Heritage High School is joining Ellis Jaxon Farms (a social enterprise) and Americans For Schools (a nonprofit organization) to continue to communicate the message, “A Child Can Raise a Village.” Heritage High School students will begin their aeroponic farm by planting the tower gardens at 2 p.m. Monday, March 14, 2016. The program is designed to incorporate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) into farming education.
Superintendent Denia Reese said, “I appreciate that Ellis Jaxon Farms reached out to the school system to form this partnership. I can’t think of a better connection with the community than this opportunity for students to participate in educational activities related to agriculture, nutrition, community service, and conservation.”
The farms also support the guidelines established in the Healthy and Hungry Free Kids Act of 2010, an initiative established by the First Lady and implemented by the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service. Ellis Jaxon Farms, in partnership with Americans For Schools, is going “above and beyond” with its School to Farm initiative by bringing the farm into local schools. With the primary objectives of solving child hunger and child malnutrition, Ellis Jaxon Farms began its partnership with Americans For Schools by launching the “Children Raising the Village Campaign” in 2014 under a program titled: Learn, Eat, Give & Sustain (LEGS).
Amin Ali, president of the Georgia North Chapter of Ellis Jaxon Farms, says “As a society, the time has come that all members of our society must integrate their efforts to no longer simply try to do the right things, but do the right things right. That is something of which we are not doing enough.”
Kim Carlock, executive director of Ellis Jaxon Farms, said, “I am extremely grateful and excited to walk this mission with Ellis Jaxon Farms. In America we have over 15 million children living in food-deprived homes. In my eyes that is unacceptable. I am looking forward to putting these aeroponic tower gardens in all schools. Children are our future and we must take that seriously.”
Erin Crane, chairwoman of the Georgia North Chapter of Ellis Jaxon Farms, said, “We believe Childhood Hunger is a problem with a simple solution. We hope to bring food to those who ordinarily could not get it themselves through traditional means. A child doesn’t have the ability to go to the grocery and buy whatever produce they want. Connecting farms to schools to get quality food to our children needs to be a priority.”