Extension & Outreach

They were sixth graders when they planted the garden and in the 7th grade when they harvested it and donated the bulk of the produce to the Salvation Army food basket program. The 2007 garden at NMSU’s Agricultural Science Center (ASC) at Las Vegas Memorial Middle School yielded more than fresh vegetables: the outcome included knowledge about food production, choosing healthy snacks and charitable giving.

"We established the garden through a service learning grant from the New Mexico Public Education Department with the idea of getting students involved in a service project in their community," said Peter Skelton, NMSU assistant professor assigned to the ASC. "Since Las Vegas is an underserved community with an average income $10,000 below the state’s, I thought it would be a good idea for our students to grow produce and then give it to those in need."

The project kicked off last year, and some 100 pounds of peppers, green onions, cabbage, squash, cucumbers and sweet corn were picked by students and delivered to the Salvation Army to be distributed to 135 families in the Las Vegas area. Plans for this year call for students to plant an orchard along with plating row crops.

The center provides students involved in the Math, Engineering and Science Achievement program with hands-on learning opportunities that can be integrated across the core curriculum.

Fifty-three students in health classes taught by April Ortiz picked carrots, radishes, broccoli and cauliflower.

"One of my goals is to teach about healthy snacks, so this was a great opportunity to have the students pick the vegetables, clean them and then get to eat them. It brought the health lesson alive," Ortiz said. "Also, Dr. Skelton came to the class and talked about how the vegetables are grown so they have an understanding and appreciation of how the food they purchase at the grocery store gets there."