A Legacy in Motion: TFFJ’s Co-Founder Katherine Soll Receives Lifetime Achievement Award For Advancing Food Justice
On June 6, 2025, Teens for Food Justice Founder and CEO Kathy Soll received the Joan Dye Gussow, EdD Lifetime Achievement Award at the 5th Annual Food Ed Coalition Awards Ceremony.
The recognition comes at a meaningful time in Kathy’s life and career. She is stepping down from her role as CEO after more than a decade of leadership and will continue to support the organization as a member of its Board of Directors. She also recently became a grandmother—a joyful new chapter alongside a professional legacy built on courage, care, and unwavering purpose.
Kathy had the honor of being the inaugural recipient of this award under its new name—a choice that, as Dr. Jen Cadenhead of the Tisch Food Center put it, couldn’t have been more fitting: “There could be no more fitting recipient.”
A Vision That Took Root—and Still Pushes Us Forward
Kathy launched TFFJ with a bold vision: install large-scale hydroponic farms in public schools and empower students to drive the movement for food justice.
That idea grew from an earlier effort. In 2010, Kathy launched Students for Service to connect teens to volunteer opportunities across NYC. As students gravitated toward hunger relief—often shaped by personal experience—she saw a deeper opportunity: go beyond short-term service to build long-term systems change. That shift became Teens for Food Justice.
What began around her kitchen table became a growing network of student-run farms and programs that feed communities, strengthen academic learning, and support youth leadership.
This model still challenges the status quo. It’s rooted in the belief that students, particularly in under-resourced schools, can grow fresh food for their communities—and grow their own agency in the process.
As Steve Soll, her husband, wrote: “She visualized a solution and had the tenacity to see it through… But Kathy’s vision is not really about the seeds that are planted in the growing systems taking root. Rather, it is the seeds that are planted in the minds of the students… that comprise the real harvest.”
“She visualized a solution and had the tenacity to see it through… But Kathy’s vision is not really about the seeds that are planted in the growing systems taking root. Rather, it is the seeds that are planted in the minds of the students… that comprise the real harvest.”
That harvest is clear: 9 school-based farms, more than 100,000 pounds of produce grown, and thousands of students engaged in food justice, nutrition, science, and civic leadership.
A Culture of Trust and Possibility
What set Kathy apart wasn’t just the scale of the work—it was how she did it. She built a culture grounded in trust, collaboration, and respect. She led with vision but also with presence, making space for people to show up fully and grow into their roles.
Harrison Hillier, TFFJ Senior Hydroponic Systems Manager, described her as a leader who “meets people where they are,” and creates space to “make mistakes, learn, and grow.” That kind of leadership is rare—and essential.
Educators across the city also saw it. At MLK High School for Law, Advocacy, and Community Justice, teachers Christine Fryer and Erica Yonks wrote: “Katherine created an environment of learning, agricultural awareness, and social justice… empowering students not only with food justice education but also with the necessary 21st-century skills.”
Principal Amy Piller of Urban Assembly Maker Academy described the lasting impact of that approach:
“[she] gave me a tool—not just to grow food, but to grow hope. To teach students that they can be part of building a better future.”
“[She] gave me a tool—not just to grow food, but to grow hope. To teach students that they can be part of building a better future.”
Scaling for Equity: The Far Rockaway Farm Hub
Kathy’s vision didn’t stop with one farm. In 2023, she helped launch TFFJ’s Far Rockaway Farm Hub—linking five school sites in a region where food access is deeply shaped by systemic inequities and geographic isolation.
With few full-service grocery stores and high rates of diet-related illness, the Rockaway Peninsula faces serious barriers to food access. Many students are Black, Latin, or immigrant youth from low-income families. Kathy led the development of a model that centers students in meeting these challenges through shared produce distribution, joint programming, and cross-campus leadership.
Assemblymember Khaleel M. Anderson, a longtime food justice advocate, helped bring three student-run farms to District 31. He sees the work as a matter of equity: “District 31 is a food desert, and the produce grown is feeding nearby residents. Nearly 15,000 pounds of produce per year can be expected to serve 2,800 students.”
He added: “Kathy has shown unwavering commitment to a more just and equitable food system through youth empowerment and education.” Their collaboration continues with the successful launch of a new TFFJ farm in the Rockaways—and more farms are on the way.
Leading With Students at the Center
Beyond farming, Kathy led the development of TFFJ’s Food Policy Internship to deepen students’ understanding of how policy impacts food access and equity. Piloted with the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and now supported by the New York Community Trust, the internship trains students to research, advocate, and lead campaigns rooted in lived experience.
This kind of programming reflects the core of Kathy’s work: give students real power, not just lessons. Build partnerships with educators, funders, and local governments. Center equity and sustainability.
Co-Founder Chana Chenfeld recalled: “I have been impressed by [Kathy’s] tenacity and unwavering humanity… [her] enthusiasm, focus, and clarity are an inspiration and have allowed TFFJ to have a dramatic impact on food justice, a cause of paramount importance in these fraught times.”
That clarity is also what made TFFJ a home for so many, including students like Alyssa Gardner-Vazquez, who joined the organization as a teen and is now one of its most dedicated farmer-educators. “[She] figured out a way to create space in a place like NYC,” Alyssa wrote, “but also a space that does so much good and touches so many lives in a meaningful way.”
Honoring A Shared Movement
The ceremony also honored several other educators, advocates, and community leaders who are working to advance food and nutrition education across New York City. Each award recognized a unique contribution to building a healthier, more just food system, and we were proud to celebrate alongside so many inspiring peers and partners in this shared work.
Looking Ahead
As Kathy retires from her role as CEO and assumes a new position on TFFJ’s Board of Directors, the organization marks a significant leadership transition shaped by more than a decade of her vision and commitment.
Kathy often says she has gained more from TFFJ than she has given. But the stories, the data, the voices, and the people all say otherwise. ❦
Pamela Honey is the Communications & Content Coordinator at Teens For Food Justice.
Hear from Kathy in her own words as she accepts the Lifetime Achievement Award and reflects on the journey that led to Teens for Food Justice. Watch the full speech below:
