Fall 2024 Healthy Meals Summit
Join the Adventure!

Who:

Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awardees and Grantees and selected Leaders in School Nutrition (Invitation Only)

When:

October 21-23, 2024

Where:

Caesar’s Palace
3570 S Las Vegas Blvd
Paradise, NV 89109

Invited attendees will receive an email with registration details and travel stipend information.
Visit the Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards webpage for more information on applying for an award.

What:

This is a celebration of innovation, aimed at turbocharging the nutritional quality of school meals! Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Award recipients will gather together and be part of an epic quest for excellence. The Fall Summit isn’t merely a meeting, but a catalyst for professional development and change. The Fall Summit will equip school nutrition professionals with the tools and knowledge to conquer school nutrition goals and elevate the nutritional quality of your school meals.

Featuring breakout sessions and dynamic roundtable discussions, the Summit’s action-packed agenda will be a driving force, allowing awardees to present their incredible success stories and trade secrets for boosting the nutritional quality of school meals. This is a summit of possibilities, a powerhouse of transformation.

Get ready to Join the Adventure and set the stage for an extraordinary journey towards progress and innovation!

Keynote Speakers

Chef Curtis Aikens

Chef Curtis Aikens

As one of the original celebrity chefs and a former host and founding chef of The Food Network, Chef Curtis Aikens has educated and entertained food lovers since 1988. Mentored by Julia Child, Chef Paul Prudhomme, The Green Grocer, Joe Carcione, and Edna Lewis, he is one of the few chefs featured in Julia Child’s kitchen at the Smithsonian. After learning to read at age 26 through Literacy Volunteers of America and the Marin County Free Library, Chef Curtis has authored seven books sharing his passion for the culinary world, along with his personal journey of struggle and success.

Dr. Deonna Smith

Dr. Deonna Smith

Dr. Deonna Smith is a former teacher, school leader, and educational justice advocate with over a decade of experience in K-12 and higher education. Through her work, Deonna witnessed inequities in school firsthand, but she also saw the potential for schools to be spaces of liberation and joy.Deonna earned her doctorate in education and social justice, focusing on making theories accessible and practical. Now, she works with education stakeholders nationwide to create joyful, inclusive, and equitable spaces for students.

Chef Ann Cooper

Chef Ann Cooper

Chef Ann Cooper is a renowned author, chef, educator, and advocate for better food for all children. A Culinary Institute of America graduate, she has been a chef for over 30 years and has been featured in major publications like The New York Times and Time Magazine, and on media outlets such as CNN and NPR. Ann has spoken at notable institutions like the Smithsonian and received honors from SLOW Food USA, Kellogg Food and Society, and SUNY Cobleskill. In 2009, she founded the Chef Ann Foundation to tackle the school food crisis, with its key initiative, The Lunch Box, providing free tools for school food reform.

Summit Schedule 2024

Agenda:

Monday, October 21
Day 1

2:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Registration, Pre-Conference Sessions, Networking

Tuesday, October 22
Day 2

7:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Breakfast, Lunch, Concurrent Sessions

Wednesday, October 23
Day 3

7:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Breakfast, Lunch, Concurrent Sessions

**Agenda subject to change. More information to come.

Earn USDA Professional Standards Annual Training Hours

Educational sessions available during the Healthy Meals Summit will provide training hours that can count towards the USDA Professional Standards for School Nutrition Programs annual training requirements. A resource to document attendance of the sessions attended will be emailed to all those registered and included in the Fall 2024 Healthy Meals Summit event app.

This material is based upon work that is supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.