Schools
Greenport School Garden Wins $10K Grant Through 'Seeds of Change' Contest
Greenport's victory follows days of voting by community members who dedicated themselves to spreading the word about the contest.
GREENPORT, NY - After days of voting and excitement, Greenport Schools emerged the winner of a $10,000 grant in the "Seeds of Change" grant contest.
"This is a wonderful opportunity for Greenport, our children and the entire learning community. We are very grateful to all who supported our effort to secure this grant," said Greenport Schools Superintendent David Gamberg.
The community garden at Greenport Schools will flourish even more beautifully with the help of the contest, which awarded a total of $300,000 in grants.
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The "Seeds of Change" grant program awarded two schools and two communities each $20,000 grants; Greenport was one of 10 schools and 10 communities that each won $10,000 grants.
A $5,000 "Garden Ambassador Award" will be given to each of the four individuals who submitted the selected $20,000 grants.
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Gamberg has described how the grant would be used:
The grant, he said, will "allow our school garden to grow and become a focus for the health and wellness for both the children and families of our community."
Currently, he said, the school garden is very small and located in back portion of the school property. "This grant would enable our school to substantially increase the size of the garden and relocate it to the front portion of the campus, thus encouraging greater participation by families and civic groups in the neighborhood."
He added, "As a school community with over 70 percent of our student population eligible for free or reduced lunch, we must promote healthy eating in an effort to give our students a better opportunity to learn and thrive both in and outside of school."
The grant will help educate students and their families through a summer camp component, printed brochures, mailings, creating 'how to' videos, conducting cooking classes, and shared resources with the neighboring school district, Southold, "which already has a thriving school garden," Gamberg said.
To learn more about Seeds of Change, click here.
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