Protein for All Toolkit
Setting up your program

How do you envision implementing a Protein for All program at your court?

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Where would better emotional regulation benefit court officials and parents?

Protein for All programs promote better emotional regulation, benefiting court officials, parents, and everyone involved.

Examples of high-stake events prone to emotional dysregulation include shelter care hearings, meetings with lawyers, visitations, assessments, and follow-up hearings. 

  • Are there other possible points of intervention that you want to consider?

At this stage of planning, it's okay to think expansively. Adding some ranking to your ideas will be helpful when decisions need to be made about implementation details.

How will your program be implemented: virtually, in-person, or both?

When setting up a Protein for All program, you need to think about different things if your court convenes online, in person, or both. The basic concepts that need to be shared are the same, but how you share them will look different.

Parents need help understanding why eating right before their court hearings is important and how this helps them make better decisions. These ideas can be integrated into other preparations with parents before hearings. Here are some ways to do this use:

Give parents a tipsheet explaining why eating is important, what to eat, and when to eat. This can be handed to them in person, emailed, or texted. It can also be stapled to other paperwork that parents receive to ensure they get this important information.

Give parents links to videos in the online Protein for All toolkit. These videos explain how our brains and bodies work, why “lizard brain” snacks and meals can help them be less emotionally reactive, and give ideas for cheap meals with lots of protein. You can share these links with QR codes, emails, or texts.

Knowing what to do is one thing, but doing it is another. You can help parents better if you understand their context. It's important to ask about their situation to avoid making wrong assumptions.

  • Are they having trouble getting food or experiencing food access challenges?

  • Do they have a kitchen?

  • Are they unsheltered?

  • Can they get to places they need to go?

  • Do they understand English?

  • Do they have access to the internet?

Suppose they are experiencing any of these challenges. In these cases, they may need help figuring out these issues before they can fully engage.

In-person programs have a lot of moving pieces to consider when planning for successful implementation.

  • Who will manage the Protein for All program? Think about who will manage these resources and how they will be distributed. Will it be a single person or a team? It’s important to have someone in charge of procurement, and depending on how you answered some of the questions above, other roles might include handing out food and information about Protein for All, vouchers or vending machine tokens; rolling a cart in and out of a public space; unlocking a closet and propping the door open; etc. One person can do all of this, or multiple people can get involved. Possible answers might include parent allies, court staff, or volunteers. When working out the details for implementation, be sure to name names or positions. If this task is assigned to a particular position, draft something that can be included in that overall job description. Remember to make plans for when someone is taking time off; shared responsibilities are essential for success.

  • Where will the food be provided? In a lobby or waiting area? The lawyer's office? During visitations? During therapy? Remember from Section 3 that food is ideally provided before high-stakes interactions with the court as a tool for improved emotional regulation.

  • What kind of food will you offer? While protein-rich snacks, bars, shakes, and sandwiches are ideal (because protein+carbs help the brain focus for a longer time), it's really important to remember that any food is better than no food.

  • How will the food be provided? You can consider having it on a cart, in a basket, on a shelf, in a closet, or even from a vending machine if you can dictate what’s put in the machine! There's not a single "right" answer; whatever you choose needs to work in the physical layout of your court. If there's no way to provide food in the court building, are there nearby food vendors you could provide vouchers for?

    • If working with food venders, using vouchers or gift cards is common.

    • If you provide food and drink through a vending machine, can you provide tokens for the machine? Or a pre-paid card? Depending on what items are in the vending machine, consider adding some kind of signage that draws attention to the protein-rich options, plus some short reminders about why protein-rich food helps. (Tip: You can use QR codes to link to further information.)

  • When will the food be accessible? Is the plan to hand out food to individuals, or will it be provided on a "help yourself" basis? Will food be available whenever the location is open or only during specific times or days? The decisions you make about these questions will impact the number of people who need to be involved and the amount of structure required. Remember - there’s no right or wrong, just what works for your context.

  • Another "Who" question to answer is who you plan on feeding through your program. This could include anyone in the court system (judges, lawyers, administrators, volunteers, parents and kids, just kids, just grumpy people…) or a subset of these folks. The answer to this question might be connected to how much food you’re able to provide. Some courts make this available to everyone but encourage those who can to donate food back to the program in exchange for taking a snack when they are in need.

  • Based on what you sketch out to address the above questions, how many people will your Protein for All program ideally serve? How will you source the food, vouchers, or tokens?

Answers to these questions will inform your budget, and likewise, how your program is funded may well inform your answer to these questions.