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Urban Education Farm Feasibility Study
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Urban Education Farm Feasibility Study

Urban Education Farm Feasibility Study
Urban Education Farm Feasibility Study
 
(Read in Spanish, Somali, or Hmong)
 
As part of our commitment to students’ health and supporting their ability to learn, in 2018, Minneapolis Public Schools Culinary & Wellness Services conducted a feasibility study for an urban educational farm model. Thanks to generous funding from Target and support from the MPS leadership and staff, this study helped lead the District to the current education farm at the MPS Culinary Center.

What is an urban educational farm?

Urban educational “farms” can take many shapes. Central themes often include: merging indoor and outdoor learning experiences, building connection to food sources, learning by doing, and building community.
 
Here are some examples of existing urban educational farms that we've learned from and drawn from to develop the Education Farm at the Culinary Center:
  • Edible Schoolyard Project in California is a garden, kitchen, and cafeteria at King Middle School, serving as a demonstration site and innovation hub for the edible education curriculum and pedagogy.
  • The EUSD Farm Lab is an innovative outdoor learning campus for students in the Encinitas Union School District. It includes a community garden, a play forest, a food meadow and more.
  • Great Kids Farm in Baltimore City is a living, working farm that educates students of all ages about healthy eating, sustainable agriculture and the natural sciences.
  • Manteca Unified School District Farm to School in California is both a working small farm which supplies a significant portion of produce served in school cafeterias and a direct extension of the classroom where students may learn and apply concepts taught in the classroom.
  • Alachua County Public School’s Farm to School to Work Hub in Florida is a place where students can learn about the food system by experiencing it. 
  • South Whidbey School Farms in Washington is an integrated K-12 program teaching farm-based and culinary education in an inquiry-based curriculum, with the students growing the food. 

 

 
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Curricula and Models Review

The review of curricular and urban farm models from around the United States is completed. The research findings summary includes an environmental scan and related analysis of numerous urban educational farms, as well as a thorough literature review on curricular models, and related learning outcomes and student impacts. The report describes best practices, design options, annual costs, approaches, target audiences, governance models, learning outcomes, and relevance to potential approaches for a similar urban educational farm operated by Minneapolis Public Schools. READ IT HERE