National Health Outreach and Engagement Conference 2024

Gabel, C.
Teaching college students cooking skills is the culmination of multiple collaborative efforts
over the course of five years. In 2018, an assessment of food security among Oklahoma State
University (OSU) Students was completed by Nutrition Sciences faculty. 43% were food
insecure, which is higher than the national average of 12%. As a result of this research, and a
campus food security committee. The students now have access to a food (Pete’s) pantry and
multiple food kiosks. The Oklahoma Nutrition Education (ONE) program collaborated with
Pete’s Pantry and the Oklahoma Nutrition Information and Education Program (ONIE) to teach
the MyPlate Curriculum to OSU students. ONIE, an implementing agency for SNAP-Ed
developed the MyPlate Curriculum, with a focus on cooking healthy meals. Pete’s Pantry
provided food for the lessons and marketed the classes to the students. ONIE provided skill
builders and the evaluation component. ONE, also an implementing agency for SNAP-ED
provided the course instruction, utilizing the teaching kitchen within the department of
Nutritional Sciences on OSU Stillwater campus. The collaborative efforts go far beyond
expectations that were set in 2019 with the educational committee. Evaluation data show
program impact related to diet quality, food preparation, food safety and food resource
management