For the 2012-2013 school year Urban Sprouts will support school gardens at four San Francisco Unified School District middle and high schools partnering with over 700 youth and their families. Our Community Health and Nutrition Education programs will engage over 2,000 individuals through; our partnership with the Mission Community Market, community-based family cooking classes, and nutrition education classes.
• Behavior change: Garden-based education engages youth and families in growing food from seed to table, helping them to make real changes in their eating habits and physical activity.
• Meaningful Participation and Leadership: Giving youth and their parents opportunities for real leadership and build skills for community action strengthen program outcomes.
• Parent Involvement in Schools: Parents are involved directly in the school garden, maintaining their own garden plots to increase family access to healthy food, sharing knowledge with teachers and students, and reinforcing their children’s new learning at home.
• School-Community Partnerships: We build collaboration between schools, students, parents, and community volunteers to foster an environment at school, home, and in the community that supports youths’ goals of healthy eating and increased physical activity.
Urban Sprouts students and families are primarily from the Potrero Hill, Bayview/Hunters Point, Oceanview, Merced Heights, and Ingleside (OMI), Excelsior, and Visitacion Valley neighborhoods in San Francisco.
Of the students we partner with:
• 78.2% reside in low-income communities
• 95% are students of color
• 22% are English Language Learners
