THE REC School Gardens Network

is designed to bring the educational, nutritional, and social benefits of gardening to schools and youth education centers. It began in March 2010 and was sponsored by the Worcester Food & Active Living Policy Council’s Hunger-Free & Healthy project.

During the project’s first year we partnered with 6 Worcester Public schools to create outdoor classrooms at each site. Since 2010, we have expanded the network to include 34 partner sites.

Schools in the Network

farm to early childhood project

The School Garden's Farm to Early Childhood Project provides curriculum, garden support, and enrichment activities, including school based farmers markets and farm field trips, for pre-school partners in Worcester, including all four Head Starts.

This exciting initiative began taking root in January of 2022, thanks to a generous investment from United Way of Central Massachusetts Community Challenge grant program.

Read this Resource

Interested in joining the school gardens network?

Membership Benefits Include:

Free seeds, seedlings, and support with seed starting in the classroom
Free soil testing and analysis as needed and compost delivery each spring
Access to educational in classroom and garden-based programming
Grant writing support and access to resources through network wide School Gardens grant opportunities and more!

If you want to start a learning garden initiative or volunteer with the school garden network email Eliza, REC School Gardens Coordinator, at eliza@recworcester.org