NEW ORLEANS — Dillard University recently received a $25,000 grant from the Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation for a one year project in collaboration with the Dillard University Ray Charles Program in African American Material Culture. The grant entitled, “The Dillard University Food Pantry Health Corner Internship Program”, aims to provide hands-on experiences for students to learn basic methods to canning and food preservation.
Through this internship, training and distribution program, we hope to find alternative ways to provide quality organic food to prevent poor nutrition and unhealthy habits to combat campus food insecurity. The program will train and hire four students per semester for a paid internship to learn, manage, supervise, plan and distribute food to their student body. The program will also offer learning demonstrations to encourage our wider community to learn more about canning and food preservation.
“Historically, the U.S. governmental agencies provided learning opportunities for farmers and Americans across the country during wartime and before the advent of the supermarket chain to learn and improve basic to advanced canning and preservation skills. With increased lack of access to quality healthcare, rising food costs and food insecurity on college campuses, we aim to empower our students to learn skills that once proved economical and practical use for many American families,”said Zella Palmer, Director and Chair of the Dillard University Ray Charles Program.
Student applications to apply for the paid internship program will be available Summer 2025.
The Dillard University Ray Charles Program was established by the late music great Ray Charles in 2004; the program includes a Food Studies Minor. Programmatic activities are offered throughout the academic year. For more information, please visit,
Dillard University, located in New Orleans at 2601 Gentilly Blvd., is a private four-year liberal arts historically black institution with a history dating back to 1869. For more information, please visit www.dillard.edu. Also, follow us on Twitter, Facebook @DU1869 and Instagram, Dillard University.
