Windham JMG students join pilot food accessibility program

By Elizabeth Richards

Students in Windham’s Jobs for Maine Graduates program have a unique opportunity to help develop solutions for food insecurity in the state.  RSU14 is one of 10 districts participating in a pilot program designed to address the issue.  

The student-led collaboration is a joint venture between JMG, a statewide nonprofit organization working with students who face barriers to education, and Full Plates Full Potential (FPFP), a coalition of community leaders and advocates working to end childhood hunger in Maine.  The pilot program will focus on increasing awareness of student hunger and ensuring that every Maine child is able to access school meals, according to a press release. 

Julie Stone, Master JMG Specialist at Windham High School, said that students in the middle school and high school JMG classes will work together using a “human centered design” process. Human centered design means directly asking the population affected by an issue how to solve that problem. 

Because JMG students themselves face barriers to education, including food insecurity, Stone said they are in a good position to ask students how people can help them with this issue.  

Each pilot district will receive $5,000. Students will be tasked with developing solutions on how to use that money to tackle the issue, narrowing the potential solutions to one specific solution by the end of the program.

They are currently developing a timeline, Stone said, and will likely have a small group of students taking the lead.  However, “We will be asking a lot of students for their input, so we can develop the best solution,” she said.

Taking part in this pilot program is a great opportunity for JMG and the students they work with, Stone said. “This will definitely be a great leadership moment,” she said. 

In the press release about the program, Justin Strasburger, executive director of FPFP, said “Food insecurity among students in Maine has increased significantly since the pandemic.  Upwards of 100,000 Maine kids aren’t getting enough food at home.” He said that too many of these children either don’t know about or can’t access the available school meal programs.  

“By teaming up with JMG, we hope to reach those students and break down barriers that are preventing them from participating in these meal programs,” he said.

That has resonated with local JMG students.

“The pandemic has struck deep in communities, especially around food,” Stone said.  “Having this opportunity will hopefully lead to some solutions on how we can better support our students and their food accessibility.”

Student voice goes a long way, she said. “Why are we as adults making across the board decision for our students?  We should be asking them what do you need? How can we make it easier for you?  What do you want?” she said.

Exactly what the project will look like in Windham is currently unknown, and the solutions developed in Windham may look very different than those in other pilot districts, Stone said. The research and solutions students develop could potentially be applied in other areas across the state, she said.

“Who knows to what extent we’ll be able to use the research that our students develop.  Maybe there will be some kind of initiative that comes from it that goes into our legislature,” Stone said. “Hopefully, Windham students will be leading the way on that.  It’s an awesome opportunity.” <