Multiple districts — On a hot day earlier this school year, Empower U South students worked on harvesting grapes from the garden located just outside their building.
They didn’t seem to mind the heat as they cut vines, sampled the grapes and weighed how much they picked.
“(The garden) has been a great fit to our program,” said Empower U South teacher Anne Thompson. “It has helped with interpersonal skills and teaching job skills. Students have been able to use the food in our cooking classes, learned about meal prep and making healthy choices.”
Kent ISD’s Empower U program provides specialized instruction and opportunities specific to employment and independent living skills necessary for young adults with developmental disabilities to live a purposeful and productive life. A federal grant obtained by Kent ISD is paying for improvements to the Empower U South garden as well as gardens in the Godfrey-Lee and Godwin Heights school districts.
‘Getting our students out in the garden and learning the skills to grow and cultivate their own food is a huge benefit to our kids.’
— Eric Mockerman, director of the TEAM 21 after-school and summer program
Last year, when the Empower U program moved from Wyoming Public Schools into Kent ISD’s adult education facility, Thompson said she explored the grounds and discovered the garden, cared for by H.O.P.E. Gardens’ school garden programs and used for growing produce.
Thompson reached out to H.O.P.E. Gardens Executive Director Julie Brunson to see if Empower U South students could utilize the garden spaces during class time.
Brunson said there was ample interest in maintaining the garden, but H.O.P.E. Gardens could not take on the Empower U program without additional funding. She connected with James Hissong, Kent ISD director of grants and strategic planning, and he began looking for potential grants.
Funding New Growth
Hissong determined H.O.P.E. Gardens could qualify for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program, because of the program’s scope of being at several different schools, providing nutritional education and family engagement.
The grant is designed to increase the availability of local foods in schools and help connect students to the sources of their food through education.
With Kent ISD serving as their fiduciary, H.O.P.E. Gardens will receive $100,000, split over two years to cover infrastructure costs, like fencing around existing school gardens, garden tending and direct education for schools.
Brunson, who also serves on the Kent County Food Policy Council, said it was thrilling to partner with Kent ISD and support garden education at Empower U, as well as gardens located at Godfrey-Lee Early Childhood Center, Middle School and Godwin Heights Middle School.
“The Farm to School grant is a huge relief,” she said. “It’s a piece of our larger efforts.”
Brunson explained the challenges her organization has faced to find and maintain funding from several different sources, each with limits as to what funds can cover.
She said with fencing paid for by the grant, it will free up dollars to pay for staff, gardening education and summer TEAM 21 programming.
TEAM 21 director Eric Mockerman said they have a fantastic partnership with H.O.P.E. Gardens at all of their sites in Godfrey-Lee, Godwin Heights and Wyoming public schools.
“I have had the privilege of seeing the H.O.P.E. Gardens staff teach our students about plants and life cycles as well as healthy eating habits and nutritious snacks,” he said. “Getting our students out in the garden and learning the skills to grow and cultivate their own food is a huge benefit to our kids.”
The Future is Green
Hissong said the partnership between Kent ISD schools and local nonprofits is a win-win.
“Our schools benefit from the expertise of our nonprofit partners, and the nonprofits benefit from the assistance provided by the ISD to leverage available funds to further their work,” he said.
Thompson said the goal for Empower U South’s garden is to use grant funds to make it more handicapped accessible, providing pathways for students who use canes and wheelchairs, and adding some more raised beds to make it easier for students to tend plants.
Brunson said her dream would be for every school in Michigan to have access to a garden, and that their work in Kent County is a start.
“To have a successful school garden program, you need a successful garden,” she said. “You need community involvement and education and the opportunity to come into the schools, and it’s been beautiful to have that.”
Joanne Bailey-Boorsma contributed to this story.
Read more from our districts:
• Painting stepping stones helps build sense of garden ownership
• Garden education program teaches ‘everything from seed to plate’
