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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOverviewAbout Olivewood Gardens Who We Are: Olivewood Gardens is an interactive living classroom for students and families from underserved communities. Our purpose is to empower children and families to lead healthy, active lives through nature and food. Operating on a historic 6.85-acre property located in National City, California, our team serves the community with the help of dedicated volunteers including: • Chefs • Food professionals • Master gardeners • Scientists • Public Health professionals • Nutrition professionals • College students • Educators O1ivwood Crdcn and Learning Center Olivewood Gardens School/Fiscal Year 2014 Student visits: 3,750 Students served: 1,755 Community visits: 3,488 Volunteers: 528 Volunteer hours: 6,640 Adults/Parents trained: 272 Total visits: 9,589 Student Profile National City 5% African descent 15% Asian descent 10% Caucasian 70% Latino/Hispanic Board of Governors Mary Walshok Ph.D, Chair Cathe Burnham Dennis Doyle Ph.D. Irma Gigli M.D. Cheryl Hammond Eleanor Navarra Jacqueline Reynoso Richard Romney Trish Watlington What We Do: Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center connects children and families to the natural environment through hands-on science, gardening, and cooking lessons in our organic gardens and kitchen on our beautiful property in National City. Since our first field trip in 2010, Olivewood has received over 38,000 visits from school children and their family members, delivering a critical message about caring for the environment and the connection between a healthy environment and healthy families. Olivewood Gardens offers free educational programs for National City students and discounted programs for students in other underserved communities. We are committed to providing garden and nutrition education to those who need it most and can least afford it. The Mission of Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center is to connect and motivate students and families from diverse backgrounds through organic gardening, environmental stewardship, and nutrition education, empowering them to be healthy and active citizens. Our Vision is to reconnect students and families to the natural environment through food, education and community engagement. 2525 N Avenue, National City, CA 91950 I (619) 434-4260 I EIN 26-1640148 www.OlivewoodGardens.org Our Programs: In addition to our school field trip program, Olivewood offers: • Gardening classes for adults • Field trips for children and families • Weekly tours for the public • Weekend community events • Cooking and nutrition classes • Parent/Adult education • High School and College Internships • Community Educator/Promoters program • Training Academies for Teachers, School Personnel, and Parents Who We Serve: Olivewood Gardens is surrounded by a socioeconomically disadvantaged community with one of the highest childhood obesity rates in the state of California. According to San Diego County's Department of Health & Human Services, the rate of diabetes hospitalization and mortality is 2.3 times greater in National City than the county average. According to California Border Kids Count, in 2007, 34% of National City's children and youth lived in poverty. Eighty-five percent of students in the National School District qualify for free/reduced lunch. In addition to the National City students that participate in our free field trip program, children and families from throughout San Diego County participate in our discounted and free educational programs. Program Impact: Olivewood Gardens provides standards -based nutrition education, lessons in sustainable agriculture, and environmental stewardship to children and families. By participating, children consistently receive important nutrition education in the context of a garden - based learning environment. These experiences can significantly increase children's knowledge of, preference for, and consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, even into adulthood. By practicing positive nutritional choices over the long term, children and their families may reduce their risk of chronic diseases associated with obesity including diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Olivewood Gardens is one of the few school garden programs in the country that emphasizes food preparation along with garden cultivation, teaching children and adults not just to grow but how to cook — and enjoy — tasty, healthy, whole foods. We are the only center of our kind serving San Diego County's three million rural, urban and suburban residents.