Outdoor education is ‘vital sanctuary’ for SLO County students. Could it be cut?
Two outdoor education programs could be on the chopping block in one San Luis Obispo County school district — but parents, students and education leaders are rallying to try to save them.
A crowd of people showed up at an Atascadero school board meeting May 19 to advocate for outdoor education programs Learning Among the Oaks and One Cool Earth.
Zarah Wyly, a program manager at Learning Among the Oaks, told the board she received an email from administrator notifying her that the district would no longer support the program, which has provided nature education to Atascadero elementary schoolers for over 20 years.
The program started at Santa Margarita Elementary School in 2005, according to Wyly, and has since expanded into other schools in the district and other school districts in SLO County.
Wyly said the district funded less than 7% of the program’s costs this year, with the organization itself bringing around $60,000 in services to its schools and serving around 1,100 elementary school students.
“We’d really like to continue to do this for another 20 years,” she told the board.
The topic of outdoor education was not up for discussion on Tuesday night’s agenda, so no official decision was made.
Families advocate for outdoor education, school gardens
Kirk Nordby, a special education paraeducator, works one-on-one with his students during the school day.
The school garden, provided by SLO County outdoor education nonprofit One Cool Earth, provides a needed respite for special needs students throughout the day, he said — and taking it away would affect more than just the district’s budget.
“For my student, the classroom can sometimes feel overwhelming and the need for sensory breaks is frequent,” he said. “The One Cool Earth school garden is not just an outdoor science lab. It is a vital sanctuary.”
Nordby continued: “You’re taking away a crucial therapeutic refuge for students who rely on it for their emotional and academic well-being.”
Katharine Rondthaler Krieg, executive director of One Cool Earth, also spoke at the meeting. She said the district has partnered with her organization, which focuses on weekly outdoor garden education, since 2014.
Krieg recognized the difficulty administrators face when making cuts, but also highlighted that the funding the district provides to support the program is “highly leveraged.”
“More than half of the cost of our program is supplemented by One Cool Earth fundraising,” she said. “So, we’re receiving grants and donations to support our program, and we’ve brought in around $90,000 a year for the last 12 years to your school district.”
One woman read a statement to the board on behalf of an Atascadero student who said she relies on the garden for emotional regulation.
“Please don’t shut down the garden program,” the woman said on the student’s behalf. “I go there every day to regulate because I have a hard time at school. If you do cancel the garden, I will struggle with my behavior in every class. I need an outdoor space with plants, to calm down and feel safe and find courage to face the rest of my day.”
“It helps me be able to return to class,” she continued. “Going to the garden helps me to not hurt myself.”
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