Duluth Head Start seeks $5,000 one-time federal nutrition grant to add taste-and-literacy activities

Barbara Eckberg, the district's new Head Start director and early learning coordinator, told the school board she is seeking a one-time supplemental Head Start nutrition grant from the federal Office of Head Start to support “taste and no-taste” fruit-and-vegetable exposures paired with literacy activities in 13 preschool classrooms. Eckberg said the requested funding totals $5,000 and would be budgeted as approximately $2,000 for fruits and vegetables (priced using the July 2025 USDA food-price outlook) and $3,000 to purchase children's books (two classroom copies plus a family copy for each enrolled family). The project would include staff training in November 2025 and classroom activities from December 2025 through May 2026, with activities happening twice monthly. Parents would be included via take-home ideas and materials shared through the district's ChildPlus platform where possible; paper or email alternatives would be used for families without access to the platform, Eckberg said. The planned activities include taste-and-no-taste experiences (smell, touch, color identification and sensory play) designed to build vocabulary and encourage fruit-and-vegetable exposure before asking children to taste items. Eckberg told the board the grant is modest and that her office had already started conversations with the policy council and classroom staff about book choices and allergy management; the district's nutrition coordinator would track allergies and help plan menu items by classroom. She said SuperOne would likely supply produce purchases. Board members welcomed the proposal and asked that Eckberg consult the Head Start policy council on book selection and share application updates; one board member who serves on the policy council said she expected parent interest. The transcript records no board vote or final approval in the meeting text; Eckberg said the Office of Head Start would begin its first round of funding consideration the week after the presentation.