Madison County Board of Education does a great job of being proactive toward childhood issues, especially obesity. Schools can choose programs tailored for student involvement. Each year several of the middle school offer after school cooking clubs, open to all students but targeting ones that don’t have the opportunity to take life skills or family and consumer sciences type classes. These are nine week classes that include a variety of cooking skills ending with a student prepared “parent dinner”.

In collaboration with the Board of Education, the Snap-Ed (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education) Assistant was asked to lead this after school program. The students were taught basic nutrition as well as knife safety, food safety, proper hand washing, and basic cooking skills. As a result of this hands on class, these 5 students showed 100% improvement in one or more core areas with 80% improvement in making healthier food choices. Also, an 80% improvement in physical activity and safe food handling practices. The students demonstrated their skills as they prepared and served their families dinner serving 25 people in total. One student’s parent reported that her daughter was now preparing Saturday morning breakfast for the family.