California State University, Fullerton
PAE-19: Community Sustainability Partnerships

The Urban Agriculture Community-based Research Experience (U-ACRE) program at CSUF will provide: -Hands-on community-based research experience for undergraduates; -Community outreach in areas of urban agriculture, food security, & child nutrition; -A replicable model of urban agriculture as a tool to increase food security and to improve child nutrition; -Knowledge and skill sets for jobs and careers in STEM and NIFA-related fields. Community-based research foci include: -Implementing and evaluating sustainable urban agriculture projects to increase community food security and influence dietary patterns of children; -Understanding food choices and dietary intake through childhood and in the context of food insecurity; -Understanding how agriculture can be integrated into the urban ecosystem leading to sustainable practices, conservation of natural resources and biodiversity. Program structure: 1) Begins with a 5-week intensive trans-disciplinary program of study during the summer session; 2) Followed by junior year community-based research experience working with a U-ACRE faculty mentor on an established research project. Student researchers enrolled in service learning independent studies and cohort structured seminar courses. Student researchers participate in internships developed with local community partners and USDA. Ongoing Community Projects and Partners: A) Organic Waste Diversion with Ladera Vista Junior High School; Using BioSafe vermi-composting units to reclaim organic waste while producing vermi-compost for school garden and potentially generating new revenue for school; B) Urban garden at the transitional living center run by Pathways of Hope in Fullerton; C) Research in coordination with Orange County Food Access Coalition: -Analysis of national and county level data; -Dissemination to interested coalition members such as Whole Foods; -Food knowledge and choice in an environment of food insecurity project. D) Fabian Garcia, Program Director, US Forest Service, USDA collaborator; E) Community Alternative Learning and Living Initiative (CALLI); F) Fullerton Arboretum: -Active engagement with Director, Curator, and Program leader of training garden. 3) Culminates in a year of analysis and senior thesis: -With annual conference for student presentations; -Participation in annual CSU Student Research Competition; -Submission of thesis or a portion thereof either for external publication or to Dimensions, the CSUF student research journal. More information can be found at: http://calstate.fullerton.edu/inside/2012sp/USDA-grants.asp Students and faculty demonstrate commitment to environmental sustainability through a variety of course-related and voluntary projects as well as research. "Project Earth" is a student-led community service project that each year recruits student volunteers who partner with local parks, wildlife centers, and schools to conduct service projects such as trails restoration, parks rehabilitation, beach clean-ups and the like. Health Science students promote organic farming with farmer's market events featuring local purveyors; and student clubs volunteer to plant vegetable gardens on reclaimed spaces at local schools. For the annual spring Social Justice Summit, students partnered with a local vendor to source cornstarch-based utensils, paper goods made from recycled materials, and reusable/refillable personal water bottles. The Center for Cancer Disparities and the Health Promotion Research Initiative conduct numerous community-based research and outreach projects throughout the year with several community partners. For a listing of 2011 events and partnership efforts, see http://hpri.fullerton.edu/CommunityWorkshopsandEvents.htm Fullerton Arboretum has several relationships within the local community that relate to sustainability. Emancipated foster youth from Hart Community Homes/Monkey Business Café volunteer on our farm, helping to grow some of the produce that is prepared locally at Monkey Business Café. Fullerton Arboretum also composts spent grain from a local brewery (Anaheim Brewery), chipped wood and leaves from an arborist (West Coast Arborists) and horse manure from a small privately owned stable. Santa Ana ¡Adelante! is a community-based partnership between CSUF, UC Irvine, Santa Ana College, and Santa Ana Unified. It exists with the goal of creating a college graduate in each Santa Ana household. The Santa Ana partnership includes representatives from all of the above institutions as well as from key partner community agencies. The partnership exists to provide large scale high school counselor training, to promote University involvement in key school-wide college prep activities, and to marshal resources from all partners into the collective effort of promoting higher education options to Santa Ana high school students. More information can be found at http://www.sausd.k12.ca.us/domain/40 Titan Choices is a partnership between select local area high schools and CSUF University Outreach in which CSUF interns are placed in the schools to promote college-going cultures within the schools, to foster relationships between the schools and CSUF, and to facilitate the CSUF application process for high school students at the schools. Super Sunday/Super Saturday is a CSU system-wide effort to partner with the African American community through church-based activity. More information can be found at http://www.calstate.edu/supersunday/ The Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Journey to Success Program is a CSU system-wide effort to partner with and bring representatives from various AAPI communities to local area CSU campuses for participation in college preparatory activity. In each area, programs are planned in conjunction w/ key community-based partner organizations. More information can be found at http://www.calstate.edu/externalrelations/partnerships/journeytosuccess.shtml