About the Program

With the generous support of the Ernest Prete Jr. Foundation, CPP and its partner Pomona Unified School District are offering paid fellowships for CPP undergraduate STEM, Liberal Studies, and Education majors or STEM graduate students. Building upon an existing urban gardening program in PUSD this project will prepare and support a cadre of CPP students (Prete Fellows) who will work with an elementary teacher. The integration of urban gardening will increase PUSD pupils understanding and awareness of issues important to their families’ health as well as the impact of sustainable gardening as a tool to the preservation of environmental habitats in their neighborhoods and across the globe.

Prete Fellows participate in a variety of teaching and learning experiences devoting approximately 10 hours a week to the program including at least 7 hours at a PUSD elementary school, a monthly workshop and some preparation time. The program scaffolds experiences for Prete Fellows, culminating in co-teaching science lessons that integrate the school garden as a laboratory.

Scaffolds include:

First, they will spend October/November observing classrooms (after overview orientation).
Next, they will engage in an activity to be matched with a classroom teacher before the fall semester ends.
Then, in January/February they will provide “tutor” support within their matched teachers classroom (after tutoring orientation) to begin to developing a relationship with students/teacher.
In March they will begin to co-plan a science or math lesson with classroom teacher (after a lesson planning & assessment/ NGSS & CC math orientation).
In April/early May they will co-teach a science or math lesson utilizing the school garden as a lab.
In late April/ May they will co-assess a science or math lesson.
Additional support will be provided through workshops and meetings by a Mentor Fellow, a CPP student who has participated in the program in prior years.

The Prete Fellowship program engages CPP students’ interest and motivates them to achieve academically, and pursue careers in science, mathematics and technology, including the teaching profession. In addition, the Prete Fellows will become active members of a community creating environmentally responsible and literate citizens who individually and collectively, help ensure an ecologically and economically sustainable environment.