E D U C A T I O N
S P O T L I G H T
The Fruits of Their Labor
Westminster Elementary garden program inspires and educates students outdoors PHOTO BY CHRIS MORTENSON
The Westminster Elementary garden program was started to enhance classroom curriculum in an outdoor setting while providing students with opportunities for nutritional and environmental awareness. (L to R: Pam Koslow, Regina Pereira, Deidre Samuels, Nancy Giffin, Nora Dvosin, Cande Friedman and Gale Jones). By Michele Robinson n recent years, school gardens have emerged as an integral part of academic enrichment programs. But in 2005 when Nora Dvosin and Nancy Giffin started their program at Westminster Elementary School in Venice, it was a cutting-edge idea. Likewise, 17 years later they continue to amaze onlookers by taking gardening to a whole new green level. “Gardening is a golden opportunity,” Dvosin said. “It’s a well-rounded educational experience with lots of enrichment.” In 2005, Dvosin and Giffin met at a 12-week Master Gardening Program offered by the UCLA Extension Program. Attending full-day classes every Saturday, students in the program learned about gardening, community gardens and school gardens. The class also encouraged them to start a garden and spread garden education to others. After completing the program, students earned certification. “We met on the last day of the Master Gardening Program,” Dvosin said. “I asked her if she wanted to start a garden at Westminster Elementary School. I lived across the street and saw a small parcel of unused land available on the south side of the schoolyard. She agreed.” Armed with their new gardening knowledge and fueled by the noticeable lack of green space in the school, these green thumb volunteers approached the then school principal, Betty Coleman. Together they created a program that was incorpo-
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rated into the school’s curriculum and remains to this present day. “Every teacher, every year is part of this program,” Dvosin said. “All the teachers are very excited to participate, the same with the principals. In fact, our current principal, Barry Cohen, was so supportive of the program that when the school became a full-magnet school that he added environmental studies to the math and technology focus. Now it’s known as Westminster Elementary Math & Technology/Environmental Studies Magnet.” “It was an easy decision to expand our magnet theme,” Cohen added. The program that Dvosin and Giffin started continues to flourish over the years. “The sea of asphalt has been turned into green space, colorful play space, a soccer field, running tracks and shade trees providing rest areas,” Dvosin said. The program began with a 60 by 80-foot edible garden. It has expanded into a half-acre garden which includes a reading garden, kindergarten garden, a large organic garden, and a meadow for children to play in and experience native plants. The “Wee WE Kinder Garden” is a 1,000 square-foot garden dedicated for the use of the kindergartners. “The WE Garden is such a significant part of the fabric of our school and has become such a beautiful and meaningful centerpiece,” Cohen said. “There are now four main areas,” Dvosin said. “The Reading Garden now has planters with succulents and native plants,
and a small amphitheater area where students can read and perform plays. There are 18 shade trees planted on the Abbot Kinney playing field. The Kindergarten area is flourishing with beautiful trees and plants.” The program has also a growing number of active volunteers. What started out with two people and a vision has grown into attracting other master gardeners and more helping hands. Today, master gardeners also include Cande Friedman and Bella McGowan, who runs the kindergarten garden; dedicated community volunteers include Deidre Samuels, Pam Koslow and this year’s parent volunteer, Regina Pereira. “Nora, Nancy, Cande, Deidre, Pam and all the WE Garden volunteers deserve all the credit in creating this beautiful oasis for our students and community,” Cohen said. Since a by-product of the garden is cooking, the local community also is involved. Chefs and local restaurant owners roll up their sleeves to make food with the students. Joe Miller, former owner of Joe’s Restaurant on Abbot Kinney in Venice, was one such person. His restaurant earned a Michelin star in 2007 and he could be found cooking with the fifth-graders on campus monthly. Gjelina chefs made blueberry jam with first-graders and had them churn cream into butter, which they all ate on Gjelina bread. Gjusta’s chef Travis Lett and baker Greg Blanc invited a fifth-grade class into
the restaurant to bake baguettes and to learn how fresh salmon was smoked by restaurant’s employees. Another more recent example of community involvement are the chefs from Great White Cafe and Restaurant, which is located on Pacific and Windward in Venice Beach. They are scheduled to have a planting and cooking day with first and second-graders in just a few weeks. “Our garden is a seed to table experience and getting food to the table means cooking a lot of food with our students,” Dvosin said. Originally, the garden used camping stoves, but it was old technology and unsafe. So in 2021 and 2022, they raised funds to install a solar-powered cooking station in the garden. Cohen offered funding to pay for half of the costs, becoming the first joint venture with the school’s support. “The solar power system was built and installed by an ex-parent, and even an ex-student, now in his first year of college, worked on the project,” Dvosin said. “Once created, we bought an induction stovetop that uses electricity from our solar power, and we’re chefs in the garden using the power of the sun.” Located on Abbot Kinney in Venice for the past 100 years, Westminster Elementary is a Title 1 school with 70% of the students coming from low-income families. With such a diverse population, (Continued on page 12)
MARCH 17, 2022 - EDUCATION SPOTLIGHT PAGE 7
