POTSDAM — Students and faculty from SUNY Potsdam’s Wagner Institute for Sustainability and Ecological Research recently traveled to Massena Central School to help install tower gardens and growing racks.
The visit, which was aimed at promoting sustainability, also doubled as an educational and enrichment activity, working to support the school’s dining services with organic produce.
WISER Center Coordinator Raymond Bowdish, along with student interns Annabel Ubeda and Gabby Mazzullo, collaborated with students from Massena’s PLEASE program, which serves children ages 5 to 15 with the highest level of need, to set up the school’s new indoor growing systems. The hands-on activity introduced students to the basics of plant science, including seed germination, nutrient testing and pH balance.
The partnership is supported by a $20,000 grant from the Alcoa Foundation, which supports WISER’s community-based programs aimed at increasing food resilience and biodiversity.
“These students are my hallway neighbors, and I have really gotten to know them over the past year,” Kristin Colarusso-Martin, the community schools director and food service director for Massena Central Schools, said. “They will be helping me with the grow systems by watering plants, measuring and testing nutrients, and harvesting the produce. They will also be encouraged to eat the produce through classroom salad days and on the cafeteria salad bar.
“Dr. Marcie Goodrow and I are looking at this as a way to help these kiddos develop life skills, as well as introduce some hands-on science and nutrition.”
During the visit, the WISER team showed students how to plant and germinate seeds, then worked together to assemble the tower gardens and grow racks in a team effort. The visit concluded with a shared pizza lunch and discussions aimed at reinforcing a sense of community and collaboration.
“It’s always rewarding to watch college students interact with younger students,” Bowdish said. “Both groups learn so much, and they create memories from supporting and cooperating around an important shared need — food! It doesn’t matter what age they are, they all enjoy growing their own food.”
More Information For more information about the Wagner Institute for Sustainability and Ecological Research at SUNY Potsdam, visit www.potsdam.edu/academics/AAS/biology/wiser.