Students of Brown Middle School spent a portion of the afternoon Aug. 30 learning about organic farming from a team of staff members from Farmer D Organics and planting seedlings in what will become the school’s first student-run garden. Communities In Schools (CIS) of Atlanta selected Brown Middle School as one of two pilot sites for an exciting opportunity made possible through the Captain Planet Foundation.
A grant from the foundation is providing six raised plant beds; a variety of fall and winter seedlings and seeds; and a composter to the school. The garden project will be supervised by Kia Ginn-Siebie, Communities In Schools of Atlanta senior program coordinator at Brown, and will be maintained by Brown Middle School’s students. The faculty and staff of Brown will work closely with CIS of Atlanta, the students and parents of Brown Middle and the community to provide hands-on, experiential learning opportunities, including an urban farmer’s market that will be marketed and operated by students.
Communities In Schools of Atlanta takes great pride in being able to offer opportunities like the urban garden project to its partner schools.
“We believe this gardening project will support the tremendous work Brown Middle School is already doing to make learning fun, engaging and relevant for its students,” said CIS of Atlanta Executive Director Patricia Pflum. “Beyond experiencing the pride that comes along with seeing the work of their hands produce healthy foods, students will gain real-world work experiences in marketing, cooking and entrepreneurship through a host of exciting activities planned around the garden project.”
Communities In Schools surrounds students with a community of support, empowering students to stay in school and achieve in life. Through partnerships with Atlanta Public Schools, Project GRAD and DeKalb County Schools, CIS of Atlanta is providing its award-winning dropout prevention programs to 74 school with enrollments of more than 46,000 young people during the 2010-2011 school year.
For more information on Communities In Schools of Atlanta, please visit www.cisatlanta.org, or visit the organization’s Facebook page.
