Communities for Healthy Food is a program of New Settlement Apartments in Mount Eden, the Bronx. We’re making healthy eating easy and fun for our community by reaching the places where we buy food, cook, and eat!
On May 16th, high school students from CMSP 327 unveiled the mural they worked on this winter along with Communities for Healthy Food at New Settlement and Groundswell. With guidance from Groundswell Artist Jose de Jesus Rodriguez and Assistant Artist Paula Frisch, the students painted the mural onto sections of parachute cloth, which were then assembled and permanently installed onto the exterior wall of the auto shop across the street from the school. The students had learned about several food justice issues to prepare for this project, and decided to use the mural to highlight the contribution of food workers to our communities.The mural is entitled “The Fruits of Our Labor”, and is designed on two panels. The left panel depicts the origins of food production through the labor of field workers. The right panel moves the visual narrative to the Bronx, which includes a portrait of a food service worker and a dinner scene. This mirrored composition creates a connection between both communities to illustrate that everyone along the food chain shares the quality of being human, and uplifts the role of food workers throughout the food chain who play a part in ensuring we have healthy food to eat in the Bronx. The faces in the image are modeled after the faces of students and staff from the school.
After the ceremony, attendees enjoyed food prepared by a parent of a CMSP 327 student. There was a step performance by students in the Creative Leaders After School Program, and the elementary school students of the Multicultural After School Program prepared samples of delicious hummus with veggies. Attendees also wrote thank-you cards to food workers in our neighborhood.
We are proud of the youth who brought this project to fruition, and hope they will enjoy seeing the product of their work in the neighborhood for years to come!
Above, Ben Ferder and Tima Faison of PS 311, with the District 9 Superintendent Leticia Rodriguez-Rosario. Below, Shannon Nilan and Delis Deleon of PS 294.
Celebrating School Wellness at the PS 64 Campus
We have been working closely with the PS 64 elementary school campus for the past few years to introduce and promote school wellness initiatives, and this year the hard work of the schools was recognized with two NYC Excellence in School Wellness Awards. PS 311 (Lucero Elementary School) won Platinum, which is the highest award, after winning Gold for the past two years. PS 294 (The Walton Avenue School) won the Silver Award, up from Bronze last year. Tima Faison, a Paraprofessional at PS 311 and a Co-Coordinator of their Wellness Committee, says she burst into happy tears when she learned that they had won the Platinum Award. “I was so happy seeing that all of our hard work paid off.”
The school campus has benefited from its partnerships with WITS (Wellness in the Schools) and FoodCorps. The WITS partnership is coordinated and sponsored by New Settlement. Delis Deleon, the Parent Coordinator at PS 294, says that without these partnerships, much of the school’s wellness work wouldn’t have been possible: “We had the desire to bring health and nutrition into classrooms, but didn’t know how. They made it more realistic.” Next year the schools will continue their partnership with WITS, and Communities for Healthy Food at New Settlement is excited to be serving as host for the FoodCorps member at PS 294.
The school staff have discovered that to truly integrate health and wellness into children’s lives, they need to lead by example and give students opportunities to be part of the solution. Both schools have 3rd and 4th graders who serve as Wellness Ambassadors, encouraging their peers to eat from the salad bar at lunch, discouraging them from bringing unhealthy snacks to school, and giving fellow students stickers if they try a sample of a healthy recipe. Tima from PS 311 says that the students love this role: “I never have to monitor them. They know what to do and are passionate about it.” Tima also runs right alongside the students in the Mighty Milers running club, and models healthy eating by bringing salads and water with her to school. “They’re watching and paying attention. It reinforces the message that we’re not just telling them what to do, but we’re all doing this together.” Shannon Nilan, the Literacy Coach at PS 294 and an integral part of their Wellness Committee, started a blog about her experience eating the school lunch every day for a month (the PS 64 campus serves food from the Alternative Menu, which is more plant-based and freshly prepared). She also encourages teachers to have the lunch menu displayed in the classroom and to talk about it with their students.
Many of the staff have personal motivation for helping to create a culture of wellness in the school. Delis from PS 294 has been personally impacted by her experience watching family members struggle with health issues. “If you start young, it stays with them. Less kids will have to grow up worrying about these things.” Benjamin Ferder, who wears several hats as the Physical Education teacher at PS 311, a Co-Coordinator of the Wellness Committee, the Sustainability Coordinator, and the Respect for All Liaison (working against bullying and harrassment in the school), says “we’re thinking about how the community can shape a well-balanced life. I’ve learned new goals and challenges for myself too. I’m glad I’m a part of this.”