I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4282 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to establish 
the Food and Nutrition Education in Schools Pilot Program, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 30, 2021 
Ms. PLASKETT (for herself, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. MFUME, Mr. 
PAYNE, Mr. MRVAN, and Mr. COURTNEY) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 
Act to establish the Food and Nutrition Education in 
Schools Pilot Program, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Food and Nutrition 
Education in Schools Act of 2021’’. 
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SEC. 2. FOOD AND NUTRITION EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS 
PILOT PROGRAM. 
Section 18 of the Richard B. Russell National School 
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769) is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
‘‘(l) FOOD AND NUTRITION EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS 
PILOT PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this subsection 
is to provide local educational agencies with per-
sonnel dedicated to implementing integrated, hands- 
on food and nutrition education in schools with the 
goal of increasing acceptance and consumption of 
healthy, high-quality meals and snacks by students. 
‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of enactment of this subsection, 
the Secretary shall establish a pilot program, to be 
known as the ‘Food and Nutrition Education in 
Schools Pilot Program’ (referred to in this sub-
section as the ‘pilot program’), under which the Sec-
retary shall award grants to local educational agen-
cies for— 
‘‘(A) projects that hire qualified, full-time 
food and nutrition educators to carry out pro-
grams in schools that have the goal of improv-
ing student health and nutrition; and 
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‘‘(B) projects that fund school gardens or 
other evidence-based interventions relating to 
student health and nutrition, aligned with the 
latest school nutrition standards, to create 
hands-on learning opportunities for students. 
‘‘(3) JOINT
PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary 
shall encourage, to the maximum extent practicable, 
joint partnership projects under the pilot program 
among— 
‘‘(A) local educational agencies; 
‘‘(B) nonprofit organizations, including 
out-of-school-time youth development providers; 
‘‘(C) postsecondary institutions that offer 
programs on nutrition, food preparation, or ag-
ricultural science; 
‘‘(D) food-service businesses (such as local 
farms, restaurants, and food distributors); 
‘‘(E) beginning farmers and ranchers (as 
defined in section 2501(a) of the Food, Agri-
culture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 
(7 U.S.C. 2279(a))); 
‘‘(F) veteran farmers and ranchers (as de-
fined in that section); 
‘‘(G) socially disadvantaged farmers or 
ranchers (as defined in section 355(e) of the 
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Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act 
(7 U.S.C. 2003(e))); and 
‘‘(H) State and local government agencies. 
‘‘(4) COORDINATION.—In establishing the pilot 
program, the Secretary shall consult and ensure co-
ordination with the heads of other appropriate Fed-
eral agencies and programs that deliver nutrition 
education. 
‘‘(5) PROJECT PROPOSALS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
annually solicit from local educational agencies 
the submission of project proposals for grants 
under the pilot program. 
‘‘(B) REQUIRED ELEMENTS FOR PROJECT 
PROPOSAL.—A 
project 
proposal 
submitted 
under subparagraph (A) shall include— 
‘‘(i) a statement of the purposes of 
the project; 
‘‘(ii) a description of— 
‘‘(I) the entity or individual with 
overall responsibility for the project; 
‘‘(II) the qualifications of that 
entity or individual; 
‘‘(III) community stakeholder en-
gagement for the project; 
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‘‘(IV) the logistics of the project; 
and 
‘‘(V) the methods to be used to 
evaluate student learning, such as 
through a project, presentation, or 
other form of assessment; 
‘‘(iii) a proposed budget for the funds 
and time required to carry out the project; 
‘‘(iv) information regarding the source 
and amount of any matching funding avail-
able for the project; 
‘‘(v) an implementation plan, includ-
ing efforts by the school food authority as-
sociated with the local educational agency 
to integrate activities carried out under the 
project with other efforts by schools to pro-
mote student health and nutrition; 
‘‘(vi) information that demonstrates 
the clear potential of the project to con-
tribute to implementing integrated, hands- 
on food and nutrition education in schools, 
aligned with the latest school nutrition 
standards, with the goal of increasing ac-
ceptance and consumption of healthy, high- 
quality meals and snacks; 
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‘‘(vii) a description of a mechanism 
that will be used to broadly share project 
results and implementation strategies; and 
‘‘(viii) any other information that the 
Secretary considers necessary. 
‘‘(C) CRITERIA FOR APPROVAL.—The Sec-
retary may award a grant for a project proposal 
submitted under subparagraph (A) if the 
project— 
‘‘(i) incorporates evidence-based prac-
tices proven to increase healthy food con-
sumption by students; 
‘‘(ii) includes hands-on, experiential 
learning; 
‘‘(iii) implements school gardens, taste 
tests, student engagement, or other farm- 
to-school practices; 
‘‘(iv) demonstrates the commitment of 
the local educational agency— 
‘‘(I) to improving the nutritional 
value of school meals; 
‘‘(II) to carrying out innovative 
programs that improve the health and 
wellness of schoolchildren, such as 
farm-to-school programs; and 
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‘‘(III) to accounting for the cul-
ture, input, and needs of the commu-
nity; 
‘‘(v) provides for project oversight by 
a qualified nutrition professional; and 
‘‘(vi) meets any other requirement es-
tablished by the Secretary. 
‘‘(D) PRIORITY.—To the maximum extent 
practicable, in awarding grants under the pilot 
program, the Secretary shall give priority to 
projects that— 
‘‘(i) serve schools or districts— 
‘‘(I) in which not less than 40 
percent of students qualify for free or 
reduced-price meals under this Act or 
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 
U.S.C. 1771 et seq.); or 
‘‘(II) that include neighborhoods 
with high rates of childhood obesity or 
other diet-related diseases; 
‘‘(ii) provide programming in summer 
months; and 
‘‘(iii) are joint partnership projects as 
described in paragraph (3). 
‘‘(6) ADMINISTRATION.— 
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‘‘(A) DIVERSITY.—In awarding grants 
under the pilot program, the Secretary shall en-
sure that projects are located in diverse demo-
graphic, geographic, rural, urban, and suburban 
settings. 
‘‘(B) INDIAN TRIBES.—The Secretary shall 
ensure that not fewer than 1 project receiving 
a grant under the pilot program— 
‘‘(i) is located on an Indian reserva-
tion; or 
‘‘(ii) serves a school in which the ma-
jority of the students are members of an 
Indian tribe. 
‘‘(7) REPORTS.— 
‘‘(A) REPORTS TO SECRETARY.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—A local edu-
cational agency that receives a grant under 
the pilot program shall periodically submit 
to the Secretary a report that includes any 
information that the Secretary determines 
is necessary to evaluate the progress and 
success of the project, including evidence 
of student learning under the project, to 
ensure positive results, assess problems, 
and foster improvements. 
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‘‘(ii) AVAILABILITY TO THE PUBLIC.— 
Reports under clause (i), and any other 
documents of the local educational agency 
relating to a project carried out using a 
grant awarded under the pilot program, 
shall be made available electronically to the 
public in a timely manner. 
‘‘(B) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not later 
than 5 years after the date of enactment of this 
subsection, and annually thereafter, the Sec-
retary shall submit to Congress a report that 
includes— 
‘‘(i) a description of the results and 
effectiveness of each project carried out 
under the pilot program; 
‘‘(ii) an examination of the impact of 
each project on— 
‘‘(I) student diet and dietary 
practices; 
‘‘(II) student performance and 
behavior; 
‘‘(III) food consumption; 
‘‘(IV) changes in cafeterias and 
the school food environment; 
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‘‘(V) school meal participation by 
students; and 
‘‘(VI) other indicators as deter-
mined by the Secretary; 
‘‘(iii) demographic data on the schools 
and communities served by the pilot pro-
gram; 
‘‘(iv) a summary of the activities con-
ducted by each local educational agency 
after receiving a grant under the pilot pro-
gram and the number of children served by 
that local educational agency; and 
‘‘(v) recommendations on how the 
pilot program may be improved and wheth-
er funding for the pilot program should be 
continued. 
‘‘(8) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary to carry out this subsection $10,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025.’’. 
Æ 
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