By Yaza Sarieh
Yaza Sarieh is the Georgia Organics Community Collaboration Coordinator.
Georgia Organics, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) and Newman’s Own Foundation have partnered for the second annual Farm to School Innovation Mini Grants. These funds support farm to school initiatives in eight Georgia school districts that:
Increase access to local, fresh, organically grown foods
Include culturally responsive food and education
Include organic and/or sustainability focused garden education
Increase local food procurement
And/or benefit Georgia certified organic farmers in other ways.
To learn more about the Farm to School Innovation Mini Grant, click here.
We are pleased to highlight mini grant awardee: Hall County School District. Horticulture teacher, Michelle Conable, has been using the mini grant funds to develop farm to school efforts at the Newcomer Academy.
Image courtesy of Michelle Conable, Hall County Schools
The Ivester Early College, a college dual enrollment campus, provides a unique learning opportunity for New American students by hosting the Newcomer Academy program at their Jones Learning Center. This program invests in New American students by preparing them for life in the United States and developing their talents and skillsets. The Newcomer Academy consists of nearly a third of the school’s population, with most students from countries such as Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Mexico.
Michelle Conable, an educator in the Newcomer Academy, noticed the impact of food insecurity on the student’s’ health and well-being. A 2020 study by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) found that in the United States, nearly 59% of New American households' experience ‘not [having] enough food to eat’, a number that ‘jumps to 78%’ for households with a family member who is an American, migrant, and/or immigrant seeking status. For New American families, not having enough food is a result of economic hardships in the face of head of households working to provide and the challenges they are navigating with social services like SNAP. In addition, many of their new US communities lack culturally relevant foods available close by.
To address these challenges, Michelle developed more garden education opportunities for students at the Newcomer Academy. This curriculum would foster a sense of community, while creating access to and excitement for fruits and vegetables. Michelle applied for funds from the Farm to School Innovation Mini Grant to purchase the plants and gardening supplies that would make this program possible.
Many of the students already know a little bit about farming or gardening from their home countries and have transferred their knowledge to their new community through this project. Although the garden lost some crops this year due to weather, they were able to learn from the experiences and change their approach accordingly. Some of the fruits and vegetables students encountered here are different from their home countries, but they also grew some produce that was more familiar to them. For instance, while visiting a plant sale, one student was ecstatic to find a plant that is used for medicinal purposes in their country. The gardening project has provided a meaningful chance for the exchange of cross-cultural knowledge and appreciation.
Image courtesy of Michelle Conable, Hall County Schools
For students at the Newcomer Academy, the garden project has given them the ability to connect more with their new community and to make their own food choices. Fresh fruits and vegetables are not usually available in the school cafeteria. However, the Newcomer Academy’s Garden has helped to change that by supplying the cafeteria with some of the produce from their garden. Students even used their harvest to make Pico de Gallo which was shared with the community.
Images courtesy of Hall County Schools
The project at Newcomer Academy has shown the significance of gardening education for New Americans. It is a means for folks to connect with their roots while growing into their communities. Keep up the good work, Hall County!
To learn more about Hall County School District visit www.hallco.org or follow them on Facebook and Instagram (@_hcsdofficial).
To learn more about Georgia Organics visit georgiaorganics.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube by searching (Georgia Organics).