Urban Tilth's Urban Agriculture Institute

This Fall 2012 we came back to Richmond High with renewed enthusiasm from the Summer Apprentice Program 2012. Where 12 students turned Summer Apprentices who incidentally were mostly girls, designed and built a full size chicken coop with extremely limited experience building. Very Inspiring!

As the cold begins to creep in we welcomed 33 new students into the Urban Agriculture and American Food Systems class. The new students are a new breed. Referred by their friends from last year's class these students are hard workers, enthusiastic about learning and growing their own food. As the year moves into full swing we would love to share a number of developments and accomplishments:

• We are excited to have the opportunity to add a NEW class to the Urban Agriculture Institute! This class is a parenting class for the very young mom's and soon to be mom's in the alternative high school program that is located just across the driveway from the garden.

• This year we are focusing more on nutrition education. Students are completing complex and introspective health and nutrition related research projects including keeping a daily food journal, research on the health affects of sugar sweetened beverages and diet related diseases, how fats, proteins and carbohydrates function in the body and learning more about the importance of micro-nutrients.

• The fall is also the time that we lay the foundation of by teaching beginning Botany including native and edible plant identification.
• As are produce and now nursery markets continue to thrive students and staff will be exploring other entrepreneurial ventures that can help support this program. Stay tuned for more offering such as our "Cooking is a Revolutionary Act" apron, Urban Teas, locally grown herbal teas, jams and more. And produced by the students, staff and apprentices of Urban Tilth and the Urban Agriculture Institute so that we can continue to grow our own.