Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign seeks ten Champions who will help further our work to expand access to summer and afterschool meals through the Summer Food Service Program, NSLP Seamless Summer Option, and the CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meals Program. We are excited to announce the request for applications for the Out-of-School Time Meals Champions 2023 Cohort (OST Champions). The OST Champions will work with No Kid Hungry for one year to share promising practices, engage in a co-learning space, and provide peer-to-peer mentorship to new meal sponsors. 

We look forward to welcoming our second cohort of OST Champions, building upon the successful 2022 Cohort.

Are you an OST Champion?
We are looking for passionate individuals who are comfortable:

• Speaking about their experience with summer and afterschool meals, including how they started their program, challenges, and successes
• Promoting the benefits of offering summer and afterschool meals
• Assisting their peers who are interested in beginning or expanding summer and afterschool meals

We hope to identify champions that represent a variety of roles and types of organizations across the country, but we have a strong preference for individuals with direct experience supporting or implementing these programs. That can be at a sponsoring organization, school district or school nutrition department, afterschool enrichment program, school, or community-based organization.

In particular, we seek champions who:

• Can speak to developing partnerships within or outside their organizations
• Have experience working collaboratively with children, families, and communities
• Have undertaken marketing or promotion efforts
• Have experience working with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities and incorporating equity, diversity, and inclusion practices into their work

What do OST Champions do?
Champions will be asked to help with activities and initiatives such as:

• Speaking on webinars
• Speaking at in-person events and conferences (optional)
• Sharing their story and experience for case studies or other resources to be highlighted on our website
• Helping to develop and review resources about summer and/or afterschool meals
• Providing technical assistance to other individuals/organizations
• Joining monthly meetings to share experiences and participating in a co-learning space

Commitments will be limited to five hours per month plus up to two optional trips. Travel is not required to be an OST Champion; however, Champions may have the opportunity to travel if interested.

Compensation:
Each Champion will receive a $2,500 stipend, and their organization will receive a $2,000 award. Any travel and lodging expenses related to OST Champion work will be covered by Share Our Strength. Share Our Strength reserves the right to contact your state agency to ensure your organization is in good standing with the summer and/or afterschool meals programs.

Eligibility:

• Former (2022) OST Champions are not eligible to apply to be 2023 OST Champions;
• Members of the Hall of Fame are eligible and are encouraged to apply
• Applicants must have experience running both the Summer Food Service Program (or the NSLP Seamless Summer Option) and the CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meals Program.

Timeline:

• Application opens September 1, 2022
• Application closes October 7, 2022
• Interviews October 24, 2022 through November 11, 2022
• Selections made by November 16, 2022
• 2023 OST Champions begin commitment on December 1, 2022 and end November 30, 2023

If you have questions or want more information, please contact Paige Pokorney at ppokorney@strength.org. 

Please use this link to access the full list of application questions if you'd like to draft your responses outside of Google Forms.