This paper outlines the result of an innovative program to develop a competency-based curriculum and a work process to engage students in energy assessment of small commercial buildings in their community. Throughout the resulting course, "Leadership in Building Energy Efficiency (LBEE)," students were trained to gather buildings'…

Academic Health Centers and nonprofit hospitals are exploring strategies to meet Affordable Care Act mandates requiring tax-exempt institutions to address community health needs, which commonly include major chronic illnesses. We explore the implications of this regulatory landscape, describing methods that nonprofit health care institutions are…

Background: Fruit and vegetable prescription (FVRx) programs provide "prescriptions" for produce, but increased access to nutritional food may be insufficient for long-term behavior change. Purpose: We integrated nutritional education into an FVRx program at a farmers' market and community garden at Penn State Medical Center by pairing…

Major supermarket chains increasingly are requiring their produce suppliers to provide evidence of compliance with on-farm food safety standards, known as Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs). To develop a relevant GAP training curriculum that meets the needs of Pennsylvania growers, supermarkets that operate in the state were surveyed to determine…

A growing body of evidence has highlighted an association between a lack of access to nutritious, affordable food (e.g., through full-service grocery stores [FSGs]), poor diet, and increased risk for obesity. In response, there has been growing interest among policy makers in encouraging the siting of supermarkets in "food deserts," that…

A needs assessment survey was developed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of poultry vendors at farmers' markets in Pennsylvania, on food safety, regulation, and poultry production. Vendors were administered a 32-question paper survey, in person, during market hours. The results revealed critical vendor practices and identified important…

In this article, the author describes how her first grade class embarked on a journey of learning through a unit of study about local food markets. The study was a rich exploration of the cultural diversity of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as well as an introduction to basic concepts about economics. Through their trips to a farm and…

Researchers have noted the limited amount of scholarly explorations of the practice of outsourcing administrative services in higher education. This dissertation seeks to add to the body of literature pertaining to the subject by examining the experiences of three universities that grappled with the decision. Using a qualitative approach and a…

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the 2009 food package changes for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) on the availability of healthful food. Design: Survey of all food stores in the study area before and after the changes were implemented. Setting: Two low-income neighborhoods in Philadelphia, 1…

In these challenging times of cutbacks in public funding for social services programs, parents and grass roots organizations continue to make a difference in their communities with innovative initiatives that are enhancing the lives of people with developmental and physical disabilities. In New York, a track team of speedsters with disabilities is…

Business students need to develop skills in the intelligent use of information, especially spatial information, for decision-making. Geographic Information System (GIS) is a viable tool for that purpose. Yet the few GIS courses in the Information Systems curriculum offered in various business schools tend to focus on different concepts and skills.…

The concept of the "food desert", an area with limited access to retail food stores, has increasingly been used within social scientific and public health research to explore the dimensions of spatial inequality and community well-being. While research has demonstrated that food deserts are frequently characterized by higher levels of…

This booklet, which is part of a series demonstrating the scope of employer involvement in school-to-careers, highlights the efforts of three retail employers and two "intermediary" organizations connecting workplace experiences to classroom learning for secondary education students. The introduction presents a series overview and lists…