Wellness Grant spurs Albany Technical College Campus Farmer’s Market

ALBANY, Ga. – Albany Technical College transforms its campus into a vibrant hub for local produce, providing fresh flavors for the campus community.

Albany Technical College extends a warm invitation to students, staff, and the community to partake in their farmer’s market and seize the opportunity to enjoy locally grown, fresh produce.

“With the Department of Education, we have this new grant called the Wellness Grant. And, part of that grant, is to make sure that students are taking care of mentally and physically as well as academically. In our community, there are farmers that are working hard to grow fresh and organic vegetables and produce for them to buy. So, we just try to figure out different ways to introduce students to nutrition, eating healthy, and making sure they have access to healthy foods, such as foods that are locally grown here,” said Lashea Dancer, Director of Student Wellness, ATC.

The farmer’s market showcased a diverse selection of produce, featuring items such as; sweet potatoes, squash, collards, mustard and turnip greens, among others.

Fredando Jackson, Executive Director of Flint River Fresh, expounds upon this initiative aimed at supplying the community with fresh and healthful produce.

“This is part of a wellness initiative that Flint River Fresh is doing, trying to partner with local businesses that are looking at alternative ways for their staff to be healthier. And, so what we’re doing is like sitting down with them, discussing how we can bring fresh produce from farmers directly to their place of business. Looking at employees, sort of incentive programs to have access to fresh food more regularly. Looking at employee incentive programs to have access to fresh foods more regularly. But, then, also we’re looking at an expansion of what we can do cooking demonstrations where we show people how to prepare some of this fresh food. As well as bring in experts throughout, like on a monthly basis, a quarterly basis to talk about other health issues. Everything from hypertension to diabetes and just overall, wellness and just being more physically fit and active. So, this is just the start of more to come in 2024,” said Fredando Jackson, Flint River Fresh, Executive Director.

De’Andra Jacobs reporting.

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