Worcester State’s Urban Oasis
The Worcester State Teaching Garden cultivates skills, connection, and some lovely harvests.
Amidst the hustle and bustle of Chandler Street sits a small patch of greenery that is a local hub for education and community engagement. Established in 2011, the Worcester State Teaching Garden is a beloved space used by members of the university and its surrounding neighborhoods.
The Teaching Garden is run by the Urban Action Institute, a division of Worcester State’s Urban Studies Department that focuses on outreach and community action. The Urban Action Institute provides students with various opportunities for field-based learning, and the garden is one of their main programs.
“We aim to educate everybody and anybody about urban gardening,” said garden manager Isabel Bartlett, a graduate student studying biotechnology. Bartlett has been involved with the teaching garden since 2019 and is in her second year as manager.
The quarter-acre garden is located across the street from the Ghosh Science and Technology Center and DeFeudis Wellness Center parking lot. It is active almost all year long, with the only slow season during the dead of winter. Even when there are no formal events going on, something is always growing, and there is always work to be done. “We always have something going on there. I would say the absolute busiest time is late summer into fall,” said Bartlett.
In the fall, the Urban Studies Department offers a practicum that lets Worcester State students earn credits by getting their hands dirty in the garden. As part of the curriculum, they work with students from the adjacent Chandler Magnet School to teach lessons on urban gardening, health and nutrition, sustainability, and more. “The students from Chandler Magnet absolutely love it,” said Midaly Carrasquillo Delgado, assistant director of the Urban Action Institute. “They could spend all day out there just playing, planting, exploring.”
There is a wide range of fruits and vegetables grown within the garden, including bok choy, onions, tomatoes, and various herbs. “When the garden’s in full swing, there is so much weeding, watering, and harvesting to do,” said Bartlett, “and it’s really difficult to stay on top of everything.”
Many of the crops grown in the garden are shared among members of the community. In the past, particularly large harvests have allowed the Urban Action Institute to make sizable donations of fresh produce.
“One year, we had a very, very big tomato harvest,” said Carrasquillo Delgado. “I was able to donate a lot of tomatoes to a food pantry in my hometown. We brought some over to Bet Shalom last year, too.”
To celebrate Earth Day, the Urban Action Institute invites community members to visit the teaching garden and help prepare it for the busy planting season. At this year’s annual cleanup, students, staff, and faculty all chipped in to pull weeds and clear debris from the lawn and garden beds.
English major Crispin Mooney was one of the students pitching in at the Earth Day cleanup this year. Mooney visited the teaching garden for a class he previously took at Worcester State and has enjoyed spending time there ever since. “It’s a nice place to hang out when it’s quiet.” “We welcome students to come here, relax, study, or prepare for that presentation coming up,” said Danielle Morales, assistant professor of urban studies and acting director of the Urban Action Institute. “It’s a space for everybody.”
