Rooted in School Gardens

The Gardener-in-Residence (GiR) program connects kids to their food through hands-on garden lessons where they grow, harvest, and enjoy fresh produce.

Program duration is ten weeks in the fall and ten weeks in the spring, with an optional add-on ten weeks in the winter.

Rooted assigns a dedicated Garden Educator to the school for 8 hours a week during the duration of the program. The Garden Educator leads outdoor garden education lessons with students, following the school’s schedule.

Additionally, Rooted provides:

• Oakhill seedling-starts in the spring to populate the school garden
• Access to seeds
• Access to basic cooking supplies (mixing bowls, plates, choppers, cutting boards) for in-garden cooking activities

$3,000/10 weeks of programming

A discounted $2,000/10 weeks of programming is available for qualifying schools. Please contact us to determine if your school qualifies for a discounted rate.

• Cover the costs of specific lesson/project supplies, any food for cooking activities that is not from the school garden, garden upkeep needs including compost, soil, updates/renovations, etc. Winter programming may require additional supplies for indoor lessons.
• Provide the Garden Educator with arts and crafts supplies for lessons if needed
• Maintain the school garden spaces year-round (for example, schools should organize garden workdays, make a plan for summer maintenance, etc.). If schools are unable to provide regular maintenance throughout the summer Rooted staff may be able to provide support, please contact Erica Krug for options
• Create the schedule for the Garden Educator, with lessons scheduled for either one 8-hour school day or two 4-hour half days each week
• Provide a liaison on behalf of the school to act as the main point of contact for the Garden Educator and Rooted. This position is eligible for a $100 stipend