Cleveland School District’s vision the development of productive and successful citizens through innovative and diverse learning opportunities. Our mission is commitment to the educational and extracurricular achievements of all learners and our motto is “Committed to Excellence.” Cleveland School District’s garden programing is growing. All elementary schools in the district have at least one raised garden bed. Former and current FoodCorps partnership sites have expansive gardens at Bell Academy, Cleveland Central Middle School, Parks Elementary, and Pearman Elementary. Our partnership with Delta Fresh Foods has provided garden beds at DM Smith Elementary, Hayes Cooper Center, and Nailor Elementary, as well as, offer free field trips at their farm for students in our district. Our district has also been chosen to serve as a program site and implementation partner for The Mississippi Farm to School Network, in collaboration with Earth Island Institute, in their project, “Developing a Local Procurement Pipeline for Mississippi Schools.” Our district also serves 100% free breakfast and lunch under the Community Eligibility Provision.

FoodCorps Food Education corps members will teach (or co-teach) hands-on food and garden lessons to elementary students in our district (may split time between two schools). This includes leading lessons in the classroom and garden, teaching students about food origins, nutrition, cooking skills, and how to grow food. Members also help plan and participate in school family engagement activities that may involve gardening, a cooking demonstration, or administering a taste test. Members will role model a nourishing eating pattern by eating with students at lunch. This may include eating the school lunch and discussing the importance of eating all food groups offered. Taste testing is an important role to introduce students to items that may be grown in the garden, a new recipe, relates to a cultural food tradition, or to help promote an item on the school menu. Maintenance and cultivation of school gardens, including planting, weeding, harvesting, and managing pests is a role of the FoodCorps corps member. Members will also collaborate on projects with our school partners: Delta Fresh Foods, Mississippi Farm to School Network and Cleveland Farmers Market.

As mentioned on the website, “Named by Southern Living and Smithsonian Magazine as one the best small towns in the South, Cleveland, Mississippi is home to an easy and gracious Delta lifestyle with all the shopping, restaurants, and accommodations that go with it. With a beautiful and well-kept downtown full of independent boutiques, jewelry stores, galleries, antique shops, cafes and restaurants, you and your companions can easily spend an entire day in just the downtown area. Along with the downtown, Delta State University adds a university-town vibe to the area, making Cleveland one Mississippi’s best college towns, and one of the best retirement towns in Mississippi.” Cleveland is also home to the Grammy Museum Mississippi, “Birthplace of the Blues” (Dockery Farms), Heritage Railroad Museum and the 50 Nights of Lights celebration with over 1,000,000 lights at the downtown walking trail during the holiday season. To see quick facts of Cleveland, MS census data click here.