SCSU CARE Community Garden Nutrition Education Program. Meadeshia Mitchell, B.A. & Kaelyn Audette, B.S. October 30, 2017

Transcription

1 SCSU CARE Community Garden Nutrition Education Program Meadeshia Mitchell, B.A. & Kaelyn Audette, B.S. October 30, 2017

2 Presentation Outline CARE and New Haven Farms Overview Program Overview Evaluation Methods Program Results The Future of the Program Acknowledgements

3 Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE) Overview What is CARE? Founded in 2007 at the Yale School of Public Health. Recently started a partnership with SCSU's School of Health and Human Services. Mission statement To improve the health of New Haven residents through leadership, community engagement, and collaborative community-based research. Above, left to right: CARE founder Jeannette Ickovics; CARE Director Alycia Santilli; Sandra Bulmer, Dean of SCSU s School of Health and Human Services Adapted from

4 New Haven Farms Overview What is New Haven Farms? Non-profit organization that promotes health and community building through urban agriculture. Transforms vacant, urban spaces into small organic farms in New Haven s under-resourced neighborhoods. Farm-based Wellness Program 16-week program that includes: weekly farming, nutrition, and cooking lessons. Serves low-income community members with diet-related chronic disease risk factors referred by one of New Haven s federally qualified health centers. Adapted from

5 Community Garden Nutrition Education Program Overview What: A 6-week nutrition education program where participants learned how to cook, eat, shop healthy, grow their own food. Who: Collaboration between SCSU s Department of Public Health, SCSU s Office of Sustainability, CARE, and New Haven Farms.

6 SCSU CARE Community Garden Nutrition Education Program Overview The Interns: Meadeshia Mitchell, B.A., MPH Candidate - CARE graduate Intern and Program Coordinator Abby Putzer, B.S., MPH Candidate - CARE graduate Intern and Program Coordinator Kaelyn Audette, B.S. - SCSU Office of Sustainability Intern and Garden Manager Megan McNivens, B.S Candidate - SCSU Office of Sustainability Intern

7 SCSU CARE Community Garden Nutrition Education Program Overview Where: SCSU Community Garden 36 Prescott St. New Haven, CT When: Tuesday evenings, for six weeks, beginning on July 11th, 2017 and ending on August 15th, 2017.

8 Weekly Session Overview The basic structure of the weekly session: Nutrition Lessons Topics included: All about vegetables Fats, calories, & sugar Chronic disease overview Food measurements, serving sizes, & MyPlate Nutrition labels & shopping tips/changing health habits Healthy substitutions & positive action plans.

9 Weekly Session Overview The basic structure of the weekly session: Cooking Demonstrations

10 Weekly Session Overview The basic structure of the weekly session: Garden Tours/Seminars

11 Weekly Session Overview The basic structure of the weekly session: Produce Shares

12 Evaluation Methods We conducted program evaluation using several surveys: 1) Intake survey 2) Weekly survey 3) End of program survey Topics covered by the intake and end of program survey included: Background information; consumption of fruits and vegetables; where participants eat and shop for food; and health status.

13 Results

14 Participant Characteristics Number of Participants 11 participants took part in the program. The total number of people who attended the sessions was 47. Demographics All females, 73% were Black or African American, 64% were single, 46% attended some college or technical school, and 46% had full-time employment.

15 Weekly Survey Results At least half of the participants used all of the vegetables they received the week prior (week 2: 67%; week 3: 100%; week 4: 50%, and week 5: 80%). Most weeks the majority of participants reported that they purchased additional fruits and vegetables (week 2: 67%; week 3: 100%; week 4: 50%, and week 5: 80%). Overall, participants were happy with the program each week.

16 Weekly Survey Results (cont d.) Participant's favorite parts of the program: I enjoy looking at the garden. I enjoy seeing the people, seeing what grows from the garden, and tasting the food. I like the cooking demonstration, the recipes are easy [to use], and I [like learning] about the different [ways] of preparing the same food items.

17 End of Program Results At the end of the program, 100% felt their present intake of fruits and vegetables was sufficient. This was an increase from 55% for vegetables and 82% for fruit at the beginning of the program. 80% said their view of the value of gardening had changed. 100% used the weekly recipes and believed those recipes helped them cook with the vegetables from the garden. 80% made a personal health goal at the start and felt the program helped them to address that goal. 100% made friends at the program with other participants. Participants ranked enjoyment of the cooking demonstrations highest, followed by the gardening portion, and then the nutrition lessons.

18 End of program Results (cont d.) Participant s favorite parts of the program: Getting out and socializing with people. Gaining knowledge on eating healthy. Seeing the garden and seeing how the community health program was run. Understanding more about public health. Going in the garden weekly to see progress. I love seeing the garden because I don't have a garden at home...i like the staff. The food was good. I was really motivated to want to attend the program.

19 Participants Incorporating Veggies in their Meal

20 The Future of the Program Overall, the program was a great success! Invaluable intern experience to have the opportunity to plan, implement, and evaluate an entire community health program. Fostered a sense of community and provided an opportunity for participants to make new friends. Valuable contribution to neighborhoods adjacent to SCSU. We hope to see the SCSU CARE Community Garden Nutrition Education Program continued and expanded in years to come.

21 Acknowledgements We want to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation to all the individuals below who have made this program possible: 1) Alycia Santilli, MSW CARE Director 2) Dr. Victoria Zigmont, PhD, MPH Faculty Member SCSU Department of Public Health 3) Sharon Taylor, MPH CARE Outreach Coordinator 4) Liz Marsh New Haven Farms Farm Based Wellness Program Manager 5) Jacqueline Maisonpierre New Haven Farms Farm Director 6) Russell Moore New Haven Farms Executive Director 7) Suzie Huminski SCSU Office of Sustainability 8) Eve Anthony, RD Guest Lecturer 9) Ben Plotke Guest Chef from Junzi Kitchen 10) Volunteers

22 References CT Organic Farms & New Haven CSA. (n.d.). Retrieved September 24, 2017, from SCSU Office of Sustainability. (n.d.). Retrieved September 24, 2017, from Southern Connecticut State University. (n.d.). Retrieved September 24, 2017, from

23 Any Questions?