Community Partners
The Wake County Public School System has a long history of working with community organizations to strengthen our schools for the betterment of our students. The following partners have been providing resources to our schools in support of edible school gardens. Click on the following organizations to visit their websites. |
Wake County NC Cooperative Extension: A partnership between Wake County government and North Carolina’s land-grant universities, NC State University and NC A&T State University. Extension helps create prosperity for our county through programs and partnerships focused on food and agriculture, health and nutrition, and 4-H youth development.
Farm Bureau North Carolina Ag in the Classroom: Wake County Farm Bureau is passionate about agriculture, and committed to educating students about where their food and fiber comes from. They offer classroom visits for agricultural education and can help coordinate farm tours in Wake County. Farm Bureau is a nonprofit organization and offers these educational opportunities free of charge.
The Alice Aycock Poe Center for Health Education: The Poe Center is a private not-for-profit organization that educates North Carolina’s children, youth, and their families about varied health topics and the importance of leading healthy lifestyles. We offer fun and highly interactive lessons for preschoolers through twelfth graders on a variety of health topics, including nutrition, dental health, general health, family life, drug prevention, and garden education –all following the NC DPI Essential Standards for Healthful Living Education.
Inter-Faith Food Shuttle: Inter-Faith Food Shuttle feeds, teaches and grows to create a healthy and hunger-free North Carolina. A member of Feeding America, the Food Shuttle distributes nearly 6 million pounds of food annually, 35% of which is fresh produce. The Food Shuttle goes works within school systems through Sprout Scouts after-school cooking and gardening club and the Growing School Gardens program, which helps schools implement school gardens and train teachers on how to implement gardening education into common core standards.
Wake Soil and Water Conservation District: Wake Soil and Water Conservation District works every day to conserve Wake County’s natural resources. Our conservationists provide free technical assistance to farmers and landowners; while our environmental educator engages people of all ages in learning about and caring for the environment. We believe that healthy soil and clean water are essential for healthy people and communities.
CLH Design: Established in 1993, CLH design, p.a. is a 23-person, Cary, North Carolina design firm offering award-winning collaborative landscape architecture and civil engineering services. CLH has been involved in the design and construction of more than 60 K-12 addition and renovation projects for Wake County Public School Systems. CLH is sensitive to the needs of sustainable design practices and strives to connect students with the natural world through their school designs. Technical assistance is offered to schools with municipal and district due diligence research required to ensure garden locations do not infringe on dedicated easements, right-of-ways, buffers, tree save areas, spaces reserved for future expansion, setbacks and/or buffers.