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Meet Cori Fitzpatrick

Farm to Institution Specialist

cori.fitzpatrick@groundworkcenter.org | (231) 941-6584 x705

"The gist of my work,” says Cori Fitzpatrick, Groundwork Farm to Institution Specialist, “is to help districts in the CharEm ISD build schoolwide cultures of health through garden and nutrition education, provide support to local farmers, and promote food access programs.”

It’s an ambitious goal that can change lives and communities for the better, and helping achieve that goal feels only natural for Cori, who has for years studied food systems, agroecology, biology, and nutrition as both a career interest and a personal pursuit.

Central to Cori’s efforts is making connections and building relationships between local farmers and other local food producers and schools. Her leadership role also includes supervising FoodCorps members, who work to build a culture of health in schools and serve through Groundwork’s Petoskey office. “I support the corps members' work to implement garden and nutrition lessons, conduct taste tests, and hold family engagement events at districts throughout the CharEm ISD,” Cori says.

“If you can connect with one person, and then another and another, you can eventually reach an exponential number, and by building relationships and building community, that is how we impact change,” Cori says.

With a big goal and so much to organize and move forward, does it help that Cori was at one time the lead ranch hand for a 53-horse herd in West Texas? "Of course it does!" she says.

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Good to know

Education

Bachelor of Science, Wildlife Ecology and Management at Michigan Technological University; areas of focus include soil health, forestry, agroecology.

Pre- and Postnatal Fitness & Nutrition Certification, Moms Into Fitness

Veterinary Assistant Certification, Animal Behavior College

in her spare time
If Cori is outdoors, she is happy. An evening on the beach, hiking with her family and their dogs, gardening, trail riding on horses, and birdwatching—they all fill her up.

Favorite Spots in Michigan

“Right now, Duncan Bay, Cheboygan, mostly because that is where my family comes together—it’s the grounding zone. And anywhere in the Keweenaw Peninsula is magic to me. We lived there for six years. And I’ll always have a love for all things Harbor Springs because that’s where I grew up.”