Durham Innovative Nutrition Education

12/05/2025

DINE leads afterschool programs. This one took place at RN Harris and was lead by DINE dietitian, Kim Barrier. There was apple trivia, a movement activity in the gym, and students got to make their own apple parfaits!

11/25/2025

DINE is a team of registered dietitians and nutrition professionals who champion better food access and enjoyable eating. We seek to enhance the health and well-being of Durham residents by:
Providing trustworthy nutrition education through positive experiences with food; and
Working with the community to make healthy choices more accessible where people live, learn and play.

11/21/2025

One of the best ways to teach children about healthy eating is to getting them involved in preparing food together. There are tasks that kids of all ages can help with in the kitchen!

11/05/2025

DINE dietitians, Adante Hart and Jessica Davidson at Durham Public Schools Acceler8 Career Fair on 10/21.
Not pictured here but also in attendance was DCo clinical dietitian, Becky, who represented the clinical side of community nutrition.

💡Students tested their food and nutrition knowledge with the trivia wheel for the chance to win prizes.
🍳They practiced culinary skills at our table like how flip food in a pan with Adante. 🍿Students could sample DINE's [Build Your Own] Trail Mix and Apple Cinnamon Infused Water.

Acceler8 is a career exploration day for all eighth-grade DPS students. This event connects students directly with local industries and career professionals and allows them to explore future career opportunities in Durham.

We sure hope we sparked some interest in a path of community nutrition. 😎🥦🍎

11/04/2025

11/04/2025

11/03/2025

DINE dietitian-nutritionist, Jessica Davidson, on Halloween teaching our "Healthy Habits" lesson to 2nd graders. 🎃🍊DINE is DEDICATED to creating positive learning environments around food and nutrition.

DINE serves the Durham elementary and middle school community through:
🍳interactive nutrition classes
👩🏾‍🍳cooking-based nutrition lessons
🫶school wellness programs
🍎afterschool programs
🥦and more!

Nutrition is an important piece to health education. Nutrition education and activities in school can give children the tools they need to feel confident in choosing healthy foods and beverages now and in their futures!

Read more about why nutrition education from professionals can make a difference: www.cdc.gov/school-nutrition/education

10/31/2025

10/20/2025

Wednesday!
Annual North Carolina Crunch October 22nd at Noon
Everyone is encouraged to crunch on some local produce!

You can sign-up at
growing-minds.org/north-carolina-crunch
to receive a free guide with NC Crunch tips and resources.
Share about your on social media. Tag and

Participants of all ages are invited to crunch along in their schools, child care centers, offices, farmers markets and restaurants with a number of seasonal goods, including apples, collards, beets, kale, lettuce, bok choy, cabbage, herbs, mustard greens and mushrooms.

10/14/2025

Healthy & delicious school meals fuel students so they are ready for learning.
Breakfast and lunch are FREE for all DPS students. No application is needed!
🌿Vegetarian options
📍Local ingredients
🍽Grab N Go meal options
🫶Second breakfast available when late to school

Check out the school nutrition website for updates, current menus, and more info.
https://www.dpsnc.net/o/dps/page/menus

Happy National School Lunch Week!

Las comidas escolares saludables y deliciosas proporcionan energía a los niños para que estén listos a aprender.
Las comidas en las escuelas son gratis para TODOS los estudiantes de las Escuelas Publicas de Durham. No necesita aplicar!
🌿Opciones vegetarianas.
📍Ingredientes locales.
🍽Opciones de comida para llevar.
🫶Segundo desayuno disponible cuando se llega tarde a la escuela.
Visite el sitio web de nutrición escolar para obtener actualizaciones, menús y más información.
https://www.dpsnc.net/o/dps/page/menus

10/13/2025

"Food is the most important school supply. HUNGRY KIDS CAN’T LEARN.
Kids who eat school meals do better in school. Studies show that offering students with healthy meals at school makes them more attentive and engaged in the classroom, leading to better grades, higher attendance rates, and higher graduation rates. And, schools that offer no-cost breakfast and lunch are more likely to have high performance grades and to meet growth targets."
[From: schoolmealsforallnc.org]

In NC, studies show out of school suspensions dropped by 1.4% and 2.3% in middle and high schoolers respectively in schools that make no-cost school meals available to all students.
GUESS WHAT? DPS has FREE breakfast AND lunch!

Other sources:
schoolnutrition.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Lunch-Benefits.pdf

frac.org/wp-content/uploads/School-Meals-are-Essential-Health-and-Learning_FNL.pdf

dpsnc.net/page/school-nutrition-services