RRA Receives Education Grants

REEVES-REED ARBORETUM
Receives Grants for Education
Totaling $20,000

Summit, NJ The mission of Reeves-Reed Arboretum is to engage, educate, and enrich the lives of our constituents to become better stewards of nature and the planet. With an ever increasing visitorship – now over 100,000 annually – the Arboretum acknowledges and embraces its responsibility to make the grounds safe and welcoming to visitors of all abilities, and to fully embody the goals of our mission.

Horticulture and environmental education are at the core of the Arboretum's mission. Longstanding partner, Novartis, has awarded Reeves-Reed Arboretum a grant of $10,000 in their continued support of RRA's award-winning program, Hands-to-Nature. Viewed as one of the most successful and innovative programs in the State, Hands-to-Nature provides a full day hands-on, nature-rich experience to kids from Newark, Plainfield, Elizabeth and Bayonne. RRA's environmental educators carefully prepare up-to-date curriculum, aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards, and work directly with each classroom instructor in preparation for the trip to the Arboretum. After their visit, follow up materials and opportunities are provided for each participating school.

The Arboretum's Square Foot Gardening Program is on a mission to change the world and make a difference locally. With this unique and simple system, you don't need tools or fertilizer. And once your garden is built, no weeds! Originally developed to teach good nutrition and healthy eating within the limited opportunities offered in urban landscapes, Reeves-Reed Arboretum's educators, led by Sq. Ft. Garden Specialist, Althea Llewellyn, bring this program to schools and community groups around the state. Thanks to recent grants from The Junior League of Summit, Inc. ($3,000) and the Summit Area Public Foundation ($7,000), the Arboretum can build upon this program, and implement curriculum with local participating schools. "The enthusiastic response we get from our partners, such as the principal and teachers at the Franklin Elementary School, demonstrate that they recognize the important role Reeves-Reed Arboretum plays in educating our community about the environment, nutrition and sustainability," comment Llewellyn.

For more information about the programs, events, workshops, performances and classes at Reeves-Reed Arboretum, or learn more about Hands-to-Nature or Square Foot Gardening, please visit our website at www.reeves-reedarboretum.org or call 908-273-8787 x 1010.

Celebrating over 40 years as a historic public garden and education resource, Reeves-Reed Arboretum
engages, educates and enriches the public through horticulture and environmental education, and the care and utilization of the gardens and estate. Open 7 days a week, the Arboretum is listed on both the National and New Jersey State Historic Registers. Funding for RRA has been made possible in part by the NJ Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State, through a grant administered by the Union County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs, Dept. of Parks & Community Renewal.

Reeves-Reed Arboretum - a place to grow ... for everyone!