7th Annual Food Education Fellowship now accepting applicants! 

Interested in joining a teaching fellowship in 2025-26? Try applying for The Food Education Fellowship, a paid opportunity for teachers. Next school year, Food Education Fellows will join a cohort of likeminded peers on a year-long Food Education journey, connecting with each other and growing their capacity to deliver comprehensive Food Education to their students. 

Who You Are 

• PreK-12 educator with minimum 2 years’ teaching experience
• Teaching in the U.S. in the 2025-26 school year
• Interested in connecting and collaborating with like-minded peers
• Committed to:
  • Delivering weekly Food Ed. lessons
  • Evaluating the impact of Food Ed. in your classroom
  • Connecting school food to classroom lessons
  • Collaborating around food advocacy, community, and family engagement

What You’ll Do 

• Engage in monthly professional development sessions
• Receive 1:1 support & coaching from staff, peers, and Fellowship Alumni
• Cultivate a community partnership and student advocacy project with your students
• Co-plan a chef demonstration tied to your lessons
• Earn $2,000 stipend + receive an additional $300 for teaching materials

How this Teaching Fellowship is Different 

Educators love the Food Education Fellowship! Over the past seven years, we’ve had over 100 Fellows choose to continue their involvement with Pilot Light by joining our Fellowship Alumni Network and continuing to use Food Education in their classrooms. We’ve also heard rave reviews from both current and past Fellows: 

“The program provided great resources and professional development opportunities, and there was a real sense of community among the fellows. I had the chance to share my ideas and experiences, and they were always met with appreciation and constructive feedback. It felt good to be part of a group that respected and recognized the work we do as educators.”

–2023-24 Food Education Fellow 

“In the 8 years I’ve worked in Chicago Public Schools, I’ve had experience with a lot of professional development. I can say that Pilot light professional development is quality, from the land acknowledgement and awareness of the diverse identities in our world. I am very excited to receive ideas from speakers and fellows alike. I have taken many ideas back from PD to my own classroom, sometimes, the same week. I see a direct impact the learning has had on my practice but even trickle down to my student teacher.
Every speaker chosen for our PD has taught me something.”

-2024-25 Food Education Fellow

“My experience has been wonderful. I love the different views, presenters, lessons, freedom to explore, diversity of participants, and the openness to demonstrate objectives based on various learning styles.”

-2021-22 Food Education Fellow