Research, he believes, should provide the basis for policy recommendations and social programs that could send ripples of change through undernourished communities. I've always felt very strongly that research needs to be put to use, which is one of the reasons I did what I did for so long in Guatemala and other countries. Johnston's rent-paying imperative extends to teaching as well as research. About ten years ago, Ira Harkavy, C'70, Gr'79, now director of Penn's Center for Community Partnerships, invited him to lunch to talk about new University initiatives for revitalizing the surrounding community. The strategy was to use Penn's intellectual resources to serve the needs of West Philadelphia as well as the University's academic mission.
Scholars call it academically based service learning.
Nutrition, Health, and Community Schools . After you've taught as long as I have, it begins to make you wonder what the hell it is you're doing. TNAP has been supported by grants from the Ford Foundation, the W. H. Kellogg Foundation, the Nassau Fund, private donors, and the University of Pennsylvania. The program was started when staff at Turner became concerned about the prevalence of obesity at the school and in the neighborhood. The problem is just lack of food.