
Sara Jean (SJ) Whelan
Farm to School Coordinator, New York CityNYC Dept of Education office
Long Island City, NY
cell 929-895-2257
email Sara Jean (SJ)
Sara Jean (SJ) has a dynamic background in food systems work. She co-founded an e-commerce-based vegetable farm in Vermont, seeking to make farm-direct food more accessible to her community. With a Housing First program in Vermont, she established a community garden and supported clients in accessing federal nutrition benefits. Additionally, SJ worked with Vermont FEED to support Farm to School work in the state. She currently serves as the board co-chair of Slow Food NYC.
SJ has a B.A. in Food Systems from the University of Vermont and is currently enrolled in a M.A. program at New York University where she is engaged in Food Studies.
SJ is located at the NYC Department of Education office in Long Island City, working with Department of Education staff to increase consumption of NYS grown foods in school lunch programs.
Upcoming Events
Urban Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Program (Urban CAMP): Session 5
March 26, 2025
3:30 PM - 6:00 PM
Queens, NY
The 2025 Urban Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Program (Urban CAMP) is designed to empower NYC farmers and agricultural advisors in their journey to gain and share knowledge and tools needed to be resilient in the face of climate uncertainty. This program is a partnership between Cornell University, the Harvest NY Program in Cornell Cooperative Extension, and the USDA Northeast Climate Hub. The Urban CAMP curriculum draws heavily from the Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Fellowship (CAMF), created in response to farmers' need for information and technical assistance related to climate change.The 2025 Urban Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Program (Urban CAMP) will consist of a series of in-person workshops, trainings, online webinars, and in-person field days, tailored for the specific needs of farmers in and around New York City. The program begins February 26, 2026 and will run through September 2026. Five in-person training sessions will be held once a week on Wednesdays in February and March (Feb. 26th, March 5th, March 12th, March 19th, and March 26th). There will be a total of three in-person farm tours during the growing season (dates TBD). Urban CAMP participants will then work to develop an adaptation or mitigation plan for their urban farm, or a farm they work with.
Session 5: Climate Funding and Resources