Progress 09/15/03 to 09/14/06
Outputs
OUTPUTS: 1. Have 90 percent of UTTC's Nutrition and Foodservice (NF) students pass the ServSafe exam by 2006.The 90 percent pass rate was an unrealistic goal for the Nutrition and Foodservice (NF) students. From January 2002 through August 2007 forty-four percent of the 25 NF students passed the national exam. 2. Have students from other vocations increase their food safety knowledge by ten percent each year of the proposal, as measured by end of class tests. The campus health and wellness survey did not provide data on food safety knowledge. Improved food handling practices among the 15 vocational groups has been observed and is documented through the use of food safety and sanitation resources made available through the Land Grant food safety program. The vocational groups sell food as a fundraising activity. Indian tacos, fry bread, and grilled burgers are the most profitable. In 2004 all of the food preparation was done in private homes on and off campus. During 2006-2007 The
vocational groups and student senate used the NF facility for food preparation, borrowed heating, cooling and serving equipment and received disposable gloves, hair restraints, sanitizers, cleaning clothes, etc. 3. To have 75 percent of commercial food retailers from Tribal communities who attend Food Safety Institutes complete food safety certification. The pass rate for Native Americans attending UTTC ServSafe training is at fifty-three percent (109 participants). Non-natives attending the same classes (77 participants) had a pass rate of ninety-one percent. The average pass rate for all participants was sixty three percent. 4. To have 75% of the vendors participating in tribal public gatherings increase their awareness of food-borne illness by 2006, measure by pre and post training survey. Participants completing the post training survey indicated new information was provided. Ten classes or workshops were conducted 10/18/06 to 8/15/07, with 79 participants, pass rate of sixty
percent. Thirty-one classes, 295 participants since 2004, seventy-one percent Native American. The Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA included a UTTC produced photo on a food safety publication and the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations in NM and OK included the photo in their 2008 calendar. 5. Identify if embracing and including Tribal community philosophy into the education efforts improves behaviors and perceptions and increases food safety awareness of community members. Tribal college evaluators reviewed the project. The evaluator's report identified this as an extremely assertive objective requiring expertise in survey design and evaluation. A post survey was created for the food safety training sessions however no surveys were produced for the materials produced by the project The evaluators encouraged additional evaluation components be included in future program efforts.
PARTICIPANTS: Principal Investigator, Wanda Agnew, UTTC Land Grant Program Director 2003-2006, identified the need and wrote the proposal, establishing the program. Patricia E. Aune was hired as the food safety educator in 2006 she replaced Agnew as PD. Karen Paetz current Land Grant Program Director provides administrative support and cultural guidance for the food safety initiative. She is an enrolled member of Mandan Hidatsa and Arikara tribes and has lived and worked in reservation communities. An administrative assistant position was funded .5FTE from 12/2003 to 1/2006. This assistant was an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. She provided cultural information as food safety training materials and audio visuals were developed. Annette Broyles, Nutrition and Foodservice Instructor has taught the food protection class since 2004, annually increasing the hands-on activities and experiments. Partner organizations include: Standing Rock Sioux Tribe; Turtle
Mountain Band of Chippewa; Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation; Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate: and Spirit Lake Nation. Tribal health officers were the advisory group, recruited participants and found teaching spaces in tribal communities. Indian Health Service and the Reservation Food Distribution Program reviewed and evaluated training materials before final distribution. The ND Department of Health, environmental health division reviewed materials and recruited participants. Collaborators and contacts include the UTTC student and campus services department, North Dakota State University Extension, South Dakota State University Cooperative Extension, Mountain Plains Region Food Distribution Program, and the Women Infants and Children programs on tribal lands. Collaboration with the UTTC Nutrition and Foodservice Vocation, construction technology, and maintenance department led to remodeling the foodservice teaching lab to provide a learning environment with the appropriate safety and
sanitation features. ServSafe training supported by the project involved employees from the following organizations; six different casinos, numerous daycare programs, private restaurants, Head Start programs, Tribal schools, community services, senior meal sites, disability service programs, public schools, criminal justice centers, ND State Prison, Tribal Sanitarians, IHS Hospitals, fast food restaurants Arby's, Pizza Hut, Taco John, grocery stores, state meat inspectors, NDSU Extension, Tribal diabetes programs, treatment centers, college foodservice, ND Department of Health surveyor, community hospitals, and powwow food vendors. Project director, Pat Aune, completed 11 hours of Basic Meat Microbiology Training and 13 hours of HACCP Training provided by Montana State University Extension, MSU Animal & Range Sciences and the Montana Department of Livestock Meat Poultry Inspection Bureau, November 3-5, 2004, Billings. Aune also attended the National Integrated Food Safety Initiative
conference for project directors, Washington DC, 2006 and presented in a concurrent session at the USDA Food Safety Education Conference - Reaching At-Risk Audiences, 2006.
TARGET AUDIENCES: American Indian Communities in ND were targeted with this food safety program. The culturally distinct cd and video, with publications, Together, Sharing Food Safely has been distributed in Indian communities in; SD, MT, WY, AZ, NE, IA, MN, CA, WA, NM, OK, AK and WI.
PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: The original plan included formal classes and training sessions for all vocational students on this campus with a pre-post test survey. As the food safety program evolved the student groups participated in non-formal food safety education when they used the Nutrition and Foodservice kitchen to prepare foods for fund raising activities and when they borrowed equipment that would help them prepare, transport and serve safe food. A no-cost extension allowed for the continuation of food safety programs for an additional year. Class fees and reimbursement for publications was reinvested into printed materials.
Impacts
Increased hands-on learning experiences and improved safety and sanitation components of the kitchen teaching lab have improved overall test scores. Nutrition and Foodservice students taking the National ServSafe exam in December 2007 had a seventy-four percent pass rate. Food vendors on the UTTC campus and reservation communities are now expected to participate in a UTTC sponsored food safety training program. The Tribal environmental health officers recruit participants for training programs. In 2004 scholarships were provided with the agencies and businesses supporting the travel costs. In 2007 the agencies and businesses provide total support for the food safety training of staff. Estimated cost for training and travel expenses is $550 per person, this does not include salary. Program evaluators determined the materials creation activities exceeded expectations. The materials have been used as models for other states to use in American Indian trainings. The
materials are culturally relevant and were pilot tested with Native American students. These students included older than average students as well as students just out of high school ensuring that the materials appeal to a wide audience of American Indians. The evaluators determined the project used best practices in creating materials for use in presenting food safety information for American Indian communities. Studies have shown that by using culturally appropriate materials, learners are more likely to relate to the material and then are able to internalize the information for use at a later date. By using places and events that are familiar to most American Indians the message of food safety is more strongly presented. The ties to cultural values and meanings allow the participants to use their prior knowledge in learning new food safety techniques. Featuring American Indians in proper food safety preparation roles, the CD-Rom provides role models for future and current American
Indian food service. The use of role models in the training materials geared toward American Indian audiences enhances the message of the training materials by connecting the material to be learned with what is familiar to the learner. In conclusion the United Tribes Technical College Integrated Food Safety for American Indian Communities project made significant progress toward its goals of expanding food safety training in American Indian communities in North and South Dakota. The project's reach has even extended to American Indian communities in Alaska, Montana, Iowa, Wyoming, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nebraska, and others.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 01/01/04 to 12/30/04
Outputs
Situation: Interviews and observations revealed food safety messages are not available in American Indian cultural context or in formats featuring American Indian philosophy or learning styles. Objective 1: Have 90 percent of UTTC Nutrition and Food Service (NF) students pass the ServSafe exam by 2006. Currently 25 NF students have taken the ServSafe exam, 13 of those students (53 percent) have passed the exam. The class instructor and food safety educator will be reviewing the class structure, examination preparation and learning patterns of the enrolled students to improve their testing ability. Objective 2: Have students from other vocations increase their food safety knowledge by 10 percent each year of the proposal, as measured by end of class tests. Activities: NF vocational students were recruited to promote safe food procedures among all the student groups that sell food (tacos, chili) as a fund raising activity. Fifteen events sponsored by student groups
included NF assistance with food safety. The student groups received food handling training from NF students and were provided with sanitizers, cooking and serving equipment, disposable gloves, aprons and towels. Youth food safety activities were developed and conducted at the on-campus elementary school and with youth attending a summer camp (200 students reached). Elementary teachers received training in food safety and were provided with resources that could be used in their classrooms. Adult food safety activities and training were provided to UTTC staff, public health nutrition staff, and public participants in the campus Wellness Fair. Objective 3: To have 75 percent of commercial food retailers from Tribal communities who attend food safety institutes complete food safety certification (ServSafe). Currently 72 percent of the 70 participants (69 percent Native American, average of 13.3 years of schooling) have successfully completed the ServSafe exam. Culturally relevant food
safety materials and activities have been developed and continue to be developed for use within the Native American communities we serve; on-campus families and students, North and South Dakota tribal communities, reservation casino staff, health workers, school food service workers, Indian Health Service, Head Start and WIC staff.
Impacts
ND reservations now have ServSafe certified foodservice workers and additional workers with increased knowledge and skills in food safety.
Publications
- Culturally relevant publications developed and distributed include: Together, Sharing Food Safely, compact disk and training guide, 2004.
- Food Temperature Chart for Public Food Service, 2004.
- Food Temperature When Cooking At Home, 2005.
- Handwashing Prevents Foodborne Illness, 2004.
- 17 Steps to Safe Food at Feeds, Powwows, Memorials and Street Fairs, 2005.
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