Dummerston School’s Farm to School (FTS) program has been thriving recently, thanks to motivated parents, dedicated teachers, a supportive administration, coaching from Food Connects, and funding support from the Vermont Agency of Agriculture.
In 2018, a group of parents reached out to Food Connects for help planting seeds to grow a Farm to School program at the school. At the time, a couple of teachers gardened with students, but there was no school-wide program. This group of parents met regularly with former Food Connects’ FTS coach Kate Minifie, laying the foundation for school-wide growth and change.
In the fall of 2019, Julianne Eagan began her tenure as principal. Throughout her career as an educator in the Windham Southeast Supervisory Union (WSESU), Julianne has dedicated herself to student health and wellness, and she immediately saw the value of increasing FTS programming in Dummerston. She joined the FTS team and encouraged several teachers to join as well. Sheila Humphreys took over from Kate as the Food Connects FTS coach for Dummerston, bringing with her longstanding relationships with Julianne and 4th-grade teacher Molly Stoner from her previous work as an educator in WSESU. Administrative support, teacher interest, and strong relationships gave the program the boost it needed to get off the ground!
“I have been so inspired by the Dummerston School community’s passion and commitment to expanding our food production at Dummerston School, integrating the garden into our school curriculum, establishing partnerships with local farms, and realizing the potential of our beautiful and sunny rural campus.”
The pandemic slowed progress towards FTS goals at Dummerston in some ways but accelerated them in others. School staff was under tremendous stress with the challenges of pandemic teaching, and outdoor education and gardening were glimmers of hope and joy for teachers and students, sustaining them during this time. Thus the commitment to growing FTS at Dummerston grew.
When it came time to think about priorities for the 2021-2022 school year, it became clear that hiring a part-time garden coordinator to work in the garden and cook in the classroom with students was an essential next step toward growing the program. The FTS team made contact with Tara Gordon, who was working as a garden coordinator at several other WSESU schools at the time, and she was eager to work with Dummerston students as well.
With a part-time garden coordinator on staff, Dummerston sought grant funding to increase support and grow their program. With help from Sheila, the team drafted a proposal to the VT Agency of Agriculture and received a $10,000 Farm to School grant. They are using the funds to purchase equipment and supplies to expand the school garden and grow the garden program, create signage for the garden, and bring in guest educators to work with students on food, farm, and nutrition education.
In addition, the greater school community came together during the summer of 2021 to begin planning and fundraising for a major renovation and redesign of the playground, garden, and forest. On May 14, 2022, after many months of planning, approximately 40 parents, community members, and students attended a work day that included the construction of additional garden beds adjacent to the playground so that students could garden and graze during recess. Space was made in the woods for a forest garden with edible ferns and inoculated mushroom logs. Julianne says it best, stating, “I have been so inspired by the Dummerston School community's passion and commitment to expanding our food production at Dummerston School, integrating the garden into our school curriculum, establishing partnerships with local farms, and realizing the potential of our beautiful and sunny rural campus.” It was definitely heartening to see families and the community coming together to bring these visions to life!