Berea Kids Eat Programming Internship

What is Grow Appalachia and Berea Kids Eat?  

As a Strategic Initiative of Berea College, Grow Appalachia partners with organizations, communities, and families in Appalachia to create healthy, resilient, and economically viable food systems. Grow Appalachia’s model focuses on building resilient food systems through supporting backyard and community gardens, providing technical assistance to small-scale and beginning farmers, operating a social enterprise, and distributing high quality food and nutrition programming to youth.  

Grow Appalachia has worked within Berea and Madison County, Kentucky, through its Berea Kids Eat program to serve high-quality, nutritious meals to children primarily during the summer when kids are not in school. In 2025, the program served over 26,000 meals to youth locally. This program includes nutrition education programming and outreach at Glades Garden in Berea, an activation space for youth and families to learn hands-on skills focused on growing, cooking, and preserving food. Berea Kids Eat also founded the Sprouts Youth Farmers Market, where Berea youth learn entrepreneurial skills.  

Berea Kids Eat Program Planning Description, Responsibilities, and Requirements 

Working with Grow Appalachia’s Berea Kids Eat (BKE) program in collaboration with the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Program Planning Intern will help to plan and create passive and ‘take-home’ enrichment activities that will be utilized on the Mobile Routes, and during bulk food pick-up. The Program Planning Intern will make sure that Site Supervisors are aware of the activities and are aware of how to present the activities to youth and families.  

At our stationary home base site, Glades Garden located at Glades Christian Church (530 Glades Road), the Program Planning Intern will be responsible for coordinating and setting-up in-person activities (2-3 times weekly) in collaboration with BKE partners. Community Partners include the Madison County Public Library and the Berea College Forestry Outreach Center. They will also be responsible for helping to craft and deliver in-person educational programs for youth 18 and under when there is not a partner activity. These programs could include Nutrition Education, Gardening and Harvesting Classes, Cooking Classes, Wellness Activities, STEAM related activities, and any other interests they see as beneficial and geared towards youth.  

Responsibilities 

• Work with community partners and other Grow Appalachia staff to implement and lead enrichment activities on the mobile meal route, and at the Glades Community Garden site, and at larger community outreach events (First Friday Levitt Amp, Berea Farmer’s Market, etc.). 
• Potential driving using Berea College vans. Need to be or become defensive driving certified, with van endorsement, or be 26 years of age or over. 
• Use paper and electronic systems to keep accurate and timely data and record keeping of participants, feedback, and details about each program.  
• Graphic design work including creating recipe cards to complement nutrition programming, and informational flyers about programming to update BKE’s Facebook Community. 
• Help with Glades Garden upkeep and inventory which may include chicken care. 
• Ensure food and community safety before, during, and after meal service and any programming or events.  
• The Program Planning Intern will fill in gaps for meal service as needed. This includes distributing meals on any mobile routes or stationary sites, ensuring accurate documentation and possible 1-2 monthly evening/weekend events. Intern will be cross trained in the beginning of summer for seamless transition between roles as needed.  

Requirements 

• Comfortability of working outside in the Kentucky summer weather. Grow Appalachia staff will work to make sure that all staff and intern needs are taken care of during severe weather and will work to craft a schedule that fits with all needs and abilities.   
• Interns will be working with community members, families, youth, and other students from many different walks of life and situations. Considering this, the intern must affirm Grow Appalachia’s Values1 and the USDA’s Non-Discrimination2 policy.  
• Experience in Program Planning, Child Nutrition, Education, promoting Food Equity in our community, and/or crafting enrichment activities for youth. 
• Able to work with comfort and respect near and in religious and all other community spaces as well as in/on vans, school buses, and public schools.  
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including clear, legible handwriting. 
• Experience working with graphic design using Canva or other design software.  
• Attend weekly Berea Kids Eat Staff Meetings and submit weekly written reflections via TEAMS. 
• With support from BKE, Intern will obtain Madison County Health Department Food Handler’s Card and complete other required SUN Meals, KDE, and BKE training. Online and in person.  

Benefits Of This Internship 

• Learn how large SUN Meals Programs are designed and implemented. 
• Engage youth and families to help combat the Summer Slide that kids experience during the summer months while they are not in school by providing child nutrition, programming, and events. 
• Strengthening of intern’s graphic design skills. 
• Learn how to create and lead child-oriented programming with and without community partners.  
• Access to events and strong networking opportunities with community partners and families.  
• Opportunities to learn more about the food resiliency work of Grow Appalachia across the central Appalachia Region, non-profit work, and community food security work within Berea. 
• Growing space access in Glades Community Garden to garden and plant & livestock care education of chickens. 

For any questions about this position, please contact Grow Appalachia’s Nutrition Programs Coordinator, Lara Armstrong, at armstrongl3@berea.edu