Cultivate Charlottesville
| Address |
PO Box 5282 Charlottesville, Virginia 22905 |
| Phone | (434) 260-3274 |
| Website | http://www.cultivatecharlottesville.org |
| Primary Contact | Jeanette Abi-Nader |
| Primary Email | admin@cultivatecharlottesville.org |
| Executive Director | Jeanette Abi-Nader and Richard Morris, Co-Executive Directors |
| Primary Focus Area | Education |
| Service Areas |
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Mission Statement
Cultivate Charlottesville engages youth and community in building an equitable, sustainable food system through garden-based experiential learning, growing and sharing healthy food, amplifying community leaders, and advocating for food justice.
Overview
Cultivate Charlottesville aims to empower individuals to create a healthy and equitable food system – personally, in community, and across systems and structures. We do this through an integrated approach from three core programs: City Schoolyard Garden, founded in 2010; Urban Agriculture Collective, which began as the Quality Community Council in 2007; and Food Justice Network, launched in 2015. In 2018 we came together to implement a coordinated approach for amplified impact. At Cultivate Charlottesville, we recognize the role race has played and continues to play in agriculture and education in Charlottesville and the nation. Because we manage garden spaces and work with public school students and community members affected by racial inequities, we commit to building equity in all our work.
Key Programs
| Program 1 | |
|---|---|
| Title: | City Schoolyard Garden at Buford Middle School |
| Description: | Our flagship schoolyard garden at Buford Middle School in Charlottesville has been in place since 2010. We work in partnership with the administration of Buford Middle School to operate a 4,500 square foot educational garden on the Buford campus which serves as an outdoor classroom for teachers and students. Our full time Garden-Educator staff assists teachers in developing garden-based curriculum tied to the VA SOL's. After‐school cooking and gardening clubs provide opportunities for students to engage with healthy food and garden skills beyond their classroom experience. Throughout the summer, our Garden Educator works in the garden with city youth from summer camps to further the garden’s educational mission when school is not in session. This schoolyard garden model is slated for expansion to all six of the city's elementary schools and to Charlottesville High School. |
| Examples of Program Success: | “The garden was the one place where my grandson felt like he could be himself at school. It helped him connect with his older brother, through projects they brought home to do together. Being in the garden gave him confidence and pride. It helped him do better at school.” –CCS student’s grandmother “Historically, our African-American students' strongest SOL reporting category has been in the physical sciences. This past year, our African-American students' strongest reporting category was in the life sciences and experimental design. I believe City Schoolyard Garden's life science unit on the scientific method is a contributing factor to this change. The garden provides our students a meaningful context in which to learn about and experience life science. ” - Libby Kitten - Charlottesville City School Curriculum Director. |
| Total Program Budget: | $98,258 |
| Category: | Youth Development |
| Program 2 | |
|---|---|
| Title: | City Schoolyard Garden Elementary School Program |
| Description: | The fall off 2013 marked the first full academic year for the Elementary School Program. This program includes gardens and garden coordinators in each of the six Charlottesville Elementary Schools. Combined, the elementary gardens cover around 4,750 square feet with each garden reflecting the character and uniqueness of that school’s community. Our diverse gardens include a native owl habitat, a Jeffersonian themed garden, worm compost bins, art in the garden, a recycled greenhouse, water catchment tanks, a butterfly garden, a garden choral group, seed saving, outdoor classroom space, and more. We host four afterschool garden clubs and estimate 6,400 elementary school student interactions this semester. |
| Examples of Program Success: | Together, City Schoolyard Garden programs cultivate the skills for ecological literacy and healthy living through growing gardens, enhance students’ academic experience with hands-on learning units, and engage youth in the wonder and curiosity of nature. |
| Total Program Budget: | $132,000 |
| Category: | Education/Instruction |
Giving Opportunities
| Opportunity 1 |
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