The Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is the largest school district in Michigan, with nearly 50,000 students in 106 schools. In 2012, DPSCD kicked off an extensive Farm to School initiative that created school gardens throughout the city. As this program grew, DPSCD focused on connecting students, teachers, and community members to local agriculture while empowering them to grow their own food at school or home. Today, the Farm and Garden Program provides resources and support for all district school gardens. DPSCD’s Drew Farm is a thriving two-acre farm that produces food for the school cafeterias and offers programming for school field trips to the farm, an annual Harvest Festival, and other community events.

FoodCorps Service Members at DPSCD join a cohort of eight Service Members who work together providing programming at the district farm (Drew Farm), preparing and promoting items for taste tests in the cafeterias, providing garden-based professional development for teachers, and supporting community events, and programs at Drew Farm. School Nutrition Service Members work closely with the Office of School Nutrition staff to focus efforts on broader district initiatives around school meals, and Food Educators focus most of their time at their two assigned schools, but all Service Members work together as a team for programming and events at Drew Farm.

Applicants who are friendly, like working as a team, have a good attitude, have a flexible and adaptable nature to work in a large school district, and an interest in learning more about the local food system in Detroit will thrive at DPSCD!

FoodCorps service members at Detroit Public Schools Community District are part of a Michigan cohort that includes 14 service members in four communities across the state. The state staff, Erin and Seema, love creating opportunities to connect in person or virtually, and will always make time and space for sharing a good meal with our Service Members. FoodCorps Service Members have the opportunity to take advantage of a state rich in cultural and geographic diversity. We boast urban, suburban, and rural sites with their own unique set of engaging characteristics, as well as thought-provoking challenges. We welcome all to apply for an experience to learn, give back, and grow!