Groundswell Blog: Schoolyard Gardens

Welcome to Groundswell

Groundswell’s mission is to help youth and adult learners develop the skills and knowledge they need to build sustainable local food systems. Our focus is providing hands-on, experiential learning opportunities with real working farms and food businesses in the Ithaca area. Through collaboration with area schools, colleges and universities, Groundswell offers programs of study for beginning farmers, students, community members, and professionals.

Groundswell is an initiative of the EcoVillage Center for Sustainability Education in Ithaca, NY, which is a project of the Center for Transformative Action. Visit the Groundswell website to learn more about our programs, initiatives and resources.

Wednesday, July 20

Student Profile: Allan Gandelman

Allan Gandelman is a student in Groundwell's New Farmer Training Program.

Interview by Devon Van Noble

Allan Gandelman in the greenhouse
at Main Street Farms.

Allan has had a lifelong passion for farming. "For the past 10 years I had my own gardens, fruit trees, and raised goats in New Paltz," he says. When he moved to the area and began working as a middle/high school social studies teacher at Cortland Alternatives School, Allan found himself deeply interested in school food. "Being aware of school food issues in the Cortland County School District inspired me to be able to provide healthy food for kids year round, food that didn't depend on international sources."

Now Allan is an urban farmer and entrepreneur in the rural town of Homer, NY. His enterprise, Main Street Farms, sells organic produce and vegetable transplants. He hopes to tackle the issue of healthy school food by distributing his locally grown produce to area schools through his nonprofit, Schoolyard Gardens.