Case Studies
Case Studies: Building Health Schools and Communities
Chicago Schools
SGA collaborates with the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, the Archdiocese of Chicago, and Chicago Public Schools to implement Fresh from the Farm curriculum and program activities in specific Chicago-based schools. SGA’s Fresh from the Farm program is one of many healthy eating and active living programs at McAuliffe Elementary, organized by the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, which have made McAuliffe one of the leading models of healthy schools. SGA is also currently implementing Fresh from the Farm activities at Ames Middle School, Namaste Charter School, St. Ann’s Elementary, and Whittier Elementary in Chicago’s Logan Square, Pilsen, and Little Village neighborhoods. Fresh from the Farm program activities have been implemented in 20 schools in Chicago and across the greater Chicago metropolitan area.
Transforming the Oak Park School Lunch Program
Seven Generations Ahead has worked on building a sustainable, healthy school lunch program within the Village of Oak Park, connecting local sustainable farms and distributors to schools and providing educational programming that teaches children and adults about the benefits of healthy eating and locally grown food. SGA successfully catalyzed the transformation of the Oak Park school lunch program to a healthier satellite lunch program model through parent and community educational forums and workshops, wide-spread implementation of Fresh from the Farm pilot PTO healthy lunches, and district-wide implementation of Fresh from the Farm curriculum and program activities. Through a USDA Community Food Projects grant, SGA brought resources and programming to support the development of the first school organic vegetable and fruit gardens at Hatch and Longfellow, and has worked with other D97 schools to support their garden development. Through individual training, teachers and parents continue to implement food tastings curricula, farm expeditions, and school gardens. SGA has conducted Wellness Policy Implementation Training for all District 97 Wellness Teams, while working with school food service to increase the volume and variety of locally grown fruits and vegetables in the school lunch program.
Chartwells Thompson Local Food in Chicago Public Schools
SGA is collaborating with Chartwells-Thompson Hospitality Food Service to provide Fresh from the Farm curriculum and program training in schools where Chartwells-Thompson currently offers selections of locally grown fruits and vegetables. SGA has supported Chartwells through links to local food distributor Locavore Foods, and continues to support Chicago area and Midwest school districts interested in purchasing directly from growers or through distributors sourcing locally grown food.
City of Aurora Healthy Eating Planning
Seven Generations Ahead is partnering with the Robert Crown Center for Health Education, the City of Aurora, the Kane County Health Department, Aurora University, and other stakeholders to seek funding for Aurora Eats Healthy, an initiative that combines community and youth visioning/strategy development around healthy eating; school and health center-based healthy eating educational programming; procurement linkages between local growers and Aurora residents; and farm learning and apprentice opportunities through the development of the Serosun Farms Nature Center in nearby Hampshire, IL.
