Rappaport Grant Recipients
2026: STEAD School (Commerce City, CO). The project will support high school students’ education and career training in the science, culture, and hands-on methods of community food systems
2025: Congress Park School (Brookfield, IL). The project was proposed by third grade teachers Kristine Carbray and Vanessa Reyes. Students revitalized and created butterfly garden beds and improved the school’s campus; connected monarch butterflies to the dual language program themes of cross-cultural understanding and geography of the Americas; learned about butterfly life cycles and migration patterns; and gained valuable exposure to nature while deepening their understanding of ecosystems and global connections.
2024: Curley K-8 School (Boston, MA), the largest K-8 school in the Boston Public School System. The project was proposed by science specialist Jennifer Frazier. The school built raised garden beds and installed plantings to support the life science curriculum for pre-kindergarten through second grade teachers, including lessons on seeds, vermiculture, plant cycles, and pollinators.
Thank You to Our Donor
This initiative is made possible through the generosity of Thomas Byrd and Valerie Rappaport and their family in honor of Valerie’s mother, Julia Rappaport, a dedicated AHS member and board member who loved gardening, science, and education.
Contact
Courtney Alsua
Director of National Programs
703.768.5700 ext. 121
programs@ahsgardening.org