Growing leaders builds agricultural and professional soft skills in students andaddresses issues of food insecurity/nutrition and food waste

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Central State University $598,259 on January 1, 2026, under the 1890 Institution Capacity Building Grants Program (CFDA 10.216) to develop and pilot the Growing Leaders model, an integrated program that builds agricultural and professional soft skills in K-12, undergraduate, and graduate students while addressing food insecurity, nutrition, and food waste.

The project delivers fellowships, internships, student-led research and extension opportunities, and annual leadership panels to equip and empower students. An intergenerational knowledge exchange program engages elders to share agricultural knowledge and history; CSU students will grow and provide them culturally and historically relevant fresh produce while elders offer mentoring through mini-presentations, food demonstrations, and group discussions. Extension activities include piloting a youth agribusiness program focused on food waste mitigation and agriculture practices using intergenerational mentoring. Student-led research will examine culturally relevant foods, agricultural practices including beekeeping, and program impact through storytelling, surveys, and other evaluation methods. CSU will develop and disseminate a Growing Leaders Toolkit through national partners for replication and expansion. The work aligns with the MAHA Initiative by addressing environmental toxins and advocating for healthier food systems.

Performance occurs at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio, with the project period running through December 31, 2028. Central State University partners with Tuskegee University's Inter-Institutional Network for Food, Agriculture and the Food Systems Working Group and community partners to deliver the program.

We will pilot anintegrated model and layered mentoring approach for graduate undergraduate andk-12 students while engaging various communities in populations and buildingintergenerational support systems. This project prioritizes leadership skills development for student experiential learning through fundamental and applied research enhancing services and after school programs. This project's education goals are fulfilled by partnering with tuskegee university inter-institutional network for food, agriculture and the food systems working group and the community partners to provide (1) fellowships (2) internships (3) student-led research and extension opportunities and (4) annual leadership panels to equip connect and empower students. (5) elders will be engaged in an intergenerational knowledge exchange program where they will share their knowledge and history of agriculture. They will receive boxes of culturally and historically relevant fresh produce grown by CSU students and provide students with opportunities to practice skills through mini- presentations, food, demonstrations and group discussions. In extension goals (1) a youth agribusiness program will be piloted focused on food waste mitigation and (2) agriculture practices utilizing an intergenerational knowledge exchange and mentoring model. In research goals, (1) student-led research will focus on culturally relevant foods (2) agriculture practices including beekeeping and (3) storytelling surveys and other methods to evaluate program impact. A growing leaders toolkit will be developed and disseminated through our national partners for replication and expansion of this model. This project will enhance traditional knowledge in agriculture and align with the maha initiative by addressing factors like environmental toxins and advocating for healthier food systems.