This summer Kathy Cassin, Garden Coordinator at Academy School since 2020, is handing over the trowel to Academy’s new garden coordinator, Kelsy Allan.
Kelsy comes to Academy from the Garland School in Brattleboro, where she taught in the forest preschool for 4-6 year olds. While at the Garland School, Kelsy involved students in all aspects of gardening, leading outdoor cooking activities with students, maintaining the school garden and greenhouse, and integrating wild edibles into art - and eating - projects. On a more personal note, Kelsy lives in an off-grid house and does much of her cooking on a grill and over fires. We’re so excited to offer our warm welcome to Kelsy as she joins the staff at Academy.
Kelsy will continue the terrific Farm to School (FTS) and Harvest of the Month (HOM) programming that Kathy has nurtured during her time as the Garden Coordinator at Academy. As a veteran teacher, one of Kathy’s strong points is the creative ways in which she has brought FTS activities to life in the classroom, both indoors and outdoors. Planting potatoes with Kindergarteners in the spring, which students dig up in the fall to use in Stone Soup; introducing students to beet pancakes; teaching life skills through collaborative cooking activities; helping to plan a feast using all the parts of a plant. In each case, Kathy works with the teacher to design an activity that reinforces the learning objectives of the lesson. Under Kathy’s creative and flexible approach, teachers across all grade levels have become more invested in the program.
Additionally, with Kathy’s and FTS Coach Sheila Humphrey’s teamwork, the FTS team at Academy recently secured grants from Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets and Blue Cross Blue Shield. With support from these funds, and under Principal Kelly Dias’ leadership, the school has hired landscape designer Adam Hubbard to design Academy’s multi-use outdoor learning area, including raised beds, a pavilion, and shade trees. The team also plans to make a new map of the outdoor area, and its uses, to post in the teachers’ room. Kelsy might be stepping into big shoes, but she has the support of a committed team.
Later this month, the Farm to School program will hold a gathering at Winston Prouty Early Learning Center with Garden Coordinators from across our member schools and programs. The group will welcome Kelsy, as well as Oak Grove’s new Garden Coordinator, Katrina Moore (also featured in this issue). Garden Coordinators will be sharing their expertise and resources, making plans for their schools for the coming year, and probably eating something yummy. More on that in the next newsletter.