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Pilot Light Issues Revised Food Education Standards for Schools
- Bob Benenson
- Jul 30
- 5 min read
Chicago Non-Profit is a National Leader in Integrating Food into Curriculums
In 2010, a group of Chicago chefs that included local legends Paul Kahan, Jason Hammel and Matthias Merges launched the Pilot Light non-profit organization to pursue their belief that food education plays a key role in building a better food system.
When I first encountered Pilot Light 10 years ago, it was active in a handful of Chicago public schools. But under the leadership of Alexandra DeSorbo Quinn, its executive director since 2014, Pilot Light quickly realized its potential, reaching more than 26,000 students and 354 educators across 15 school districts nationwide.
Pilot Light's overall impact was greatly magnified by its 2018 publication of its Food Education Standards, which have been made available to schools across the nation whether they are directly engaged with Pilot Light or not. And after seven years of closely monitoring the efficacy of the Standards, the organization has just released its first major revision.
The updated Standards are deep in detail, so Local Food Forum is sharing Pilot Light's press release in its entirety below. I will be scheduling a follow-up interview with Alexandra to further explore how this development is important.
If you are interested in Pilot Light's work and want to support the non-profit, consider attending its Aug. 26 fundraising dinner at Honey Butter Fried Chicken in Chicago's Avondale neighborhood. Honey Butter Chef-Owners Christine Cikowski and Josh Kulp have long been strong supporters of Pilot Light's work.
Click the button below for details about the event, published by Local Food Forum on July 22.
Pilot Light Press Release on Revised Food Education Standards
Pilot Light Unveils Updated Food Education Standards to Transform How Students Learn Through Food
Revised standards now include PreK competencies and reflect five years of classroom insights from educators nationwide, endorsed by leading education and food system experts
CHICAGO, IL – July 2025 – Pilot Light today announced the release of its updated Food Education Standards, the first-ever comprehensive framework for integrating Food Education into PreK-12 classrooms. The revised standards build on five years of real-world implementation by educators across the United States and expand access to include PreK students for the first time.
Since their groundbreaking introduction in 2018, the Food Education Standards have empowered educators to use food as a powerful teaching tool across all subjects, from science and social studies to math and language arts. The updated standards reflect feedback from hundreds of educators and incorporate greater diversity in food system expertise, while maintaining their core mission: helping students understand the role of food in connecting communities, cultures, and the environment.
“Every day, educators using Food Education Standards prove that Food Education is about so much more than nutrition,” said Alexandra DeSorbo-Quinn, Executive Director of Pilot Light. “These updated standards give teachers an even stronger foundation to help students explore their world through food – building connections between health, culture, the environment, and their futures as food system leaders.”
Real Impact in Real Classrooms
The original standards have already transformed learning for more than 26,000 students nationwide through Pilot Light’s teacher-centered model. Educators report that food-focused lessons increase student engagement and create connections to their communities and cultures.
“Pilot Light introduced me to seeing how Food Education is used in all content areas,” shared an educator who integrates Food Education into their classroom. “The lesson bank online has such a treasure chest of knowledge and resources that can connect to any subject matter.”
In classrooms across the country, students have used the standards to develop advocacy projects that lead to lasting change.
At Ray Elementary in Chicago, students’ work led to a city council ordinance banning the use of Styrofoam containers.
At North Judson-San Pierre High School in Indiana, students created advocacy projects addressing food waste in their cafeterias.
In Syracuse, New York, students at McKinley-Brighton Elementary used Food Education lessons to explore their community’s food systems and advocate for healthier school meal options.
In San Francisco, 6th and 7th-grade students, along with student leaders, at Alice Fong Yu Alternative School demonstrated how food and the environment are interconnected at the 2nd Annual Climate Action Youth Summit.
Updated for Today’s Classrooms
The 2025 edition of the Food Education Standards:
Incorporate greater diversity in food system expertise, ensuring all students see themselves reflected in Food Education.
Reflect best practices in teaching and learning based on five years of classroom implementation.
Include competencies tailored to PreK students for greater accessibility and early childhood engagement.
The seven standards guide students through understanding that food connects us, has sources and origins, impacts the environment, influences our behaviors, impacts our health, empowers informed choices, and provides opportunities for advocacy and change.
Widespread Endorsement from Education Leaders
The updated standards have earned endorsements from leading voices in education, food systems, and child development, including:
Chef Carla Hall, known for her appearances on Top Chef and The Chew and her deep commitment to cultural heritage in cuisine, praised the standards’ community-building power: “Their work to impact communities nationwide through food is remarkable, and their Food Education Standards guide it, an incredible tool for building connections and community through food in schools.”
Andrea Rowe – 2022-2023 Fellow, FAN Member, supported the standards for their clear learning objectives and practical classroom applications, noting: "The revised Food Education Standards offer clear learning objectives tailored to children, using language that is easy for their age group to understand.”
Katie Wilson, PhD, Executive Director of the Urban School Food Alliance, highlighted their evolution: “This reprint builds on the strengths of the original standards by making it even easier for educators to make connections among food, education, and community.”
Resources for All Educators
The updated Food Education Standards are available for free download at pilotlightchefs.org, alongside more than 150 lesson plans in Pilot Light’s Food Education Center. The organization offers professional development workshops, fellowship programs, and ongoing support to help educators implement Food Education in their classrooms.
"What informed food choices did you make today?" reflects Pilot Light's approach to empowering students. “How would the food system change if student voices were amplified and empowered to advocate for change?”
About the Food Education Standards
Originally developed through a four-year consensus-building process with educators, community members, and interdisciplinary experts, the Food Education Standards serve as the foundation for all of Pilot Light’s programs and initiatives. They provide a practical roadmap for weaving food into everyday classroom learning, creating lessons that resonate far beyond school walls.
The standards support Pilot Light’s unique, teacher-centered model, which allows students of all ages, backgrounds, abilities, and levels of food security to learn about food and their agency within the food system.
Download the updated Food Education Standards at https://simplebooklet.com/foodeducationstandardsrev2025.
About Pilot Light
Pilot Light is a teacher-centered Food Education nonprofit that develops programming and educator capacity for the food system leaders of the future through engaging and relevant classroom learning. Founded in Chicago by leading chefs Matthew Merges, Jason Hammel, Paul Kahan, and Justin Large, Pilot Light has reached over 26,000 students and 354 educators across 15 school districts nationwide through its innovative programs, which are grounded in the Food Education Standards. The organization’s teacher-centered model uses food as a tool for learning across all academic subjects, helping students develop critical thinking skills and agency in the food system. Learn more at www.pilotlightchefs.org
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