Backed by Black mayors’ group, Evansville wins $125K grant to expand food access in local schools

Evansville is getting national attention and new resources through a grant tied to the African American Mayors Association, aimed at tackling a challenge many families here know all too well: access to healthy, affordable food.

The city has been selected as one of just seven nationwide to receive funding through a partnership between the African American Mayors Association (AAMA) and the American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America. Evansville will receive $125,000 as part of the initiative. The funding will support the Evansville Promise Neighborhood (EPN) Schools Healthy Play & Pantry program, which is centered in six local schools: Glenwood, Lincoln, Delaware, Bosse, Lodge, and Evans- serving children and families in the city’s urban core. Through that work, schools aren’t just places for learning, they’re becoming access points for food, support, and stability.

For many families in these neighborhoods, access to fresh, healthy food has long been a challenge. “The EPN is a food desert,” said Derek McKillop, Director of the Evansville Promise Neighborhood Initiative. “In the past year, there have been some positive strides in addressing that. Afterschool programs have been providing fresh fruits and vegetables, and partners have led produce distribution. This grant helps build on those types of initiatives and expand access.”

The program will expand school-based food pantries, bringing in fresh produce through local partners while increasing storage capacity to make sure food gets to families who need it. Monthly food drives will take place at schools, making distribution more consistent and easier to access.

At the same time, the effort is focused on building healthy habits. Families will be invited into the process through cooking nights and nutrition workshops, while students get hands-on experience growing and preparing food themselves: from planting and harvesting to seeing healthy options show up in everyday spaces like playground “snack walls.”

Coordinated through EPN, the program hopes to improve outcomes for children and families in Evansville neighborhoods where barriers to food access, health, and opportunity continue. Because of the complexity of those challenges, measuring success will require multiple approaches. “Every two years we do a broader survey and this summer survey will help provide metrics on access,” McKillop said. “We’re also working with community hubs to continue analyzing and gathering data. It’s a complex issue, so we must address it in multiple ways to understand what’s working.”

The announcement came during the AAMA’s national conference in Washington, D.C., where mayors from across the country gathered around strategies to address disparities in health and economic opportunity. For Evansville, the recognition highlights that solutions work best when schools, partners, and neighborhoods are all part of the equation. “I think one of the reasons Evansville was selected is the growth of collective impact,” McKillop said. “There are a lot of organizations doing good work here, but the ability to bring people together has been key. It removes the competitive element and moves us toward collaboration.” That collaboration, he added, strengthens the city’s ability to attract national opportunities and sustain long-term investment.

The moment also reflects growing leadership around the issue at the local level. “It’s a tremendous opportunity to address something we are passionate about,” McKillop said. “When the mayor is willing to take that on, it creates a powerful image and clears a pathway for future success.”