Fifty-One Elementary Schools Using USDA Grant to Promote Fresh Fruits, Vegetables

August 11, 2009

COLUMBIA, SC – August 11, 2009 –  Students in 51 South Carolina public elementary schools will be encouraged to boost their consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables thanks to a federal grant making healthier eating easier during the upcoming school year.

The schools are taking part in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.  They’ll be sharing a $1,172,650 grant from the USDA in partnership with the South Carolina Department of Education and South Carolina Department of Agriculture. 

Funds will go to purchase and serve a wide variety of free fresh fruits and vegetables, providing fruit baskets inside classrooms, kiosks in hallways and other innovative approaches to give youngsters a chance to grab a healthy snack throughout the school day.  The aim is to create a healthier school environment.

Schools also will make nutrition education a priority, emphasizing the importance of fresh fruits and vegetables in a healthy diet. The program engages all of the students’ senses – sound, sight, touch, smell and, most important, taste.

“There are actually two goals here,” said State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex.  “First, we want kids to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.  Second – and perhaps even more important in the long run – we want to give them a head start on developing healthier eating habits that can last their whole lives.” 

The SDE’s Office of School Food Services and Nutrition is partnering with the state Department of Agriculture to work with local farmers to purchase home-grown fruits and produce for the program.

Here are the 51 schools and their districts:

District / School

Kershaw / Bethune Elementary
Clarendon 2 / Manning Early Childhood Center
Sumter 17 / Kingsbury Elementary
Chesterfield / Pageland Elementary
Newberry / Gallman Elementary
Jasper / Ridgeland Elementary
Marion 1 / Easterling Primary
Spartanburg 5 / Duncan Elementary
Aiken / North Aiken Elementary
Chesterfield / Petersburg Primary
Spartanburg 1 / Inman Elementary
Lexington 1 / Pelion Elementary
Lexington/Richland 5 / Harbison West Elementary
Spartanburg 7 / Cleveland Elementary
Beaufort / St. Helena Elementary
Lexington 4 / Sandhills Elementary
Beaufort / Whale Branch Elementary
Darlington / Thornwell Elementary
Calhoun / St. Matthews K-8
Beaufort / Hilton Head Island ECC
Chester / Chester Park Complex
Pickens / Albert R. Lewis Elementary
Spartanburg 7 / Park Hills Schools
Spartanburg 7 / Chapman Elementary
Dorchester 4 / Harleyville Ridgeville Elementary
Anderson 5 / CDC at W Market & S Fant
Cherokee / Luther Vaughan Elementary
Clarendon 3 / Walker Gamble Elementary
Orangeburg 3 / Elloree Elementary
Sumter 2  / Rafting Creek Elementary
Cherokee / Mary Bramlett Elementary
Marion 7 / Britton’s Neck Elementary
Newberry / Newberry Elementary
Charleston / Angel Oak Elementary
Lexington/Richland 5 / Seven Oaks Elementary
Richland 2 / Joseph Keels Elementary
Lexington 3 / Batesburg-Leesville Elementary
Chesterfield / McBee Elementary
Lexington 1 / Fort Ponds Elementary
Richland 1 / Carver-Lyon Elementary
Williamsburg / Kingstree Elementary
Charleston / Malcom C. Hursey Elementary
Richland 1 / Burton-Pack Elementary
Richland 1 / JP Thomas
Charleston / Mt. Zion Elementary
Darlington / Rosenwald Elementary
Cherokee / Alma Elementary
Lexington 3 / Batesburg-Leesville Primary
RCCI / Children’s Attention Home, Inc.
Orangeburg 3 / St. James-Gaillard Elementary
Richland 2 / Conder Elementary