Central Coast Ag Network
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
On-the-Farm Field Trips
At City Farm SLO, kids connect with food and where it comes from.
During On-the-Farm Field trips, students deepen their knowledge about biology, ecology, and nutrition. By meeting and working with farmers on our property, they put this knowledge into immediate, practical use while heightening their appreciation of fresh produce that they participate in growing. On-the-Farm Field Trips are conducted by our certified farmer-teachers in precise alignment with CA Common Core and California’s Next Generation Science Standards at each grade level.
On-The-Farm Field Trips Include:
- Outlines for preparatory and follow-up lessons
- 2 hours of on-farm instruction led by certified farmer-teachers- lessons are aligned with CA Common Core and NGSS at each grade level
- Students will meet a City Farm SLO Farmer and tour a working farm
- Hands-on activities in biology, ecology, and nutrition concepts
- For up to 30 students per class. Staff, teachers, and parents are encouraged to join.
Youth Empowerment Program
YEP provides career and college readiness workshops and technical instruction to underserved youth in SLO County through intensive summer workshops and internships. Workshops are conducted bilingually in English and Spanish by instructors trained in youth empowerment strategies and cover these topics: health and wellness including mental health, financial literacy, goal setting, resume building, leadership, and DE&I in agriculture. Upon graduation, students can apply for a paid farming internship at City Farm SLO. Program collaborators include the Community Wellness Program of the County of SLO Public Health Department, Cal Poly Ag Departments, SLO Food Bank, and Transitions Mental Health Association. Beginning in 2023, City Farm SLO has added additional staff time to implement and track a targeted outreach strategy to communities identified by the County of SLO Public Health Department as under-resourced. (See https://www.cityfarmslo.org/yep.)
Pacific Beach High School Farm Class
Since 2013, City Farm SLO has partnered with Pacific Beach High School (PBHS) to offer twice weekly farming lessons including: team-building workshops, employment readiness training, and hands-on nutrition and food literacy lessons. Students learn to grow, harvest, and cook wholesome foods at the direction of City Farm SLO staff with support from PBHS instructors. Our Farm Class curriculum has been adapted from a model from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and has been shown to increase access to and intake of fruits and vegetables, thereby minimizing risk for diet-related disease.
Farm Box Program:
Beginning in 2019, the “Farm Box” program was added to the Farm Class curriculum. Students participated in a weekly business class where they learned to market and sell their produce to the community. Farm box proceeds directly support future programming. The Farm Box Program pairs agricultural skill building with business/marketing training, all while advancing local food access.
Therapeutic Horticulture
Since 2015, City Farm SLO has partnered with San Luis Coastal Unified School District (SLCUSD) to offer weekly therapeutic horticulture classes to young adults with disabilities as a part of the Pre-vocation Recreation Education Adult Readiness Experience (PREPARE) program. In the past year, this program has expanded trifold to welcome special day classes from SLO High School, Laguna Middle School, and Los Osos Middle School. A wealth of research links therapeutic horticulture sessions to improvements in mental well-being, physical health, social self-efficacy, and quality of life for people with disabilities. As a result of our sessions, 100% of partnering instructors report that their students/clients experienced mental health benefits. (See https://www.cityfarmslo.org/therapeutic)
Where we work
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Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Central Coast Ag Network
Board of directorsas of 04/07/2023
Steven Marx
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
Term: 2003 -
Dr. John Phillips
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
Term: 2011 -
Terry Hooker
Rachel Cohen
Rincon Consultants
Kevin Elder
Sinsheimer Juhnke McIvor & Stroh, LLP
Wendy Brown
Cindy Jelinek
Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No