Garden

In 1999, a group of parents, staff and students from the SFCS community founded Project OLÉ (Outdoor Learning Environment) in order to transform the barren asphalt schoolyard into an innovative and inspiring learning environment. Through grants, private donations, public contributions and the hard work of the community, the school now has a fully functional outdoor classroom that includes a greenhouse and fully stocked tool shed, vegetable gardens, a living willow structure, an earth oven, garden fence and arbor, worm bins, and various landscaped habitats. Many of these features (e.g., greenhouse, oven, fences and gardens) were created by students themselves as part of the school’s project-based learning curriculum. Project OLÉ and it's Outdoor Learning Environment are a reflection of the vision, goals, and values of the SFCS community.

Programs are funded through individual contributions by community supporters; grants from foundations, corporations, and government sources; employer matching-fund programs; and in-kind donations. In January 2009, parent volunteer, Stacey Fowler launched “Our Garden”, a monthly newsletter highlighting garden events, accomplishments, student activities and news; please see the “Our Garden” link for more details.  Please join us for monthly Garden Program Planning Meetings or email Suzi Grady at suziandchuck@yahoo.com for additional volunteer opportunities.