OUR MISSION

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From kitchen to classroom, the Food-based Early Education (FEEd) Lab's mission is to empower early childhood teachers', families, and communities with evidence-based strategies to improve children’s (3-5 year) dietary quality and school readiness through early education, exposure, and access to healthy foods and high-quality learning environments.

OUR WORK

The FEEd Lab is currently housed in the Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences at North Carolina State University under the direction of Virginia C. Stage, PhD, RDN. Dr. Stage engages in research, teaching, and extension/service. Current and past work in The FEEd Lab has focused on:

  • Examining the influence of teachers' practices used in their classrooms and their influence on young children's health behaviors and food preferences

  • Developing, evaluating, and disseminating integrative curricula using food as a STEAM education teaching tool for young children (3-5 years) attending Head Start programs

  • Investigating the impact of healthy eating and physical activity programming combined with policy, systems, and environmental changes (PSE) on teachers’ health behaviors and classroom practices (in collaboration with North Carolina State University Expanded Food & Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) and the Supplementation Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP-Ed))

  • Influencing local, state, and federal policy guiding educational strategies in the Head Start community