives after FoodCorps.

Partner with FoodCorps policy team to encourage alumni to be politically engaged and see themselves as change-makers.

Provide meaningful channels for alumni to provide feedback and raise their own voices regarding updates and changes to the FoodCorps program.

Got questions about these goals? What more specifics? Ask! Get in touch with Robyn Wardell at robyn.wardell@foodcorps.org or Tiffany Torres, our Alumni Council Chair, at TiffanyNicoleTorres1@gmail.com.

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Announcing the 2017 Alumni Service Leadership Award Honorees https://foodcorps.org/2017-service-leadership-awardeees/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=2017-service-leadership-awardeees Mon, 08 May 2017 23:38:56 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=8989 What do making kimchi, leading a farm camp and promoting…

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What do making kimchi, leading a farm camp and promoting farm-to-school regionally have in common? They are all ways to bring FoodCorps’ values to your work, and they’re the impressive careers and passions of our three inaugural William K. Bowes Service Leadership Award honorees: Lauren Rhoades ‘15, Krizl Soriano ‘16 and Rachel Spencer ‘12.

Our honorees work tirelessly in service of building healthy, thriving communities and carrying on the values and mission of FoodCorps.

Rachel Spencer ’12, Award Recipient

As a member of our first class of service members and then our first class of fellows, Rachel has been blazing trails and planting seeds ever since she set foot in Arkansas. Her determined energy, drive and charisma have taken her to graduate school at the University of Arkansas and launched her into her current role as the Southwest Regional Farm to School Lead for the USDA. Needless to say, she’s an inspiration to many.

Watching [Rachel] move from FoodCorps service member to fellow to graduate school student to now the Farm to School Southwest Lead is truly inspiring and shows me how high I should truly aim and what is possible with a jump start from FoodCorps, hard work and a ton of determination.” – Service Member Noa Borkan, AR

She radiates the mission of FoodCorps in all aspects of her life, but especially through her work. “Just like when I was in FoodCorps my favorite part of the job is interacting with and supporting people that want to further local food systems work, specifically farm to school and school garden initiatives. I travel to 800 person towns in Oklahoma to connect school districts with aquaponics farmers, work with cities of 5 million to try and figure out their farm to school sustainability plan, and celebrate the small or large victories of food service directors, state agency leaders, teachers, parent volunteers, community members, and also FoodCorps service members across my 5 states.” Rachel has given so much to FoodCorps, quite literally, as she puts it, her, “blood (food processor blade amongst other things), sweat (goes without saying #southernsummers), and tears (of happiness and of darker times).” We are so proud of Rachel and swell with gratitude how she has devoted her life to the cause of healthy kids, thriving farms and vibrant communities.

 

Lauren Rhoades ‘15, Award Finalist

After two years of service and one year as a fellow in Jackson, MS, Lauren quickly made herself known as an innovative, passionate entrepreneur who values local food, education and community connection. She spends her days making kimchi, sauer kraut, fermented mustard, kombucha for her business, Sweet & Sauer Jackson. Sweet & Sauer is more than just a business – it’s a vehicle for local economic development and for sharing health with her community.

Never one to brag, Lauren has proven to be humble in her FoodCorps leadership accomplishments and business savvy, making a lasting impact on those around her and changing the food scene of Jackson as we know it.” – Service Member Sarah Hazelnis, MS

And as an educator, Lauren believes that, “fermentation is a great gateway subject to a whole slough of science subjects, art projects, and taste bud adventures. I’ve led fermentation demos at three different elementary schools in Jackson, and am currently working on a curriculum about how to teach fermentation to kids. I also think that introducing parents to new foods is just as important, and talking with parents at the farmers market and through fermentation classes has, I hope, contributed to more health-conscious meals for families at home.”

 

Krizl Soriano ‘16, Award Finalist

Krizl served in her home state of Connecticut for two years, bringing laughter, commitment and passion to each day to her students and FoodCorps community. As an alum,

[Krizl] is busy with many different jobs in food system work, where she holds strong to the FoodCorps mission of increasing access to and appreciation of healthy food for all.” – Service Member Molly Deegan, CT

As an Assistant Camp Director at Massaro Farm she continues to educate youth about their food and the systems that grow it. She is also a mobile farmers market manager, consultant for Connecticut’s “Put Local on Your Tray” program to increase local foods in schools and even acts as a mentor to current service members through her role with New Britain ROOTS. She has found many ways to continue being a leader in her community, and to Krizl, “to lead is to be a mentor, knowing when to step back, showing gratitude, and most importantly it’s to provide support and motivation those you’re leading. [She] can be anyone’s greatest hype woman – in the workplace, in the pottery studio, in the kitchen, or even sitting in the car during stressful CT traffic.”

 

 

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Mentorship Matters https://foodcorps.org/mentorship-matters/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=mentorship-matters Tue, 25 Oct 2016 23:37:51 +0000 https://foodcorps.org/?p=6476 Our alumni and service members often tell us they are…

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Our alumni and service members often tell us they are looking for professional mentors and advisors, so we created the Peer Advisor Network (PAN) to make it easy for them to find people with shared interests and skills from right within the alumni and service member community. In this post, we highlight the importance of mentorship through the experience of alum Kirsten Gerbatsch ’15.

A mentor is someone who you can learn from, who will support you, and who will challenge you to think deeply and reflectively about your path. Sometimes they will be your cheerleaders, but mentors “aren’t always your best friends,” says alum Kirsten Gerbatsch ‘15. They’re the people who care enough, “to give you the stink eye and say, ‘what’re you doing?’ sometimes.”

mt_missoula_0106-peter-and-kirsten-gerbatsch

 

Kirsten works is a political organizer now and when I asked her how she’d found that path, she quickly explained how instrumental mentors from her FoodCorps days were, starting with her Site Supervisor, Diane Conners. Diane took it upon herself to help Kirsten find her passions and encouraged her to really invest in them. Seeing that Kirsten had a budding interest in food policy, Diane introduced Kirsten to the regional district staff of Debbie Stabenow (Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee) and invited her to participate in the Michigan Food Policy Council. This active mentorship challenged Kirsten to figure out what she really wanted to learn and get out of her service experience. After her service, Kirsten was the FoodCorps Montana Fellow and then dabbled in sustainability work in the for-profit sector. After giving that gig some time, she realized this wasn’t her “flavor of how to change the world,” and was left wondering what new direction she should pursue. So she turned to another mentor from her FoodCorps Fellowship, Crissie McMullan for advice.

Seeing that Kirsten was searching for a new path, Crissie did some matchmaking to set Kirsten up with a new mentor named Lauren. Lauren was the Director of the Montana Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee at the Montana Democratic Part and she encouraged to Kirsten to apply for their fellowship program. Throughout that experience, Lauren continued to be an influential guide for Kirsten – asking important questions that helped her find her passion and realize that she wanted to go back to school to pursue a degree in public policy, government, or law. So now she’s applying to school and laying down the bricks to make the pathway ahead of her. 

What’s the moral of the story? Through networking and initiative Kirsten found mentors who have been pivotal for her growth and have helped her find the path she’s currently pursuing.

What should you do to build relationships with mentors like Kirsten did? First off, do your research. Find out who is already in your broader network who you admire and share interests with and set up a time to talk. Then follow Kirsten’s advice:

  • Just go for it: “It takes initiative on the mentee’s part to make contact and build a relationship. Don’t let the intimidation factor get in the way of you reaching out.”
  • Be prepared: “Know what you want to get out of the relationship while also being open to the unexpected.”
  • Follow your path: “A good mentor will respect that your path is your own- mentees don’t have to follow directly in their mentor’s footsteps.”
  • It’s a two-way street: “Successful mentorship requires mutual respect.” You both have something to offer one another and your perspective is valued.
  • It can be organic: “You don’t always have to come out and say, ‘Excuse me, will you be my mentor?'”
  • Stay in touch: “I called my old site supervisor in crisis mode recently. She would not have given me the time of day if I hadn’t talked to her since 2013 when I finished my service term.”
  • Pay it forward: Kirsten has mentored peers, students when she was a service member and service members when she was a fellow. Just because you still have a lot to learn yourself doesn’t mean you can’t be a valuable resource to someone else.

mi-traverse-city-kirsten-teaching

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FoodCorps Alumni Planting Seeds with Grant Funds https://foodcorps.org/foodcorps-alumni-planting-seeds-with-grant-funds/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=foodcorps-alumni-planting-seeds-with-grant-funds https://foodcorps.org/foodcorps-alumni-planting-seeds-with-grant-funds/#respond Tue, 21 Jun 2016 02:01:04 +0000 http://blog.foodcorps.org/?p=391 FoodCorps alumna Margot Sands put her alumni grant funds to good use by building a school garden at the elementary school where she now teaches.

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Three times a year we grant funds to FoodCorps alumni to help them accelerate their professional development, get started on a new project, or host a service event. One alumna, Margot Sands, put her grant funds to use by building a school garden at the elementary school where she now teaches. Here’s what she accomplished and learned along the way.

“Receiving this grant for a new school garden at Clarendon Elementary has become a launching point toward ambitious nutrition and food education plans. While it was a slow start due to a hectic first year of teaching, many stakeholders at my school combined forces to make this garden more than a reality and bigger than I could have even hoped for in the second half of the school year.

My principal has always had a secret dream and vision for a large school garden with an adjoining community garden for local families to utilize. This grant offered her the opportunity to resurface additional garden funds and connect my project to the nutrition department’s other dream of a certified school garden that could send produce to the cafeteria tables. The nutrition department even contributed a hefty sum to purchase bricks for the garden bed structures! Osborn School District’s maintenance staff has also been a major champion of this project in helping order bulk materials for building a larger sized garden than originally planned and assisting in the drip irrigation set up.

Students from my 5th grade class and after school garden club have also been a major driving force in the planning and building process of this garden! Their ideas and input have fueled the momentum of this project and have fostered their motivation and investment in caring for the garden once we add our soil and seeds.

I am so grateful for the training FoodCorps has provided me in coordination with this grant to allow me to organize and implement a new school garden in a community of high need and relevant cultural interests. It truly takes a village to grow food and accomplish a project like this. My experience with this grant at Clarendon illustrates how collaboration, cooperation, and patience are essential to success!

Thank You, FoodCorps!”

A student planting butternut squash and lettuce seeds that will be transplanted into the newly built garden before the end of the school year!
A student planting butternut squash and lettuce seeds that will be transplanted into the newly built garden before the end of the school year!

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Reenergized and Reconnected: Alumni Reflections on Regional Mid-Year Gatherings https://foodcorps.org/reenergized-and-reconnected-alumni-reflections-on-regional-mid-year-gatherings/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=reenergized-and-reconnected-alumni-reflections-on-regional-mid-year-gatherings https://foodcorps.org/reenergized-and-reconnected-alumni-reflections-on-regional-mid-year-gatherings/#respond Thu, 10 Mar 2016 22:00:03 +0000 http://blog.foodcorps.org/?p=305 Why do we invite alumni to Mid-Year Gatherings? ‘Cause you…

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IMG_7021 (1)Why do we invite alumni to Mid-Year Gatherings? ‘Cause you all make us look good. From farmers to food educators to culinary specialists – our alumni who joined us were fantastic role models for current members. We want them to see the power of the community they will continue to be a part of after their service ends. We were lucky to have 34 alumni join us at the Mid-Year Gatherings, and they helped us do just that.

Click on the photos below to read personal reflections on the event from Taylor Hinton (FC MA), Clara Baker (FC OR) and Tiffany Torres (FC CT) who each attended a different regional gathering.

As a result of hearing stories from and meeting with alumni, many service members walked away with less anxiety about what is to come. One member’s major highlight from the whole event was, “seeing and feeling how connected FoodCorps is as a cohort of service members and beyond to alumni, staff, and fellows.” She went on to say,

“It is extremely empowering to think beyond FoodCorps and know that people in the FoodCorps family are going to be the people that are doing this work in the future. Knowing that we have such strong agents for change in the field is exhilarating to me.”

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Wrapping Up Summer Projects, Rolling out Pie Dough https://foodcorps.org/wrapping-up-summer-projects-rolling-out-pie-dough/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=wrapping-up-summer-projects-rolling-out-pie-dough https://foodcorps.org/wrapping-up-summer-projects-rolling-out-pie-dough/#respond Mon, 19 Oct 2015 22:34:48 +0000 http://blog.foodcorps.org/?p=202 We asked FoodCorps alumni share some of their summer projects…

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We asked FoodCorps alumni share some of their summer projects that they’re particularly proud of through photos. Click through the photos to see what they’ve have been up to.

 

Since we’re gearing up for Thanksgiving, it’s time to start dessert menu planning. So we asked alums for their favorite pie recipes. Here’s what they sent our way:

Butternut Squash Pie Submitted by Casey Hancock ’13

“I served in New Hanover & Brunswick counties, North Carolina at Feast Down East 2012-13. I currently live in Dover NH, and work for the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension as Community Development Program Coordinator. I wanted to share a Butternut Squash pie recipe I adapted from Food52.com for a Farmers Market event last Thanksgiving. It was a big hit!”

Tried And True Family Pie Crust Recipe Submitted by Dana Stevens ’12

See photo gallery above for updates from Dana who’s now an MS Candidate in Sustainable Food Systems at Green Mountain College.

Tomato Pie Submitted by Jennifer Sellers ’14

This one looks suspiciously like pizza to me, but Jenn says this is “Something a little different from the common fruit pie. Southern summer treat and super delicious! ”

Tomato and Corn Pie Submitted by Erin Taylor ’12

Erin lovingly compiled all of these photos and stories and is also a stalwart member of our Alumni Council! Her recipe is from Smitten Kitchen. When she’s not collecting submissions from all of you, she’s working for her service site as a Garden Coordinator and Program Associate!

Thanks to everyone who submitted photos and recipes!

 

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