School Meals
Rooted in Partnerships

Collage of cornfield, kid eating, boats and mountains in Alaska, farmer holding chicken, bowl of peaches, woman holding greens

Fresh, Local, Meaningful

With funding from the United States Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Project SCALES is led by Boise State University, in partnership with LunchAssist. Over the next five years, we will be issuing more than $10 million in funding. We fund projects that aim to build capacity and increase the resilience of food systems by supporting partnerships between school food authorities and growers, producers, distributors, and processors, as well as other industry partners.

What could you do if we could do it together?

We celebrate your commitment to feeding students well. That’s why Project SCALES provides more than funding. You’ll get a team to help you solve problems, offer knowledge, and build relationships that will bring your ideas to life.

The first round of grantees received up to $150,000 in funding to advance partnerships to bring more locally sourced foods into schools. The second round of grants will support large team-based projects.

Our school nutrition specialists at LunchAssist provide technical assistance including one-on-one calls, group meetings, skill-building tools, and other professional development activities.

Through the Project SCALES learning community, grantees are strengthening existing partnerships and nurturing new ones. We share successes and lessons learned both within our network and across the country.