Upper Valley Farm to School Network

Welcome to the Upper Valley Farm to School Network! The Network is all the educators, farmers and community members working to integrate local food and farms into the classrooms, cafeterias and communities of our region. Our staff is available to help you with your farm to school projects, be they large or small, so please contact us.

Services

Our staff is here to support your farm to school work.

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Resources

Tools for farm to school program growth.

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Member Schools

Network members around the Upper Valley.

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Farm to School Mini-Grants

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What's Happening

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Schools with Farm to School Projects in the Upper Valley

Each of these Upper Valley schools has a unique farm to school program. Some are as simple as a school garden bed, others involve yearly harvest parties, curricular integration, and local purchasing in the cafeteria. Contact us to get involved, or to expand your own farm to school programming.

Windsor County, VT

Ascutney Basin
Barnard Academy
Bridgewater Village School
Hartford Memorial Middle School
Hartland Elementary School
Pomfret
Reading Elementary
Sharon Elementary
Upper Valley Waldorf School
Windsor State Street School
Woodstock Elementary School

Funding for the Upper Valley Farm to School Network is provided by the Wellborn Ecology Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation – Upper Valley Region, Jane B. Cook 1983 Charitable Trust, The Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation, and The Couch Family Foundation.

Orange County, VT

Bradford Elementary School
Cedar Circle Farm
The Newton School in Strafford
Thetford Elementary School

Grafton County, NH
Hanover High School
The Lyme School
The Ray School

Photo Gallery

Funding for the Upper Valley Farm to School Network is provided by the Wellborn Ecology Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation – Upper Valley Region, Jane B. Cook 1983 Charitable Trust, The Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation, and The Couch Family Foundation.

Calendar

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Vital Communities Program News

Fat Hat Clothing-Keeping it Local for 40 years

Forty years ago Joan Ecker started Fat Hat Clothing Company with free fabric remnants and a treadle sewing machine. Today F.H. Clothing Company is a nationally known family business that designs, produces and sells stylish, ...more

Quest Spotlight: Trees of Hanover Quest

With this amazing stretch of sunny days we've been having, I wanted to get outside and do more Questing! This week, I went out to do the Trees of Hanover Quest. This Quest takes you ...more

Supporting Social Enterprises

Exciting news! Local First is one of five sites across the country participating in a National Science Foundation research project to pilot The Local Crowd, a community crowd funding platform to support social enterprises. Crowdfunding ...more

Quest Spotlight: Quest for the Kestrel

This month, I wanted to spotlight a Quest on the Super Quest list! If you haven't signed up for the Super Quest yet, there is still time! Register your team, and then find a Quest off ...more

Housing: Regional Challenge—Local Solutions

Housing: Regional Challenge—Local Solutions We live, work, shop, and play across state and town lines, so it makes sense to work together to meet our shared housing challenge. Here is what some towns are doing, and how ...more

New South Royalton Quest!

We are excited to announce the Royalton Historical Quest, a new Valley Quest! This Quest will take you around the green in South Royalton while teaching you about the town’s history. Starting at the White ...more

Celebrate Our Independents!

July is a time to celebrate not only our independence as a nation but the entrepreneurial spirit and freedom that is embodied by our local and independent businesses. Independents Week is an annual opportunity to ...more

Free Power of Produce Clubs for Kids!

Bring the kids to free, drop-in, fun and educational Power of Produce (POP) Clubs between now and August 18. Thirteen area farmers' markets host POP Clubs! Bring kids to the POP Club table where they ...more

Stand in Your Circle of Strength and Lead

Ed. Note: On May 30, Vital Communities honored 12 community leaders who’ve added immeasurably to the vitality of the Upper Valley at its annual Heroes & Leaders Celebration. The following are the event’s keynote remarks ...more

West Lebanon Feed & Supply is Committed to Community

A strong work ethic, a passion for helping others, and a sincere love of animals have been at the core of Curt and Sharon Jacques’ life and their business. West Lebanon Feed & Supply's success ...more

Heroes & Leaders: Creating a Vital Upper Valley

Every spring, Leadership Upper Valley, a program of Vital Communities, hosts the annual Heroes & Leaders Celebration to recognize individuals who make significant contributions to the Upper Valley. In 2019, we are pleased to honor ...more

2nd Annual Curb The Car Day - Friday, May 17!

On May 17, 2019 the rest of the country is celebrating National Bike to Work Day, but here in the Upper Valley we’ll be taking it a step further with our second annual Curb The ...more

12th Annual Roundtable - May 7

You're Invited! The 12th Annual Upper Valley Energy Committee Roundtable is Tuesday, May 7, 5-8 pm in West Lebanon! This annual gathering of local energy volunteers is open to all, whether you serve on an energy committee, wish to ...more

Dazzlingly Reflective, 80's Style

We love pairing style with nighttime visibility, so we've ordered REFLECTIVE SLAP BRACELETS to reward people who bike or walk to Flavors of the Valley on Sunday, April 7! If you bike and walk to the ...more

Get your bike, boots, or shoes ready!

Get your bike, boots, or shoes ready! From our friends at Local Motion comes the Winter Edition of Vermont's Bike-Walk Challenge, February 1 to 8! Simply record two bike or walk commutes in the Go! Vermont app ...more

Seeking Bids from Solar Installers by Nov. 30

Vital Communities is teaming up with Kearsarge Climate Action to launch a Solarize Kearsarge campaign in spring 2019, following on the tails of the upcoming Weatherize Kearsarge campaign launching in January 2019. We are seeking proposals ...more

Lebanon Area Businesses - Join us on Sept. 27

So many small businesses in the Upper Valley are burdened with high energy costs. And not enough time to do anything about it! We've got some good news for you. A group of Lebanon residents are ...more

A Lot Lighter with More Hands: Leadership Upper Valley

On the bright, sunny morning of June 13, Cobb Hill was waking up, and the soon-to-be graduating 2018 Leadership Upper Valley class was just arriving for their final meeting. Before the ceremony at Harpoon Brewery, ...more

Staff

Becka Warren

Valley Food & Farm Communications Coordinator

Food & Farm

 802.291.9100 x 112

Food & Farm

— Becka Warren, Valley Food & Farm Communications Coordinator

Part of Vital Communities' Valley Food & Farm team since 2012, Becka fosters relationships that keep agriculture a daily part of community life in the Upper Valley. She works with current and future farmers, businesses, schools, and partners across Vermont and New Hampshire to build connections that support farm viability and keep our landscapes working. Becka lived in Seattle for many years, where she worked for the Washington State University Small Farms Program, Cascade Harvest Coalition, Seattle Tilth, and area vegetable farms. Becka is also a writer, founding and writing Ask Umbra at gristmagazine.com until 2009. She holds a BA from Brown University and lives in Hartland, Vermont, with her family.



Beth Roy

Valley Food & Farm Manager

Food & Farm

 802.291.9100 x 105

Food & Farm

— Beth Roy, Valley Food & Farm Manager

Before joining Vital Communities, Beth Roy worked in the environmental and place-based education fields for 17 years in various positions around New England including at the Vermont Institute of Natural Science and as the Director of Education at the Nature Museum in Grafton, Vt. Beth is also on the boards of the Vermont Science Teacher Association (VSTA) and the Vermont State-Wide Environmental Education Programs (SWEEP), a coalition of dozens of individuals and organizations promoting sustainability and environmental education in Vermont. Beth is a New Hampshire native and lives in Hartland, Vt., with her husband and two children. When Beth is not working you will find her exploring the woods around her home with her family or cooking up a new taste test (made of local foods, of course!) for her children.



Nancy LaRowe

Local First Manager and Valley Food & Farm Coordinator

Food & Farm

 802.291.9100 x 106

Food & Farm

— Nancy LaRowe, Local First Manager and Valley Food & Farm Coordinator

Nancy joined Vital Communities as the Valley Food & Farm Coordinator in 2014. She works to support and grow our local food system and economy. Nancy has lived, worked, and farmed in the Upper Valley for more than 25 years and believes our community is healthier and stronger when our connections to food and the farms that produce it stay vital.

Nancy's informal job title is Farmer-in-Residence: she also runs a pasture-based cattle farm in Norwich, Vt. Nancy is on the Board of the Norwich Farmers' Market, and a retired Norwich volunteer firefighter and EMT. She loves puttering in the garden, hiking with her dog, and visiting farmers' markets.