Progress 09/15/24 to 09/14/25
Outputs
Target Audience:Target Audience: The target audiences are Tribal and non-tribal youth, educators, and their families in public elementary and high schools on the Flathead Reservation. Additionally, partnerships are established with other Salish Kootenai College programs and staff, as well as with Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribal programs and initiatives, other community non-profits, and community members. Changes/Problems:This was a productive year, and we have, or will, achieve most all of the objectives and activities in the First No Cost Extension request. Our problems and needed changes primarily occurred with Objective 3, specifically regarding the Youth Internship goals. Discussions and planning had been underway with Tribal departments to help hire and assign interns in partnership assignments such as with Tribal Health's Nutrition Security Department and the Food Sovereignty Program. Due to unexpected funding cuts, most recruited partners were unable to commit to this effort at this time. Additionally, the School Garden Network teachers faced significant challenges this year in terms of capacity and other time demands. Whatever time they had to invest, they devoted to creating student garden clubs, classroom growing experiments, and generally participating with the students. They met and corresponded frequently with the Project Coordinator. The amount of effort they invested in the new clubs, as well as helping with individual student and family Square Foot gardening curricula and support, was significant. We had established a plan with the Tribal Summer Youth program to help the project hire additional students this summer who serve as formal Interns and contribute to achieving this goal, in conjunction with previous efforts. This plan was not able to be realized when the Summer Youth program unexpectedly lost its Project Director. We do have four CSKT Summer Youth Employment students working with us this summer, as well as two SKC Upward Bound students. Plans to capitalize upon all previous years' efforts with youth engagement and fully realize Objective 3 goals, are detailed in the Second No-Cost Extension. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Ongoing monthly or more frequent communications with SGN teachers regarding resources, including curriculum, grant opportunities, and other activities. Convened and provided four professional development sessions for teachers and SKCE staff regarding school garden resources and supporting classroom and school garden activities. Square foot gardening How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Project activities and outcomes were showcased at four community and college events through poster walks. Additionally, the project was featured at three national meetings hosted at Salish Kootenai College (SKC), where the Principal Investigator (PI), Project Coordinator, and SKCE staff highlighted key accomplishments. The PI and Project coordinator shared activities and results in all relevant local meetings, including the monthly FRESH Foods Network and quarterly newsletter. The Project Coordinator held numerous meetings not only with SGN teachers, but also with their administrators and fiscal staff to share project goals, SKCE support options, determine school-based needs, and finalize the School Implementation Plans. In April 2025, a major consultation led by the Tribal Education Department brought together all district administrators, Indian Education staff, and key partners, providing a valuable platform for the Project Coordinator to present and disseminate project information. In summary, this third year saw a substantial increase in visibility of project activities and outcomes, particularly with the School Garden Network teachers, students, and their families. The desire, and need, to secure reservation-wide recognition and publicity has been an agreed-upon priority and a request by the teachers. This summer, we are undertaking a series of project articles in the three area newspapers. We are developing a robust communications and public relations plan regarding project efforts and accomplishments. This will include further development of social media strategies, facilitated by SKCE and SGN teachers, with input from students and their families. Since the program's inception, we have created and utilized a SKC reservationschoolgarden@skc.edu listserv. Additionally, the SKC Extension YouTube channel will be utilized to share activities and accomplishments. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?REPORTING PERIOD JUNE 16 TO SEPTEMBER 14, 2025: The following activities will be implemented by the end of the next reporting period. Objective 1: Support School Garden Network Teachers, Students, and Families: Convene Fall School Garden Network teacher meeting and PD by September 10. Work with each school garden and classroom to complete its annual School Garden Implementation Plan by September 14. Include a new section on Sustainability and Transition. Work with SGN Teachers to implement a teacher-led communications strategy for sustainability. Finalize native plant signs and QR codes. Develop and implement a robust communications and PR plan regarding project efforts. This plan will include social media connections, facilitated by SKCE and SGN teachers, with students and families. Objective 2: Reservation-wide Garden Collaborative Complete the video interviews on reservation gardening programming and efforts by August 31. Collaborate with FRESH Foods Network and other partners to post and publicize the videotaped interviews of reservation garden stakeholders. These will be completed in the current First Year No Extension timelines. Objective 3: Youth Internship Program The goal of this objective is to develop a significant Gardening and Food Sovereignty/Security youth leadership program. Activities in this period will capitalize on previous efforts and work towards achieving this objective. Supervise and train four high school students participating in the Tribal Summer Youth Employment Program. Contact prior years' SYEP students. Convene a meeting of all current and prior year SYEP students to discuss what they learned and recommend for continuing gardening and food security learning opportunities and information for other students. Work with the Summer Square Foot Garden students and parents to also solicit their learnings and recommendations for sharing and training other students going forward. Convene a meeting of the school, tribal, and other partner advisory members to discuss a plan moving forward. Compile communications and promotional materials featuring youth interns, including photos, quotes, and video highlights, to share with partners and tribal leadership.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
During the third project year, SKCE made substantial progress toward achieving the activities and outcomes identified in the First No-Cost Extension. Most activities are completed or nearing completion. Objective 1: Support School Garden Network Teachers, Students, and Families Collaboration with teachers, administrators, students, families, and key partners has been a significant success, particularly in terms of the sustainability of the School Garden Network (SGN). The SGN is now transitioning toward teacher and school-led ownership and long-term sustainability. We have supported the continued development of reservation school gardens with investments in garden boxes, plants, supplies, soil, and assistance with securing other supporting funding and resources. A key milestone was the transformation of the Ronan Middle School garden, which led to a 7th-grade teacher transferring to the new Charter School to focus exclusively on gardening and agricultural education. SKCE's visible and sustained support is recognized by school administrators, teachers, parents, and the broader educational community. As a result of this year's efforts, student engagement in gardening programs increased significantly. Key contributing factors included: SKCE's partnerships with classroom teachers and support of in-class growing activities. Establishment of three student-led Garden Clubs that met regularly. Expansion of school garden infrastructure through additional square foot garden boxes. Increased programming tailored to at-home student gardens, encouraging family involvement. The following activities have been implemented: Developed individualized Annual SKCE Support and Implementation Plans for each school and classroom led by School Garden Network (SGN) teachers. Supported school gardens with seeds, starts, soil, square foot boxes, and supplies. An additional 14 boxes were delivered to school gardens. Delivered six new home garden boxes in spring/summer 2025--adding to 30+ from previous years--and provided parent-student instruction in the Square Foot Garden method. SKCE provided over 500 coconut husk pots, soil, and seeds for primarily elementary and middle school students distributed throughout all six school districts. Teachers integrated this activity into their curricula as the students grew vegetables or flowers, which they then took home to their families, and planted in their own square foot garden boxes or in the school gardens. Hosted four professional development sessions for SGN teachers with all school districts participating, including training on available resources, planning strategies, and sustainability. One teacher launched a dedicated SGN newsletter. Shared regular grant and resource updates from national organizations including KidsGardening, the School Garden Support Organization (SGSO), LifeLab, No Kid Hungry, and FoodCorps. Partnered with Tribal Forestry to coordinate native plant orders for each school; SKCE staff managed ordering, sorting, and delivery logistics. Advanced the Native Plant Sign initiative, working with a tribal-owned sign company to design QR-coded signs featuring Salish/Kootenai language recordings and plant uses. Helped develop a national Professional Learning Community focused on Indigenous-serving school gardens; facilitated presentations by CSKT staff, Extension, FRTEP, and local cultural educators. Supported SGN teachers to participate in the national Virtual Junior Master Gardener training and an on-site Master Gardener training. Objective 2: Develop, Convene and Implement a Reservation-wide Garden Collaborative Since the project's inception in June 2022, several new gardening programs, initiatives, and collaborations have emerged. As a result, the original plan for SKC Extension to serve as the lead convener is no longer necessary. Many of these new efforts were initially organized through an Indian Health Service project that ultimately led to the formation of the FRESH Foods Network (Flathead Reservation Eating Sustainable Healthy Foods). SKCE has been a key player in this evolution. We have participated in all the discussions and ongoing planning. Although leadership roles have shifted, a clear need remains for foundational coordination and the sharing of information among gardening and food/nutrition security stakeholders. To support this effort, SKCE has scheduled video interviews for early August with each agency and program partner on their gardening and food security goals and efforts. Activities: Actively participated as a core partner in the Reservation FRESH Foods Network, attending monthly meetings, contributing to planning efforts, coordinating events, and submitting articles on grant activities and outcomes for publication in the FRESH Foods newsletter. Finalized planning and initiated scheduling of video-recorded interviews with key gardening and food security stakeholders, including agencies, programs, and community leaders. These videos will be publicly shared on the SKC Extension website and through partner platforms to build a foundational repository of local gardening and food programming efforts and promote community-wide awareness. Objective 3: Develop/Implement Tribal Youth Garden-Food Security Internship Program. As noted in last year's progress report, foundational work for this objective was established during Years 1 and 2. Consultations and conversations with key agency partners, school counselors, and teachers, as well as the SKC Education Department and related CSKT Tribal leaders and departments continued in 2024-25. Broad support remains strong for the program's goals and activities. However, capacity limitations among school and tribal staff constrained the ability to convene a formal planning committee during the school year. Current year activities furthered the groundwork necessary to formalize this internship program. A Second No-Cost Extension is requested to fully realize this objective (see attached request). Through utilizing the Tribal Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP), we have developed a cohort of interested students ready to take on leadership roles. SKCE recruited and supervised two Tribal Summer Youth Employees (high school students) in both 2023 and 2024. These four students are the initial cohort of future Tribal Youth Garden & Food Security Intern leaders who will be joined by summer 2025 SYEP youth interning at SKCE. Parallel programming with the new student garden clubs and participating teachers has further advanced the development and readiness to operationalize the internship program as conceptualized. Activities: Recruited four Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Summer Youth students to work with the Project Coordinator and other SKCE staff on gardening and food security for six weeks in summer 2025. Supported the creation and implementation of three School Garden Clubs with 50+ students meeting regularly. This has helped identify students throughout the reservation who have an interest and passion for gardening and food security issues. Created the SKCE Square Foot Garden Summer project. The project coordinator and staff have begun working with the students who have received 4 x 4 garden boxes to date. Plants, soil, seeds, and even deer fences have been provided. Students post pictures and updates twice a week on a Facebook page, Instagram, or via email. Twenty students are actively participating in the Square Foot Garden program.
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Progress 09/15/23 to 09/14/24
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences are Tribal and non-tribal youth and educators on the Flathead Reservation and their families. Additionally, partnerships with other Salish Kootenai College programs and staff, Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribal programs and initiatives, other community non-profits, and community members generally. Changes/Problems:Year 2 was actually a very productive year in progress towards achieving the goals and activities of the project. This SE project is making long-term and sustainable progress. The challenges we faced this year were in part due to the nature of creating sustainable change in moving systems. The need for the No Cost Extension was actually generally due to due progress, not problems. However, the issue of staffing shortages definitely played a factor including losing a key staff person and difficulty in hiring a Garden Operations Manager. In other cases, we were subject to results of our own project success including the awareness of the project, and interest, and expansion of schools, students and families, and community programs as a whole. Changes for this No Cost Continuation year are all positive, including the development of the School Garden Network Teacher Leadership Team to beginning assuming some long-term responsibility for the network communications and leadership. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Ongoing communications with SGN teachers regarding resources including curriculum and other activities. This year the project invested significant funds in School Garden Network teacher professional development. Two core SGN teachers, one from Ronan Middle School, and one from Polson Middle School, attended the National Science Teacher Association (NSTA) conference in Kansas City. They brought back excellent ideas and sample lessons to share with their colleagues. Another teacher attended the national School Garden Support Organization (SGSO) Summit in San Diego. The excitement and plethora of resources she brought back were impressive. Convened a major SKCE NIFA School Garden Teacher PD and Project Planning Session in March 2024. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Project efforts and results were disseminated at three main events and poster walks at Earth Day Celebration, Climate Change, and Columbia Basin and Missouri Basin Drought Workshop. The PI and Project coordinator shared activities and results in all relevant meetings. The Project Coordinator scheduled many meetings not only with SGN teachers, but also with their administrators and fiscal staff to share project goals and school-based needs to implement activities such as approval to plant native shrubs. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?SKCE received the first No Cost Extension for this SE project. With a solid foundation of activities in Years 1 and 2, and with established partnerships, networks, resources, and knowledge gained, we anticipate a strong finish to the three project objectives:Objective 1: Support School Garden Network Teachers, Students and Families: Each school garden and classroom is completing its annual NIFA School Garden Action Plan and Request due November 15. Work with SGN Teachers to implement a teacher-led communications strategy. Work with schools to create school-based Student Garden Clubs, and subsequently facilitate inter-school and student communication and activities. Design, with school and student participation, and CSKT Culture Committees and Elders, native plant signs and QR codes. Support further PD development by this project, with SGN input and assistance. Implement a master plan for working with all students and families, and their teacher regarding garden boxes. Develop a robust communications and PR plan regarding project efforts. This plan will include social media connections, facilitated by SKCE and SGN teachers, with students and families Objective 2: Reservation-wide Garden Collaborative In light of partnership developments, SKCE will consult as to how to best support the new reservation FRESH Foods Network. The plan at present is to develop a video interview content and process to achieve the intent of this objective. The current intention is for each program, initiative, staff, and key community member will be interviewed and videotaped. Objective 3: Youth Leadership The goal of this objective is to develop a significant Gardening and Food Sovereignty/Security youth leadership program based in all reservation schools. The dialogues and evolving college, Tribal, school, and community efforts have now coalesced into a foundation in which to position this objective and activities. SKCE is convening a formal planning group as described in the original application. Meetings and conversations have been ongoing through Years 1 and 2 which will result in achievement of this objective this year.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: Support School Garden Network Teachers, Students, and Families This second year saw deepened collaborations with the school garden teachers and their administrators and with students and families both in and outside the classroom. The School Garden Network became more developed with the teachers taking more leadership of the Network itself. The following activities were implemented: Continued to support school gardens with seeds, starts, soil, square foot boxes, and supplies. An additional 10 boxes were delivered to teachers and the school gardens. In fall 2023, SKCE staff assisted each school to put their garden boxes "to bed" for the winter. In spring and early summer 2024, an additional 14 boxes were delivered to student homes. Before this in May, SKCE held a parent/student meal and training session planned jointly with the SGNH teachers before delivery of their boxes, seeds, and plant starts. SKCE staff completed the Square Foot Gardening course. Negotiations were completed with the national foundation to offer free course subscriptions to 25 students and families. Two Tribal Summer Youth high school employees were recruited to work eight weeks in summer 2024 in the SKCE garden overall, as well as to plant and care for four Square Foot Garden boxes. (Note: these students will be helpful in helping achieve Objective 3). Working with School Garden Teachers at all six participating schools, SKCE provided over 500 3" coconut husk pots, soil, and seeds for primarily elementary and middle school students. Teachers integrated this project into their curricula as the students grew vegetables or flowers which they then took home to their families. (See attachment). Significant SKCE staff time with equipment was invested in helping the Polson School Garden erect its greenhouse. SKCE provided plant starts and seeds to all school gardens as requested. In March SKCE convened a formal School Garden Network meeting and training. All school districts were represented. Teachers worked with SKCE to review resources, identify activities, communication strategies, etc. The Project Coordinator and other SKCE staff worked closely with Tribal Forestry to obtain native plants and shrubs for each school. The Native Plant Sign initiative continued forward with a plan on designs initiated with a Tribal Preference sign company. A task force has been convened with SGN teachers and other partners to see this project accomplished in 2024-25. A QR code on the signs will link to a recording of language speakers pronouncing the plants and speaking to their traditional purpose(s). Ongoing resources and education regarding school garden efforts continued to be regularly shared with the SGN teachers and others from national sources such as KidsGardening, The School Garden Support Network, LifeLab, No Kid Hungry, FoodCorps, the Whole Food Foundation, and many others including SKC Extension staff and partners such as FRTEP, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Food Sovereignty program and others. Objective 2: Develop, Convene and Implement a Reservation-wide Garden Collaborative Last year's Annual Progress Report shared that several new programs, initiatives, and collaborations had emerged since this grant was first conceptualized and funded. SKCE has been a key player in all of these. We have participated in all the discussions and ongoing plans. It appears now that SKCE and this NIFA SE project can identify how to contribute to the overall work in this area in a meaningful manner. We plan to visit with all key players and then, with interest and permission, recorded video interviews with each program and key person in reservation gardening and food/nutrition security. Objective 3: Develop/Implement Tribal Youth Garden-Food Security Internship Program. As highlighted in last year's progress report, the groundwork for implementation of this objective was laid in Year 1. Consultations and conversations with key partners, school counselors, and teachers, as well as the SKC Education Department, were held regarding this objective. There was universal support and agreement for the planned goals and activities. SKCE did recruit, host and supervise two Tribal Summer Youth Employees in summer 2023 and again in summer 2024 in the SKCE garden in order to gain more direct experience with high school youth in this area. Consultations and planning to achieve this objective in 2024-25 were continued.
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Progress 09/15/22 to 09/14/23
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience are Tribal and non-tribal youth on the Flathead Reservation, parents, and area teachers from the public schools. Changes/Problems:No major changes needed. There are some modifications possible as mentioned in Objectives 2 and 3 in terms of SKCE alone convening new separate advisory boards. Challenges that we encounter include the need for technical assistance to these scattered sites at seven schools with ten school garden sites and the many individual student homes. This involves logistical challenges given limitations such as SKCE vehicles, equipment and manpower. We encountered issues related to the training, use, and distribution of garden chemicals when students and parents encountered garden pests. Use of organically accepted chemicals such as BTE have training requirements. We need to look at organic solutions. The garden boxes are small so it makes distribution of appropriate amount of seeds, fertilizers, and chemicals to avoid waste and unnecessary expense is a logistical problem to over come. The demand for classroom presentations is growing as we increase the interest and involvement by teachers and schools. We are working to identify online resources to supplement what SKCE and partners can provide. We will explore recruiting experienced volunteers from the community to get engaged with their local schools. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Teachers received information on school gardening, curriculum and resources. At the end of Year 1 we recruited and made preparations for two School Garden Network teachers to attend the October 2023 National Science Teachers Association conference in Kansas City. They made the commitment to attend with the goal being to bring back information to share related to school garden curriculum and concepts. Through the SGN, teachers have shared their activities, lessons, accomplishments and resources. Also, a meeting was held by the Project Coordinator with the Montana Office of Public Instruction staff. The purpose was to plan a professional development workshop in collaboration with SKCE and the SKC Education Department for SGN teachers and partners. Additionally, the national School Garden Support Network Organization (SGSN) has agreed to deliver a special webinar training for SGN teachers and partners. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Project efforts and results were shared at two SKC and CSKT Climate Change poster sessions. Teachers have been sharing information with their students, parents, and administrators. The Garden Box project with the students and their families resulted in significant dissemination to even the broader community. The PI and the Coordinator have been actively participating in related meetings and efforts on an ongoing basis where they share grant goals, objectives and activities. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1: Continue support for School Garden Teacher Network and classrooms including increased classroom curricula and presentations including cultural presenters. Present formal professional development sessions for teachers with SKC Education and Montana Office of Public Instruction. Capture training materials and resources for teachers on SKCE website and in a resource compendium. Complete signage project for native plants. Also, complete development of a YouTube Channel for this part of the project to deliver training to students and families and to publicize the project to the community. Explore and develop additional social media tools. Objective 2: Actively develop membership in, and use of, the SKCE reservation-garden listserv. Complete a comprehensive survey of all gardening programs, initiatives, and individuals on the reservation. Determine the appropriate body to convene and oversee a coordinated reservation-wide garden collaborative. Help convene this body to achieve a joint plan as directed. Objective 3: Complete a concise but detailed overview and proposed work plan for this initiative. Present it to, and then work with, the collaborative governing group identified in Objective 2, to meet with school and tribal officials, recruit and select students, design the program curriculum, convene student meetings, and subsequently hire and supervise summer student interns.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Objective 1: Support School Garden Network Teachers, Students, and Families Year 1 saw ongoing planning contacts with the seven Flathead Reservation school districts and their ten School Garden Network (SGN) Teacher Leaders. The SKC Extension Department originally assisted in the creation of this community of educators passionate about school gardening, and is now the sole convener of the SGN. The visibility and financial security provided by this Special Emphasis grant has greatly enhanced and solidified the School Garden Network. It has increased the numbers of students and families who are impacted (300+ this year). This first year saw main foci on working with the teachers to determine their specific wants and needs for support in line with the funded grant activities. This resulted in: 1) an additional 15 garden boxes to individual student homes. Plant starts, seeds, soil and weed block accompanied the boxes with SKCE staff assisting students with planting via a design modeled after the larger Garden for Life experiment, 2) twelve additional garden boxes and supplies for the school gardens, 3) supplies for in-school growing experiments to accompany classroom curriculum, and 4) presentations were made to encourage and assist students to learn about gardening, food security and related classroom lessons. Ongoing resources and education regarding school garden efforts were regularly shared with the SGN Teacher Leaders from national sources such as KidsGardening, The School Garden Support Network, LifeLab, No Kid Hungry, FoodCorps, the Whole Food Foundation, and many others including SKC Extension staff and partners such as FRTEP, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Food Sovereignty program and others. A significant accomplishment was furthering the relationship SKC Extension has established between the Tribal Forestry Department and the individual SGN teachers. Communications and on-site consultations were facilitated between the CSKT Forestry Biologist/Plant Sales Manager with SGN teachers and administrators. This resulted in placing native plants in school gardens and also visible school entrances across the reservation. Planning conversations were begun between CSKT Forestry, the two tribal culture committees, SKC Digital Technology Department, the SKC Maker Lab, and SKCE to design permanent native plant signs to accompany all plants at school sites. The signs will have common, scientific and both tribal language names. Objective 2: Develop, Convene and Implement a Reservation-wide Garden Collaborative This year saw a major growth in programs and efforts related to gardens and gardening throughout the reservation. This included the partnership between SKC Extension and the Garden for Life project which developed eight community gardens with weekly training sessions for community members across the reservation. Also, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes expanded their Food Sovereignty program with five new employees and related efforts. FRTEP added a new position in partnership with the CSKT Health Department that included employee and community garden projects. The Boys and Girls Club saw a change in the key staff member overseeing BGC gardening projects. The SKCE Director attends the Community Health Improvement Plan Steering Committee, a collaborative planning group regarding health, food security, gardening community and school outreach and involvement and other topics. This group meets monthly and is comprised of Tribal Health, the CSKT Food Sovereignty Team, Salish Kootenai College Community Health Program, a community organizer, FRTEP, SKC Extension, and community members. We plan to recruit a SGN teacher to join this group, 2) prepare a presentation on this project's goals and status to present to the group, and 3) discuss the concept of a Reservation wide garden collaborative open to all garden work ongoing. The project did work with SKC IT to develop a Salish Kootenai College Extension reservation-gardening listserv which will be expanded in membership and utilization in Year 2. Also, a template was developed and distributed to all pertinent programs and individuals involved in gardening throughout the reservation. It gathers information on the organization, vision and mission, goals, funding, activities, audience(s), etc. This is the first step in bringing together a shared knowledge and perhaps collaborative planning across the reservation. Objective 3: Develop/Implement Tribal Youth Garden-Food Security Internship Program : The groundwork for full implementation of this objective was laid in Year 1. Consultations and conversations with key partners, school counselors, and teachers, as well as the SKC Education Department were held regarding this objective. There was universal support and agreement for the planned goals and activities. It is being considered to use the Tribal Food Sovereignty group or board that emerges for Objective #2, as the primary planning and oversight board for this important new Youth Internship. There would be a couple additions such as a school counselor and administrator. SKCE did recruit, host and supervise two Tribal Summer Youth Employees in summer 2023 in the SKCE garden in order to gain more direct experience with high school youth interns. It was a great success with good young people working side-by-side with SKCE garden professionals.
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