In 2025, WRA will open a first-of-its-kind in the country Center for Food Innovation, Sustainability and Service. The goals for this reimagination of Ellsworth Hall and accompanying curricular program are informed by the belief that food fosters cultural understanding, community and celebration; illuminates disparity and responsibility; and invites exploration of science, literature and the land.
Last week, Head of School Suzanne Walker Buck presented the vision for the Center to The Edward E. Ford Foundation in New York City, part of a competitive process that results in grant funding to the most innovative independent school proposals in the country. The WRA proposal outlined an interdisciplinary program that will introduce students to the biological, agricultural, economic, anthropological and societal impact of food. Through new food-themed courses in our current disciplines, an expansion of classes currently offered (including synthetic biology and microbiology), the introduction of a culinary curriculum for the exploration of food science, nutrition, product development, and partnerships tied with agricultural and social service enterprise in our geographic region, WRA aims to use food as a lens of understanding.
Buck credited the WRA faculty and staff for their lead role in the ideation of this project saying, “The trustees of The E.E. Ford Foundation lauded our work and spoke with praise for the novelty of the ideas of each academic department. This is incredibly exciting and a phenomenal endorsement of the ingenuity and excellence of Western Reserve Academy.”
WRA will receive $250,000 to be applied to startup costs of the Center and will use the grant to inspire donors to contribute to the renovation and expansion of Ellsworth Hall, which will be the physical hub of the comprehensive program. In early 2024, Reserve will celebrate the remarkable early-stage support of generous alumni donors and outline the project — its physical and philosophical constructs — in detail.
E.E. Ford Executive Director John C. Gulla said, “I am so very pleased for Western Reserve Academy. Yours was a strong and impressive presentation that certainly helped the Board see how this program holds such promise, not just for your school but for others as well. I look forward to watching how things unfold in the years ahead.”
Buck said the coming WRA Bicentennial Celebration in 2026 is a reason to rally around innovation on our campus, but also service beyond ourselves. “As we move into our third century as a school, every lesson learned on campus should be infused with an imperative to pay it forward. Our Center for Food Innovation, Service and Sustainability will satisfy voracious appetites to learn, while reminding students of the world beyond us that they can serve, and change.”
