INDIANAPOLIS, IN - When I’m not writing trade news, you can usually find me, like other consumers and our fellow industry members, listening to a podcast. As the media format only continues to grow in popularity, The Produce Moms^®, along with a USDA-funded Family and Consumer Sciences Educator project, have revealed a new joint venture that includes a mini-podcast series. The venture kicks off today, May 21, with an introductory episode of the project already launched on May 10.

“We know that there has been a steady decline in the number of young people going into teaching as a profession for decades now,” explains Lori Taylor, Founder and CEO of The Produce Moms. “The recent pandemic has seen the number of educators retiring and leaving the profession in even larger numbers. While the focus has been on recruiting educators in the core disciplines like math, science, and English, there has been little focus to recruit educators in the area of Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS). These are not your grandmother’s Family and Consumer Science educators who taught classes in sewing and cooking to past generations. The impact that the discipline of family and consumer sciences has on our society to teach essential skills is of the utmost importance and the implications far-reaching if that area of education were to vanish. The Produce Moms believes in the mission of the National Partnership, and we can’t wait to get started to support and promote their efforts to recruit family consumer science educators to fill this void.”

Featuring a new episode each week, the podcast series will run through June 25, according to a press release. The series highlights and focuses on the shortage of consumer science educators, the importance of their role, and how they are making a difference in communities across the nation. Each episode will be 30 minutes long and divided by the topics of recruiting, preparing, and supporting family and consumer sciences educators.

The grant for the National Partnership to Recruit, Support, and Prepare Family & Consumer Sciences Educators was written and awarded to address the ongoing shortage of family and consumer science educators. According to information from their website, the mission of the partnership is to recruit, prepare, and support high-quality FCS educators in schools and communities.

“The National Partnership strives to make a significant impact in increasing awareness of career opportunities and access to career preparation resources in Family and Consumer Sciences Education,” said Dr. Jan Bowers, Project Director and retired Dean of the School of Education and Human Ecology at SUNY Oneonta. “There is great synergy created from organizations working together to facilitate a cost-effective, collaborative, and holistic approach for providing and supporting high-quality educators. The National Partnership is excited to add The Produce Moms as an esteemed partner in our work to meet state and national workforce needs and ensure that individuals are taught the essential skills to lead better lives, build strong and healthy families, and make meaningful contributions to their communities.”

The disciplines that Family and Consumer Science Educators cover is wide and includes subjects such as culinary arts, hospitality, food science and nutrition, health management and wellness, human and child development, fashion and textiles, housing and interiors, family relations, amongst many more.

To listen to the first episode of the podcast, click here.

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