- (Public Value) UCANR: Promoting healthy people and communities
- Author: Christine Davidson
Five groups of parents participated in a series of workshops from the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP), Master Gardener (MG) and Master Food Preserver (MFP) Programs. The series was part of a grant for the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SAREP). Twelve workshops per group were provided at the Victor Elementary School District Parent Resource Center (VESD) and Middle College High School. Four of the five groups conducted workshops in Spanish to reach under-served communities in San Bernardino County. Kits provided an opportunity to practice skills alongside the educators during workshops or afterward in their homes.
The EFNEP workshops consisted of a series of 9 lessons including topics such as reading the food label, food safety, MyPlate, stretching the food dollar, importance of exercise, limiting salt, sugar and fat. A kit provided ingredients to prepare Cowboy Caviar and Apple Salad recipes. The in person workshop included a live demonstration and kits to prepare Apple Salad. Virtual workshops included live food demonstration via Zoom while parents made the recipes in their homes. Graduates of the EFNEP program (n=37) received a cookbook and certificate of graduation.
MFP and MG workshops followed the EFNEP program alternating each week. Victor Elementary School District held an in person hands on activity making three tiered herb gardens. Participants received pots, soil, seeds, transplants and cuttings during the workshop. All participants went home with their new garden and tips on maintenance. The workshop was repeated virtually for the Middle College High School parents and VESD via Zoom. Parents received kits at their school sites and watched the live demonstration with time for questions at the end. The last MG workshop was Growing Cool/Warm Season Vegetables. Parents learned how to care for vegetables and which grew best in their home climate of the high desert or city of San Bernardino. They were given a binder with information about growing and maintaining vegetables, a pot, Popsicle sticks and a sharpie to label their vegetables, seeds for carrots, peas and radishes, and tote bag.
The Master Food Preserver program provided two workshops for parents. Each workshop emphasized food safety importance including proper storage of food, sanitation and hand washing. The first workshop, refrigerator pickling included a live demonstration walking parents through the entire process. Parents were given a kit containing carrots, jalapenos, garlic, pickling salt and spices, a container, a bottle of vinegar and the recipe to take home to replicate the demonstration. Options were provided to create the recipe either sweet or salty depending on preference. The next workshop consisted of making mixed berry freezer jam. The kit included a bag of frozen mixed berries, a container, sugar, pectin and recipe. Volunteers walked parents through the process and they took home their homemade jam.
All workshops reinforced food safety, saving money when food shopping, growing and preserving food. These topics addressed food insecurity, which is something families in San Bernardino struggle with. Parents were excited to participate in all workshops and share photos of making and growing food at home. Parents who attended all twelve workshops received a certificate of completion (n=18).
“I definitely enjoyed the nutrition classes and additional workshops. At my age, you reminded me the importance of building muscle and maintaining strong bones. I try to read the nutrition labels and have added more water to my diet. In addition, I have tried to implement certain habits to my daughters. I am also happy to report that two of my plants are still alive -lol. Not bad, I think. However, the sun and heat make it hard. I can go on... but I honestly enjoyed being a part of your class and workshops. I even shared your link with one of my cousins. The one with the jam and other tutorials.” – Participant
“I enjoyed the workshops very much! It was nice to receive all the information instead of having to look for it and being able to ask questions and of course, I loved the supplies that were provided. It made everything a lot easier!”
- Participant
- Author: Christine Davidson
UCCE San Bernardino County received a grant from the Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program (SAREP) to provide education to at risk communities in San Bernardino County. The grant began June 2021 and will continue through May 2022. Two groups of parents were a part of the three program collaboration consisting of a series of workshops from the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) , Master Gardener (MG) and Master Food Preserver (MFP) Programs. Twelve lessons in total were provided at the Victor Elementary School District Parent Resource Center and via Zoom for Middle College High School parents. All workshops were conducted in Spanish to help reach the underserved population in San Bernardino County. Kits were provided during the workshops to give the participants opportunities to practice along with the educator or prepare on their own at home.
The EFNEP workshops consisted of a series of 8 lessons including topics such as reading the nutrition facts label, food safety, MyPlate, stretching the food dollar, importance of exercise, limiting salt, sugar and fat. Parents were given a kit with ingredients to prepare Cowboy Caviar and Apple Salad recipes. At the parent center, the educator provided a live demonstration and sent kits home with parents to make their own apple salad. The educator conducted another food demonstration via Zoom while parents made the recipes in their homes. One mother added additional vegetables she had in her refrigerator to the Cowboy Caviar and reported her family loved the meal she served for dinner that evening. Graduates of the EFNEP program received a cookbook and certificate of graduation.
The EFNEP workshops were followed by the MFP and MG workshops alternating each week. Victor Elementary School District held an in person hands on activity making three tiered herb gardens. Participants received pots, soil, seeds, transplants and cuttings during the hands on workshop. All participants went home with their new garden and tips on maintaining it. This workshop was repeated for the Middle College High School parents along with those that were not able to attend VESD via Zoom. Parents received kits at their school sites and watched the live demonstration with time for questions at the end. The last MG workshop was Growing Cool Season Vegetables. Parents learned which vegetables were best to grow in the high desert climate and how to care for them in the process. They were given a binder with information about growing and maintaining vegetables, a pot, Popsicle sticks and a sharpie to label their vegetables, seeds for carrots, peas and radishes, and tote bag.
The Master Food Preserver program also provided two workshops for the parents. Each workshop emphasized the importance of food safety including proper storage of food, sanitation and hand washing. The first was refrigerator pickling. The volunteers conducted a live demonstration walking parents through the entire process. Parents were given a kit to take home. The kit included carrots, jalapenos, garlic, pickling salt and spices, a container, a bottle of vinegar and the recipe. They were given options to create the recipe either sweet or salty depending on preference. The next workshop was a hands on activity making freezer jam with mixed berries. The volunteers walked parents through the process. Each participate was given a bag of frozen mixed berries, a container, sugar, and pectin. They took home their homemade jam along with the recipe.
All workshops reinforced concepts of food safety, saving money by shopping on sale as well as growing and preserving your own food. This addressed the area of food insecurity which is something that families in San Bernardino struggle with. Parents were excited to participate in all workshops and share photos of making and growing their food at home. Parents who attended all twelve workshops received a certificate of completion. These activities will continue throughout the year reaching more families in San Bernadino County.
- Author: Christine Davidson
Parents at Davidson and Anton Elementary in the San Bernardino Unified School District, were invited to participate in a series of workshops provided by the University of California Cooperative Extension Master Food Preserver (MFP) and Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Programs (EFNEP). The first EFNEP series included 9 lessons from the Eating Smart Being Active curriculum. The focus was eating well and living a healthier life style. Each week parents learned about a new topic such as My Healthy Plate, whole grains, meal planning, saving money, and food safety. Parents also participated in 15 minutes of physical activity through walking indoors videos. During the workshops, parents tasted new recipes as well as set goals and received lesson enhancements to encourage behavior change. At the end of the series, parents who attended at least 7 lessons received a certificate of graduation.
The EFNEP workshops were followed by the MFP jam making class. Parents made mixed berry freezer jam. Food safety measures learned during the EFNEP workshops, were reinforced by emphasizing the importance of hand washing, using a clean surface and storing at the proper temperature. Parents learned they can store their jam in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks or in the freezer for 12 months. Tips on stretching your food dollar were also reinforced by sharing various types of fruit that can be used for jam. This is a great way to save money by buying seasonal or frozen fruit, using fruit from a home garden, reusing containers found at home, sharing with friends and giving jam as gifts. Everyone had smiles on their faces while making and tasting their jam!