Greetings from your new Farm to School Specialist

Hello Michigan Farm to School team!

I hope you all had a relaxing and rejuvenating 4th of July.   I wanted to officially and briefly introduce myself to the listserv: My name is Abby Harper and I'm the new Farm to School Specialist at CRFS.  

I am thrilled to be relocated to Lansing from Boston where I just finished my Master's at Tufts University studying Agriculture, Food and Environmental Policy – incidentally, the same program Colleen Matts attended!  Michigan (specifically, CRFS) certainly seems to be draining Boston of its food system folk – I blame it on the lure of cherries, freshwater, and fireflies.  I likely met many of you last summer when I was an intern at CRFS working within the Food Hub Network and authoring their weekly updates, and I hope to meet many more of you in the weeks and months to come.  In my new role here at CRFS, I'll be working in a variety of capacities to strengthen Michigan's prolific Farm to School and Farm to Early Education work. Though I've resided in the Boston area for most of my life, my family is originally from Illinois/Iowa, and I'm excited to rediscover my midwestern roots as a Michigander.  

As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions/concerns/greetings of welcome/suggestions for good camping spots.  I'm looking forward to collaborating with you all and continuing to move the good food work forward in Michigan's schools.

Best, and be well,

Abby Harper

Farm to School & Early Childhood Specialist

Center for Regional Food Systems | Michigan State University

480 Wilson Rd | Rm 309 Natural Resources Building East Lansing, MI 48824

(p) 517.432.4525 (c) 857.600.6921

www.foodsystems.msu.edu |www.mifarmtoschool.msu.edu