Hard Work Paying Off
Students Working Together
Results That Work
Foundation of FJI
In 2020, as part of our program's pivot in response to COVID, we created an emergency food pantry at the Irwin House to address the escalating food insecurities of our students and their families. The pantry was so successful that in the Fall we piloted the Food Justice Initiative (FJI). The FIl broadens the work of the food pantry to include an organic community garden, horticultural training, and culinary skills curriculum aimed at providing Rebound students with equitable access to healthy food and empowering them with knowledge and skills to ensure greater long-term food security for them and their families.
Reversing Recidivism
- Enhance the food security of our formerly incarcerated students and their families
- Foster retention and increase graduation rates
- Strengthen the sense of self-efficacy among the students who work for the FJI
- Impart horticultural and culinary skills to support long-term and sustainable food sovereignty and lessen dependence on campus food infrastructure
- Deepen the sense of community care and belonging among our students
- Construct an outdoor, therapeutic, educational, and community-strengthening space that also lends itself to the physical distancing required by COVID public health orders
The Garden
The garden also contributes to the holistic healing and basic wellness needs of Project Rebound students by providing a therapeutic outdoor space, conducive to physical distancing, where students can socialize and serve the community while earning a wage and receiving hands-on experience with the harvest cycle-from seed to table.
