PORTSMOUTH – Students will now have a safe outdoor space to study science after sun shading was installed at the Portsmouth AgInnovation Farm’s outdoor classroom with funding from BankNewport.
“We are thrilled to support the Portsmouth AgInnovation Farm’s mission to foster STEAM [science, technology, engineering, arts and math] education through hands-on learning,” Jack Murphy, CEO and president of BankNewport, said in a statement. “At BankNewport, we believe in investing in our community’s future, and this sun shading helps provide a safe and comfortable space for students to turn their classroom ideas into a thriving reality on the farm.”
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The idea for the farm came from Margie Brennan, a science coach in the Portsmouth School Department, after she started an after-school club in 2020 teaching about plants, pollination, soil health and the watershed, according to a news release. As the club grew, Brennan worked with the Eastern Rhode Island Conservation District to access a 6-acre plot of land at Cloverbud Ranch and develop the farm with the help of her students.
In addition to the outdoor classroom, the farm features a pollinator path open to the public, a high tunnel for starting seeds, community gardens, chickens and bunnies cared for by the students, a microclover pilot program, and produce grown on the farm is donated to local food banks, according to the release.
The sun shading allows programming to take place in the outdoor classroom throughout the year.
“This sunshade transforms our program availability by providing a safe space out of the sun for the kids to gather and learn – which has been critical during this hot 2023 summer season,” Brennan said in a statement. “The retractable design is also very clever and will make the shading resilient to wind and storms. Thank you so much to BankNewport for their support over the years, including helping us purchase a tractor in 2021!”
The amount of funding for the sun shading was not disclosed.
For questions, contact Sara Churgin at schurgin.ericd@gmail.com or. 401-225-6033. To learn more about the farm, visit easternriconservation.org/aginnovation-farm.
