Marbut Principal, Teachers Take On Student Garden During Pandemic

LITHONIA, GA — COVID-19 interrupted a lot of previously scheduled plans and routines for people. Marbut Elementary Traditional Theme School in DeKalb County wasn’t exempt. Before the pandemic forced the school to do remote learning, students had been working in their vegetable gardens.

Principal André Benito Mountain said he and a small group of volunteers didn’t want their hard work to be in vain so volunteered to return throughout the summer to tend to the 23 garden plots. A student’s grandmother, Donna Hasan, a teacher Anthony Mays, and another grandparent joined Mountain, who’s no stranger to the dirt. He said his father majored in agriculture at Fort Valley State University and his mother is an “avid gardener.”

Everyone chipped in to help with the garden, which is a testament to the strong school community, Mountain said.

The PTA created a line budget of about $800, he said, and the rest was supplemented by donations from parents.

"They stepped up," Mountain said.

In March, 27 classrooms began growing eggplant, collards, brussel sprouts, tomatoes, squash peas and rosemary.

The students started with growing a sweet potato, one for each class.

“Some thrived, others didn’t due to poor sunlight or lack of consistent care,” Mountain said. “It was a powerful school-wide learning experience, which drew many parallels to growing scholars.”

He said this experience is more than just learning how to plant and grow vegetables.

“In a time when most of our food is prepackaged and over processed, it’s important for students to see the entire process of producing fruits and vegetables,” he said. “They also need to see how simple it is to cultivate organic produce in small spaces at home or in community gardens. Additionally, it is the manifestation of ‘ujima’ or collective work in our school, one of the principles of Kwanzaa that we emphasize throughout the school year with cooperative tasks and group projects.”

Mountain, who’s beginning his fourth year as principal at Marbut said when he arrived the school only had a butterfly garden. That was done in honor of the first principal, Gayle Owen. Mountain said he saw potential to beautify the school’s surrounding property more. He added a garden of flowers in the front of the school. He fenced the property.

That’s not all. Since the students have been away, he’s been planting sunflower seeds across the area. He said he also wants to have some murals painted around the school.

“I'm hopeful that when they do come back, they'll see some new things on campus and they'll know that we've been waiting on them, preparing for them to return,” he said.

"Here's what I believe as a principal. I believe our kids deserve to be safe, they deserve to have a campus that they can be proud of and say, 'that's my school,' where they drive past, not just a building with the grass cut, but something where it looks like people have taken time to make it beautiful."

THE FUTURE

In addition to the garden, the school is also getting a new playground. The current one is outdated and presents safety hazards. It floods when it rains, benches are broken and lean. There are no swings. NFL player Mack Brown, a former Marbut student, is donating $40,000 for new equipment. He also launched the Built Tough Foundation, which looks to educate the youth and improve the community.

A representative for Brown contacted Principal Mountain.

“They asked me to get on a zoom call,” he said. “They were explaining what they wanted to do. And what we would need to do.”

The school district approved the plan. Brown is working in conjunction with KABOOM! which offers equipment grants and project grants to build playgrounds.

The coronavirus pandemic halted the work, but Mountain said that they anticipate for the renovations to start over the next six months and be completed by early next year.

The 91,000-square-foot campus also has an unused basketball court behind the school. Mountain said that Brown is also helping them get a new court.

He’s pleased with Brown’s offer to contribute to the school.

“Marbut was already in good shape, but it was an opportunity for us to leave it better than we found it,” Mountain said. “It’s something great for the kids because we do challenge them academically, so for them to be able to come out to recess and have a good time is important.”

In the future, Mountain said he’d also like to see the rest of the property near the courts be turned into an outdoor track, a baseball field and a space for community events and concerts.