Snack Attack

  • Made By CUP With:
  • Students
  • Tags:
  • Food,
  • Health

Many New York City Public school students get their calories from unhealthy junk foods— and they're buying them in school. Bronx students created this guide to get involved with their school food choices.

Students conducting surveys around the community.
A student creates artwork for the project.

New York City public school students eat almost 1 million meals every day! These meals are pretty healthy. But, many students get a lot of their calories from unhealthy junk foods – and they’re buying lots of those in school. Who decides what foods are available in schools? How do these foods impact our health? How can students be involved in school food choices?

In the summer of 2019, CUP and Bronx Health REACH collaborated with Teaching Artist Susana Arellano and students from the Comprehensive Model School Project 327 (CMSP 327) in the Bronx to investigate school foods. Students got out of the classroom to document food options in the neighborhood, survey community members, interview stakeholders working on the issue, and create art to show what they learned.

Students created Snack Attack to help other students get involved in their school food choices.

Check out more photos of the students in action here!

Students collaborating on an art project.
Students present their final project, Snack Attack, at BronxNet.

"Now, I am more conscious of what we’re eating in schools and I’m more supportive of when we go to pick out different food for school that we should be eating in lunch."

— Daniyah Brown, Student

Check out the Project

The cover and a spread from Snack Attack

Buy a Copy $4

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Project Collaborators

Community & Educational Partners

Bronx Health REACH

Kelly Moltzen
Moria Byrne-Zaaloff

New Settlement at CMSP 327
Alix Ricci
Carmen Julia Hernandez
Bilal Raza

Teaching Artist

Susana Arellano


Students

Andre Netty, Angelina Paulino, Daniyah Brown, Elianny Echavarria, Farida Abdukarim, Helen Diaz, Jayda Bitihene, Jendry Gutierrez, Jenny Mateo, Jeremiah Nigaglioni, Katelynn Medina, Katherine Saldana, Lisveth Disla, Nikosi Whyte, Octavio Novas, Phenix Scurry, Robiliana Santos, Rockland Whyte, Silmane Koita, Tanih Singleton, Tomas Polanco, Victor Perez

Special Thanks

Kelly Moltzen, Stephen O’Brien, Miranda Grundy, and Jade Levine

Funding Support

Bronx Health REACH provided this project to the students of CMSP 327 as winners of a countermarketing campaign competition done in collaboration with CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute’s Youth Food Educators Program.

This project was made possible through support provided by Bronx Health REACH of the Institute for Family Health.