4-H Agriscience In the City is an in-school program currently operating in Cleveland and Cincinnati. Originally created by House Bill 59 (2013), Agriscience In the City just ended its seventh school year in partnership with the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and has the simple goal of exposing city youth to, and preparing them for, careers in STEM fields with a focus on agriculture and agricultural sciences.
Starting at George Washington Carver Elementary in Cleveland’s Central Promise neighborhood in February 2014, the initial focus of Agriscience In the City was to work with Pre-k through 6th grade students at the school with each class visiting the Science Lab once a week for lessons such as hatching chicks, red worm composting, soil creation and seed planting, fiber explorations, mushroom log cultivation, and other hands-on, agriculture-related activities.
For the 2017-18 school year the program was modified to include additional schools (six total, two now in Central Promise Neighborhood) and focus on 5th grade students, that being the first year they take the Ohio Science assessment. Activities were added to enrich the classroom teachers’ lessons addressing the Ohio Academic Content Standards for 5th grade Science and the engineering design process. Agriscience In the City now includes lessons using Lego WeDo robotics, Hex Bugs, 4-H Rockets to the Rescue, honeybees, and other hands-on, engaging topics. It is hoped the third elementary school in Central Promise can be added for the 2020-21 school year.
4-H Agriscience In the City is currently limited in how many CMSD schools it can reach, but we do reserve some time for special interest educational sessions for other CMSD/Cuyahoga County schools, such as presentations on raising chickens or honeybees, Lego robotics, and the like. We also offer agricultural/STEM activities on a limited basis in the summer for Cleveland-area day cares and summer camps. If interested, please contact the Agriscience In the City 4-H Program Manager at 440-668-2902.