As we wrap up the school year at each site, we do a few things:

We have celebrations where students learn to fillet fish, do a job interview, and eat great food.

We reflect on the year and what we have all (YEA, students, and partner schools) accomplished.

At Unity, for instance, students have come a long way. They are now leading lessons for one another on proper maintenance of the aquaponics system, where they teach how to harvest, prune, test levels, and use the tracking sheet. They are excited about selling their produce, and creating invoices and survey cards to track product quality. They are excited about learning to cook. We’ve come a long way since the fall.

At the School of Environmental Studies, we built a living wall and had another successful year in the classroom.

At Humboldt and Metro Heights, we built 2 new systems!

We find ourselves thinking about what can be done in a school year — and what more we can do moving forward. Already we plan to work with students and teachers at Southside Family Charter School, our neighbors in South Minneapolis and our first K-8.

Finally, like all other food producers, we get excited about summer. This year’s internship is shaping up to be a good one — we’ve got all sorts of projects lined up, including a lab re-build with DIY equipment. There’s still time to apply — the deadline is June 1st. Contact us to schedule an interview!