Coordinating Experiential Learning for Volunteers at the Organic Farm Medicinal Herb Garden
Role description:
Develop, coordinate, and manage opportunities for experiential learning through volunteer work parties at the farm including the Medicinal Herb Garden in the central farm area. This might be extended to other campus community gardens as desired. Activities should be developed in attention to building on historical practices and developing current initiatives in coordination with the farm manager, POF faculty, Greener Foundation and First Year Experience staff, and the Food and Ag Path of Study. Documentation of their coordination efforts is essential through either WordPress or other manner for future coordinators.
More broadly, the purpose of this position is to regenerate co-curricular opportunities that are coordinated by students for students for just and sustainable food systems in collaboration with the Food and Ag Path of Study after multiple challenges in the last two years. TESC requires the student to be enrolled in 4-6 credits of any program or ILC in order to be able to take a student position.
My Personal ILC
An Exploration in Herb Garden Management and Usage
Student or Group Info
Name(s): Zoe DeWitt
Term: Spring 2022
Credits: 4 credits
Title of ILC or Group Project: An Exploration in Herb Garden Management and Usage – Spring
Sponsor
Name: Sarah Williams Organization: The Evergreen State College
Program of Project Description
Narrative: In this in-program project titled An Exploration in Herb Garden Management and Usage, the student will learn about the maintenance and usage of herbal plants through hands-on leadership in the Evergreen herb garden, along with individual research and participation in the Home Herbalism Series by Wintergreen Botanicals. The student will also learn about using a distillery system to produce essential oils, and will present their findings to the Practice of Organic Farming program and Taste: What We Hunger For program in the form of a distilling workshop. Work will be documented on a WordPress website where weekly posts of progress in the herb garden, as well as research and photos, will be posted. Texts that will be studied include: The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer by Jeff and Melanie Carpenter.
| Learning objective | Activity | Deliverable |
| To learn about herb care and management in the context of the Evergreen herb garden | I will work with the farm manager each week to create plans for work within the herb garden, and I will take a leadership role in presenting and carrying out these plans during class on Mondays. | Weekly WordPress posts with write-ups of work plans/progress within the herb garden, along with write-ups of research done on herb care |
| To learn about herb harvesting and usage outside of the herb garden setting | I will participate in Wintergreen Botanicals Home Herbalist Series every other week, starting January 18th and ending May 24th. I will complete all homework assignments and participate in at-home remedy-making. | Bi-weekly WordPress posts with write-ups on my work and learning through the series and personal research |
| To learn about using a distilling system to make herbal essential oils | Working with another student, I will learn how to work the distillery system at the Organic Farm and will work towards distilling a cedar bark essential oil, which will then be presented as a workshop to the Practice of Organic Farming program and the Taste: What We Hunger For program. We will also compile a manual to leave for future use of the distillery system. | Weekly WordPress posts with write-ups on work and progress with distilling, a manual for future use of the distillery system |
| Participation in modules of the Taste: What We Hunger For program | I will participate in the Community Gardening, Tasting Labs, and Scholarly Ingredient portions of the Taste: What We Hunger For program | Weekly OneDrive submissions/Wordpress write-ups |
Evaluation of Work
- WordPress ePortfolio
- Final week ten presentation
- Narrative evaluations from field supervisor and/or subcontractor
- Narrative mid-quarter and final self-evaluations