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Houston’s Charles R. Drew Academy garden, a model for the city

By Beverly Moseley, Public Affairs Specialist

Opening ceremony for the dedication of the Drew Academy Garden with Congresswoman Jackson Lee.
Congresswoman Jackson Lee plants one of the orange trees she donated to the Drew Academy garden.
Congresswoman Jackson Lee and Joe Leonard, USDA civil rights, tour the proposed garden area.
Some of the Drew Academy students instrumental in developing the garden.

Students at Houston’s Charles R. Drew Academy and the surrounding community now have an opportunity to grow fresh fruits and vegetables right outside their classroom windows. Thanks to a USDA Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights funded community garden pilot project, students now have beds of vegetables to enjoy on their campus instead of a previously barren space between buildings.

Surrounded by eager students, visitors and manicured, raised beds full of vegetables such as lettuce and kale, a ribbon cutting and tree planting ceremony was recently held during National Farm to School Month. The event provided an opportunity for project participants and partners to view first-hand the fruition of the Academy’s staff and student’s hard work.

“You are the model,” said Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, (D-TX), during her remarks. “Urban gardening and farming is not a passing fade, but it’s growing.” Lee also donated orange trees to the garden and took a hand in planting one of the trees with students.

Efforts like Drew Academy’s community garden can address a critical need in urban communities and neighborhoods across the country: the lack of fresh, available and affordable food. Partners such as the USDA are trying to reverse this trend by teaching urban youth about gardening, resource conservation and sustainability.

This pilot project also provided students the opportunity to observe how a dream can become a reality when a common purpose and goal is shared by many. For instance, the USDA Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Joe Leonard, provided $3,500 in grant funding and Texas’ USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provided the necessary technical assistance and guidance in developing the garden site. Congresswoman Lee, threw her full support and time behind the garden effort. Local civic leaders, church pastors, Aldine Independent School District officials and even the local Home Depot rallied around the student’s dream of an urban garden.

Texas NRCS State Conservationist Salvador Salinas has been a strong advocate for the establishment of community gardens in urban settings, such as Drew Academy’s.

“Community gardens like Drew Academy serve multiple purposes. They teach young and old alike about where their food comes from, provide fresh and nutritious food and bring awareness of agriculture to urban settings,” said Salinas. “As urban populations continue to grow, community gardens will play a vital role.”