Queens BP promotes student green thumbs with $11 mil
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Queens Borough President Donovan Richards announced nearly $11 million in funding for schools Tuesday.
Photo via Queens Borough President’s Office
By Rachel Vick
Richmond Hill may not currently have the best farming conditions, but that won’t stop a group of elementary school students from working on their green thumbs.
New funding sent to Chester Park Magnet School for Computer Science and Innovation by Queens Borough President Donovan Richards will go toward the creation of a new hydroponics lab, the public official said this week.
The funding announcement came as part of a larger announcement about approximately $11 million sent by the borough president to Queens schools throughout the borough on Tuesday.
“These kinds of facilities are critical educational tools for our children and I look forward to expanding our network of school hydroponic labs across the borough in the years to come,” Richards said from the Richmond Hill school on Tuesday. “The fact is that we need to intensify our efforts to improve the quality of our students’ education so they can properly learn, grow and thrive and that's exactly what we're doing in Queens.”
“We want to ensure that we're doing everything to resolve food insecurity because if you don't have food on your plate, it's hard to come to school and learn,” he added. “We're talking about education and civic engagement, as I know the hope is donating some of the food grown here to local food pantries as well, because that's what a well-rounded education looks like.”
The office has secured $10.8 million for 56 schools across the borough for the upcoming fiscal year, Richards said.
Jordan Vitt, the principal of the one of six schools set to receive $175,000 for new hydroponic systems, celebrated the investment to support the school’s efforts to promote innovative learning.
The technology allows plants to be grown without soil — ideal for New York City’s urban landscape — and reduces waste.
For the last six years, students at the school – led by science teacher Ricardo Nieves – have been learning about the plant-growing technology and about greenery in general through two small hydroponic systems he built in a smaller room. The students have been able to bring home some of the fruits of their labor.
“The kids get very excited about growing plants and just the fact that they get to see the growth [and do] the growing themselves,” he said. “Part of this is also inspiring other people, so the same way that I want to inspire the kids to grow and be inventors, I also want to inspire other teachers around to do things like this in their own rooms.”
Other funding for science programs includes $500,000 for Bayside High School and $250,000 for a state-of-the-art combined science and hydroponics lab at PS 111 in Long Island City.
A combined $2.3 million for computers, iPads and other technology will be distributed across 26 schools.
A combined $1.2 million has been earmarked for auditorium upgrades at Maspeth High School, P.S. 171 in Ridgewood, M.S. 72 in Rochdale and the World Journalism Preparatory School in Auburndale.
Additional highlights include $500,000 for an athletic field renovation at Veritas Academy at Flushing High School; $500,000 for P.S. 177 in Fresh Meadows to remodel a cafeteria to accommodate students with autism and other disabilities; $450,000 for playground improvements at P.S. 153 in Maspeth and P.S. 239 in Ridgewood; $350,000 for a library upgrade at The Eagle Academy for Young Men III in St. Albans; and $300,000 for a public address system at the Mathematics, Science Research and Technology Magnet School in Cambria Heights.
The funding announcement comes several months after the mayor and City Council passed the city’s budget, which included cuts to the Department of Education’s budget.
Since the budget’s passage, a number of parents, educators and students have lobbied the mayor and city lawmakers to restore the budget to its 2022 numbers.
A lawsuit filed against the city over the schools budget is ongoing.
