Food and Agriculture Service Learning Program | USDA NIFA FASLP 006736

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NIFA FASLP 006736

The Food and Agriculture Service Learning Program (FASLP) is a discretionary grant opportunity from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA), designed to strengthen agriculture, garden, and nutrition education for children, especially in low-income communities. At its core, the program aims to help kids better understand where food comes from while also improving their nutritional health. A major theme of the program is connecting the different parts of the food system, bringing schools, cafeterias, classrooms, farmers, and community organizations into closer collaboration so that food and nutrition education is not a one-off activity, but something a host organization can sustain and build on over time. The broader policy goal is not only expanding access to school meals for low-income children, but also improving the quality of those meals in a meaningful way.

FASLP funding supports projects that increase an organization or communitys capacity to deliver food, garden, and nutrition education in real-world settings such as school cafeterias and classrooms. The program emphasizes service learning, meaning students and community members are expected to learn through hands-on, practical activities that also serve community needs. This approach naturally supports stronger engagement between local farms and school systems, including farm-to-school style efforts that can improve access to fresher foods, create educational opportunities tied to agriculture, and potentially open or expand markets for agricultural producers.

Eligibility is structured around both who may apply and what experience applicants must demonstrate. Applications are limited to specific categories of entities, including state agricultural experiment stations, colleges and universities, university research foundations, other research institutions and organizations, federal agencies, national laboratories, private organizations (including foundations or corporations), individuals, or formal groups made up of two or more eligible entities. In the source listing, eligible applicants are also noted as public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, reflecting the common applicant type for this program and the way eligibility is sometimes represented in federal systems. Importantly, while the applicant must meet the eligibility rules, project partners and collaborators do not have to meet the same eligibility criteria, which allows applicants to build broad coalitions with community groups, schools, and producers.

Beyond basic eligibility, FASLP expects applicants to bring demonstrated, relevant experience. Applicants need a track record in at least one of several areas: community food work in low-income communities (including providing food, operating or supporting farm-to-school programs, and developing new markets that work closely with agricultural producers); job training and business development activities connected to food systems, including curriculum development for food-related school activities in low-income communities; or direct efforts to reduce food insecurity, such as food distribution, improving access to services, or coordinating school services and programs. A key requirement is proof of real local buy-in. Applicants must provide evidence of existing community support and engagement with school districts and agricultural producers through no fewer than three letters of support, signaling that projects should be grounded in established relationships rather than purely aspirational partnerships.

Applicants also need to show they can manage a federal grant responsibly and document results. That includes competency to implement the project as proposed, conduct an evaluation, maintain fiscal accountability, collect and manage data, and prepare required reports and documentation. The program also requires competency specifically related to implementing a food and agriculture and/or school service learning program, which underscores that NIFA is looking for organizations that can execute education-focused programming effectively, not just plan it. Another expectation is openness and knowledge-sharing: applicants must be willing to share information with researchers, evaluators, practitioners, and other interested parties, and must include a plan to disseminate results. In practice, this means projects should generate usable lessons, tools, or evidence that can help other communities replicate or adapt successful approaches.

Collaboration is not optional in this program. Applicants must partner with one or more local organizations to achieve at least one Hunger-Free Communities goal, referencing the Steps for a Hunger-Free Community framework. This requirement reinforces the programs community engagement focus and ties individual projects to broader anti-hunger strategies rather than treating nutrition education as isolated from food access realities.

The opportunity is identified as USDA NIFA FASLP 006736 and is associated with CFDA number 10.522 under the agriculture funding activity category. The original closing date listed is 2019-06-04, with a creation date of 2019-04-25. The award ceiling is $225,000, indicating the maximum amount an individual award could reach under this announcement. The posting also notes expected awards, though the exact number is not specified in the provided text. As with many federal funding opportunities, NIFA warns that failing to meet eligibility requirements by the application deadline can result in an application being excluded from consideration or make an award impossible even if the proposal is reviewed. For applicants newer to federal grants, NIFA points to its grants overview resources, including free Grants 101 training, as preparation for understanding compliance, reporting, and award management expectations.

• The National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Food and Agriculture Service Learning Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.522.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-04-25.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-06-04. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $225,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for USDA NIFA FASLP 006736

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