Opportunity Overview
The Vermont FY27 Farm to School and Early Childhood Grant supports Vermont schools and early childhood providers that are building or strengthening long-term farm to school or farm to early childhood programs. Projects are intended to connect classroom learning, cafeteria or meal environments, and the broader community with Vermont food and agriculture.
Funding and Deadline
The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets has $200,000 total available. Individual awards range from $10,000 to $30,000, and grantees may have up to 18 months to complete projects. No matching funds are required.
Applications are open from September 9 through October 21, 2026 at 1:59 PM. VAAFM’s September 10, 2026 official announcement provides the 1:59 PM closing time; the announcement does not state a time zone, so Atlas does not infer one.
Who Can Apply
Eligible applicants include Vermont licensed early childhood education centers, registered family child care home providers, independent schools participating in a federal child nutrition program, individual K-12 public schools or school-based pre-K programs, and supervisory unions or educational districts applying for a public school, pre-K program, or consortium of schools.
Eligible Uses
The current VAAFM announcement identifies school garden supplies, kitchen equipment and personnel costs related to farm to school programming, including a part-time Farm to School coordinator, as examples of allowable costs. The program is designed around the classroom, cafeteria and community model and supports local-food, nutrition, agricultural-literacy and related educational activities.
Application Process
Applicants must use Vermont WebGrants. The Agency notes that WebGrants registration may take up to two business days. The final FY27 Request for Applications is now posted on the Agency’s official document page. The RFA is the primary guidebook for the program and includes program requirements, the scoring rubric, and application questions. Applicants should review the posted RFA and WebGrants materials, along with any later FAQs or amendments, before submission.
Atlas Fit Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 42/100. This is a clearly defined statewide school and early-childhood funding opportunity with a meaningful $200,000 pool, awards up to $30,000, no required match, a published deadline and strong relevance to student nutrition and healthy-school programming.
N9+ Fit: 0/100. The Nonagon N9+ remote physical examination platform does not have a material, defensible connection to the stated grant purpose. Atlas should not force N9+ into this program.
QC Healthcare Fit: 0/100. The verified program purpose does not establish a pathway for physician staffing, telehealth services or other QC Healthcare clinical services.
Realistic Vermont Applicant Examples
North Country Supervisory Union is a realistic candidate because it operates multiple Vermont public schools and has participated in prior Vermont Farm to School grant activity. Its current Superintendent is Elaine Collins, publicly listed at elaine.collins@ncsuvt.org. Central Vermont Supervisory Union is another realistic school-system candidate. Any applicant-level pursuit should still verify a current farm-to-school project, organizational eligibility, the correct program lead and whether the organization has already applied or been contacted for this opportunity.
Next Action
Eligible Vermont schools and early childhood providers should confirm their applicant category, identify a durable farm-to-school or farm-to-early-childhood project spanning the classroom, cafeteria and community, register in WebGrants early, review the posted final FY27 RFA, and submit by October 21, 2026 at 1:59 PM. The official announcement does not state a time zone.
Program contact: Gina Clithero, gina.clithero@vermont.gov, 802-585-6225.
WebGrants technical assistance: Lily Bradburn, Lily.Bradburn@vermont.gov, 802-480-1652.
Official source: Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets — Farm to School and Early Childhood Grant.