What happens when a school garden connects to the classroom, the cafeteria, and the whole community?
We’re thrilled to share that KidsGardening has received a USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant to help more schools find out. Over the next two years, Growing Food, Growing Futures will help students lead the work of growing, tasting, and sharing fresh food at school.
KidsGardening already supports educators in every state. This grant lets us go deeper. We’re partnering with Pilot Light, a leader in nutrition education, and with child nutrition experts at Houston Independent School District and River Valley School District in Ohio. Together we will:
- Award $5,000 grants to 54 school garden programs: one in every state, plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam
- Bring grantees together in a learning cohort, with training, individualized support, and peer learning for up to 150 educators
- Create a free national guide to project-based learning that links gardens, classrooms, cafeterias, and communities
- Help schools bring garden-grown and local foods into taste tests, salad bars, and harvest celebrations
- Share what we learn with about 150,000 educators, families, and partners nationwide
Through this work, kids will see what they can grow when we give them the tools and trust to lead.
This grant builds on years of USDA-supported work. Our 2021 Farm to School grant created the Seeds of Success toolkit and an edible school garden community of practice. A USDA Turnkey Agricultural Education grant funded a free Celebrating Cultural Inclusion in the School Garden course and curriculum that has reached more than 500 schools. Most recently, we worked with ReTreeUS to create the School Orchard Lesson Guide.
Applications open in early 2027, and grantees will be announced in Spring. Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know.
