About the Project
Anchorage Park Foundation’s “Planning Grant for Developing a Youth Engagement Outdoors Program”
The Anchorage Park Foundation (APF) collaborated with partners to plan a new summer program for middle school students to gain strong connections to service learning, outdoor recreation, healthy food, and work experience. The planned program would recruit underserved youth ages 14 and 15 years old to participate in a cohort engaged in service learning activities that also benefit the community. Activities include those related to school gardens, invasive species, or tree planting. Through these projects, teens would learn about food forests, soils, gardening, permaculture, healthy foods, tree planting, civic engagement, team building, and outdoor recreation.
The project’s proposed scope of work focused on developing this comprehensive new program. Planning components included completing a needs assessment, developing program components in detail, convening partners, and generating internal program components. Key aspects of the program were developed, such as the curriculum, safety protocols, partnership agreements, recruitment strategies, marketing materials, program implementation plan, program evaluation tools, and a funding plan.
Alaska’s proposed project was informed by a wide spectrum of community partners and supported by data from the State of Alaska’s Healthy and Equitable Communities Strategic Plan. The school district and APF recognized the need for a summer program for at-risk teenagers. The School Garden Network and 4-H recognized a need for the maintenance of school gardens. Hence, outdoor educators are key partners for the summer program for this new group of teenagers.