Highland Youth Garden

Highland Youth Garden grows minds, grows food and grows community in partnership with our Hilltop neighbors.

We offer a diverse, hands-on learning environment for children, giving them the space and guidance to grow their own food and explore nature. We work regularly with hundreds of students at Highland Elementary School, a nearby charter elementary school (the Educational Academy for Boys and Girls) and the Hilltop Early Learning Center. Twice-monthly field trips from these schools provide gardening, nutrition and ecology education and support curriculum standards in health, science, language arts and math. A total of 650 children go to school across the street from the garden and have regular access to our facility and programs, including free after school and summer programs. Our one-acre garden grows over 15,000 pounds of food annually, all of which is offered to Hilltop neighbors during our programs and free Garden Markets. We also build and support backyard gardens for families on the Hilltop, encouraging them to develop gardening skills at their own homes. We employ Westside teens throughout the year to learn gardening, community outreach and leadership skills, fostering the next generation of food justice and urban agriculture changemakers. A hub of community activity, Highland Youth Garden has no barrier fence and is welcoming to everyone 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.