The Port Chester School Board voted recently to accept $4,500 from the Rye YMCA to support edible gardens at three of the district’s schools: JFK Magnet School, Thomas A. Edison Community School, and Port Chester Middle School.
The Port Chester School Board voted recently to accept $4,500 from the Rye YMCA to support edible gardens at three of the district’s schools: JFK Magnet School, Thomas A. Edison Community School, and Port Chester Middle School.
The $1,500 grants will allow the schools to enhance garden programs already started or create a new garden. Each of the awardees submitted an application outlining their goals for outdoor classrooms, where students could learn not only about gardening, but also about science, math, English Language Arts, and technology in a hands-on setting.
The Y is also encouraging schools to engage students in discussions around access to nutritious, affordable food, and to consider any inequalities in their own community.
The Y’s school garden mini-grant initiative grew out of a Centers for Disease Control Community Transformation Grant (CTG) received by the Rye YMCA in 2012. Funded through the Affordable Care Act, the CTG program seeks to create healthier communities by making healthy living easier and more affordable where people work, live, learn, and play.
As part of this work, the Rye Y has mobilized local partners in Port Chester and Mamaroneck around three issues: healthy eating and physical activity (HEPA) standards in childcare settings; chronic disease prevention (especially type 2 diabetes); and health equity. These new partnerships have allowed the Y to find ways to connect African-American and Hispanic families with opportunities for healthier living.
JFK Principal Louis Cuglietto said, “We are delighted to be collaborating with the Rye Y to further develop our garden program. On behalf of everyone in our school community, thank you!”
Rye Y Executive Director Gregg Howells remarked: “We believe that school gardens embody the spirit of the Community Transformation Grant, allowing children and youth to make the ‘seed to table’ connection, learn about nutrition, engage in physical activity, and develop healthy habits that will last a lifetime.”
