El Dorado Union High School District is utilizing CDFA Farm to School Incubator Grant Program funding to bring hands-on agriculture into special education programs at five high schools in southern El Dorado County.
“This grant has given our special education students the opportunity to learn by doing,” said Adult Transition Program Teacher Trish Hardy. “They are growing food, comparing different growing methods, harvesting, cooking and developing real-life skills along the way. Most importantly, we have been able to create opportunities for students of all abilities to participate and experience the pride that comes from growing something themselves.”
Through $200,000 in grant funding, El Dorado, Union Mine, Ponderosa, Oak Ridge and Independence high schools have developed programs that fit each campus and its students. At one campus, garden beds and gravel pathways were added so students who use wheelchairs can more fully participate. Students use hydroponic systems, outdoor gardens and grow lights. Some schools are comparing hydroponic and traditionally grown plants, while others are using what they grow in cooking activities.
Students across El Dorado Union High School District are now planting, maintaining, harvesting and using what they grow. Along the way, they’re learning responsibility, teamwork, problem solving, cooking and workplace skills. District officials see the farm to school investments as a great starting point to continue expanding gardens and hydroponic programs, grow more food and eventually see food grown by students used in school cafeterias.
“Most of all, we want to keep creating opportunities where every student can participate, contribute and see the results of their work grow,” Hardy added.
October is National Farm to School Month! Join us and thousands of schools, early care and education sites, farms, communities and organizations across the country as we celebrate food education, school gardens and lunch trays filled with healthy, local ingredients.