Tag Archives: youth gardening

Slow Food UW Supporting South Madison

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Abstract: There is a strong food culture in South Madison. More than just a meal, the local community considers food a key factor in engaging community members. A few local groups have initiated a variety of food-related programs. The human resources involved, however, have been an ongoing issue. The Slow Food UW has been bringing student members/interns to South Madison to provide support on what they do best, food.

Student Learning Goals:

  • learn how to engage community with food as a leverage factor
  • help increase awareness about local and fresh food
  • learn about food justice and how it affects community

Deliverable Products or Services:

The following were activities organized during 2011-2012 academic year:

  • served meals and snacks during Science Nights events at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery;
  • offered a one-credit South Madison Food Justice Action Collective class for project participants in the fall and spring semesters;
  • served the Family Voices participants locally-sourced brunches, organized Teen Cooking Nights, and established two gardens with the Boys and Girls Club;
  • provided teaching assistance for Badger Rock Middle School.

CUE Project Area: South Madison
CUE Affiliate: Margaret Nellis, Slow Food UW
CUE Community Partners: Boys and Girls Club of Dane County, Badger Rock Middle School, Family Voices Project, Science Nights WIDMIR

Documents:

Southwest Madison

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Overview: CUE has been involved with the South West Madison Community Organizers (SWMCO) and their associated work groups since fall of 2011.  SWMCO is a group of southwest Madison residents, UW faculty and students, and Madison/Dane County Public Health Department nurses that work to build leadership in the community as a way to promote holistic health and well being. CUE began to participate when SWMCO expressed becoming overwhelmed with UW student and faculty requests for involvement in community-based learning & research.

Objectives: CUE’s role is to help SWMCO with documenting  their community organizing process and model, and to act as a sort of “traffic cop” to coordinate and organize university requests for partnerships. Additionally, CUE is also identifying resource gaps and find ways that students, faculty and staff can help fill them.

Project Courses:

  • Community and Environmental Sociology service learning capstone course on neighborhood free space; Spring 2012. [project course page] [syllabus]
  • Community and Environmental Sociology service-learning capstone course on ….Fall 2012. [project course page] [syllabus]
  • School of Human Ecology’s courses on community-based research, Fall 2012 [syllabus] and Spring 2013 [syllabus].
  • Environmental Studies service learning capstone course on youth gardening; Spring 2013. [project course page] [syllabus]

Additional Information

News/articles about Southwest Madison:

South Madison

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Overview: The CUE South Madison was initially a CUE pilot project. The project was developed collaboratively with community partners (see below). The community needs assessment suggested the South side’s top 3 community-identified priorities: (1) economic vitality, (2) image/perception of stigma of the area, and (3) healthy food access and nutrition education. The “image/perception of stigma of the area” was chose by students during the pilot year. The other two priorities were addressed in the year after the pilot year in different service learning courses. Geographically, the South Madison is a highly unique area in Madison with rich culture and dynamism, which confirmed by our ongoing collaboration even after the CUE pilot year.

Objectives: We had two main goals for the pilot project: (1) to create an infrastructure for campus-community partnerships that would provide an opportunity for community groups to access the UW with specific issues and problems; and (2) to work on an actual partnership between the university and the community. After the pilot, we continue to help South Madison with their self-identified community priorities.

Project Activities:

  • Slow-Food UW, promoting local and fresh food in South Madison, Spring 2011-current [project activity page]
  • A GIS certificate student helped Common Wealth Development with mapping foreclosed properties in the area to underscore need for federal Neighborhood stabilization funds, Fall 2010 [project activity page]

Project Courses:

  • Inter-HE 504 (1): CUE: South Madison, a pilot for community-campus partnership, Spring 2011
  • CNSR 477: Making Park St more Accessible and Welcoming to Students, Spring 2011
  • Inter-HE 560: Community Leadership, Fall 2011
  • J676: Technology for Social Change, Fall 2011 [project course page]
  • InterHE 570: Community-Based Research and Evaluation, Spring 2012
  • Family Voices Mentor Tutoring Program, Spring 2012 [project course page]
  • N590: Culturally Congruent Health Care Practice, Fall 2012 [project course page]
  • ENVSTUDIES 600: Community-Based Research with South Madison Farmers Market, Fall 2013 and Spring 2014 [project course page]

Project Information
CUE Affiliates: Beth Tryon, Margaret Nellis, Ariel Kaufman, Cynthia Jasper, Young-Mie Kim, Alfonso Morales
Community Partner: South Metropolitan Planning Council, Park Street Partners, South Madison Farmers’ Market, and Boys and Girls Club of Dane County