Princeton Education Foundation Courtyard Garden

CREATE A LASTING LEGACY AT PRINCETON HIGH SCHOOL

Honor a current student, graduate, family member, or a staff member, by purchasing a brick to be installed in the new Princeton High School Courtyard.

This year, The Princeton Education Foundation received two teacher mini-grant applications, from teachers at Princeton High School who saw the need for a transformation of the courtyard spaces within the building to better serve the social and emotional needs of the students. PEF felt this was a great opportunity to better support the PHS community by expanding this to a larger grant, done in stages, which will allow for greater improvement of the three courtyards. Starting with the central courtyard, which all students have access to, PEF will fund the teachers to design, orchestrate and implement a transformative project over the next few years. Entitled ‘The natural wellness project’ teachers Bryan Hoffman, Keith Dewey, Paula Jakowlew, Bridget Schmidt, Cynthia Bregenzer, and Joseph Gargione will create a space where students can take a breath in nature, outside of the constraints of the corridors and classrooms. There will be plants, trees and flowers, art, seating, and meditative spaces. The project aims to give students the opportunity to step away, reflect on their studies and situations, reduce their stress levels and enhance their mind-body wellness.

The courtyards are the very definition of “flexible space.” Sometimes students, whom we must remember are still kids, learn how to better enter the world of work once they have better spaces to learn skills, relax in nature, and play. The project’s objective, or goal, is to provide additional academic and recreational space for student activities and clubs, counseling, and community/teacher/student events and performances. Students in Mr Gargione’s architecture classes have already begun to design the space and plans to begin the mural are already in full swing. There will be opportunities for students to gain community service credit for helping to implement the design. Later phases will see a cafe courtyard, and a coutyard that it is hoped the students in the school-to-work program can utilize.

Many thanks to Rich Holman of RS Land Design who has worked with our PHS teachers and students to create the design for the garden. Work will start work over the Summer of 2022 and we hope the PHS school community will be able to enjoy the garden in the Fall of 2022.