[Durham INC] Durham School Hosts Planting Party Friday

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

For Details, Contact:

Amy Blalock

Sr. Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 11253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at durhamnc.gov

 

For Immediate Release:  September 16, 2010

 

 

Durham Middle School Hosts Urban Planting Party Friday

Collaborative Initiative Brings Outdoor Gardens into School Lesson Plans

 

DURHAM, N.C. - Some Durham middle school students are flexing their
"green thumbs" thanks to a collaborative initiative and a planting party
this week to bring urban gardens into the classroom.

 

On Friday, September 17, 2010, from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., a planting
party for a sustainable urban garden classroom will be held at W. G.
Pearson Magnet Middle School, located at 600 E. Umstead Street, Durham.
Several raised bed gardens have been installed at the school and now it
is time to plant the community garden.

 

The City of Durham Neighborhood Improvement Services Department,
Triangle East Chapter of 100 Black Men, Neighborhood Pride Alliance, and
Natural Environmental Ecological Management (NEEMS) have adopted W. G.
Pearson Magnet Middle School and are planning several interactive
educational projects for the school year through this community garden.

 

Teachers at W. G. Pearson Elementary School will use the garden as an
outdoor classroom, instructing science, math, and language arts.
According to Valerie Griffin-Andrews, principal at W.G. Pearson Magnet
Middle School, the excitement over this project is tangible throughout
the school. "The faculty and our kids are very excited about this
initiative. Our school's community garden classroom is going to
integrate the use of plant-based learning across the curriculum,
allowing our teachers to incorporate the use of outdoor gardens, natural
settings, and plant activities into classroom lessons," Griffin-Andrews
said.

 

Assisted by the school's guidance counselor, the committee organizing
the event has been actively recruiting students, teachers, and parents
to participate in the garden project. With additional assistance from
the principal and guidance counselor, the collaborative will incorporate
hands-on educational activities to inform students about obesity and
nutrition. Several parents have also expressed interest in developing a
"Seed to Table" project.

 

For additional information on this project or on-site news media
assistance at the planting party, contact Cynthia Mebane-Watts,
community engagement coordinator with the City's Neighborhood
Improvement Services Department, at (919) 560-1647, ext. 34265 or via
e-mail at cynthia.mebane-watts at durhamnc.gov. 

 

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