The Science History Institute Museum is closed for renovations.
The Othmer Library remains open by appointment.

Join our museum’s Gallery Guides for a “drop-in” tour of Lunchtime, our special exhibition on the history and development of school lunch.

Learn about the complicated relationship between food scientists, the government, and the public throughout the last 200 years as ideas about nutrition and education have evolved.

Does school lunch affect student performance? How did innovations in agricultural science lead to the national school lunch program? What challenges do school lunch advocates face today? And why do we have guinea pigs to thank for our understanding of basic nutrition? We will answer all these questions and more!

This tour has an interactive component, too! You’ll have the chance to touch specially chosen artifacts from our handling collection, examine them in detail, and draw connections between your own experiences of school lunch and this fascinating facet of food history.


Drop-in tours are free and no reservations are necessary.

Featured image: Detail of “Metalam Makes Your Meal Complete,” advertisement for Dow Chemical Company, 1963.

More events

Oral history bound copies, recorder, microphone
January 6, 2025
Classes & Workshops

Oral History Training Institute

This virtual training workshop introduces researchers to oral history and research interview methodologies.

January 22, 2025
Free

Virtual Talk: Women in Chemistry

Join us on Zoom for a virtual talk highlighting the central role of women in shaping chemistry and the material sciences throughout history.

Black ink illustration of one engineer advising another
February 5, 2025
Free

Transitioning to a Sustainable Chemical Industry: Lessons from History

At the T. T. Chao Symposium on Innovation experts in the history of the chemical industry will convene to identify a path to netzero, biodiversity protection, and the alleviation of chemical pollution.

    Republish

    Copy the above HTML to republish this content. We have formatted the material to follow our guidelines, which include our credit requirements. Please review our full list of guidelines for more information. By republishing this content, you agree to our republication requirements.