Media Advisory: University of Arizona School Garden Workshop to celebrate launch of Sprouts House

Nov. 3, 2025

Media Advisory: University of Arizona School Garden Workshop to celebrate launch of Sprouts House

What: Dedication celebration of Sprouts House, the new home of the University of Arizona School Garden Workshop. The open house event will include mariachi music, a food literacy demonstration, remarks by key community leaders and food provided by Sprouts. The event is open to the public.
When: Friday, Nov. 7, 10 a.m. – noon. Opening remarks begin at 10:30 a.m.
Where: Mansfeld Middle School, 415 N. Mountain Ave. Parking is in the Mansfeld Middle School west lot, 1210 E. Sixth St.

TUCSON, Ariz. — The University of Arizona School Garden Workshop on Nov. 7 will celebrate the launch of Sprouts House – a new, expanded facility designed to grow K-12 school garden programming in partnership with the Tucson Unified School District – to serve as program headquarters and a national model for experiential, garden-based education. The SGW is housed in the School of Geography, Development and Environment in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Made possible by a $1 million lead gift from the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation, Sprouts House transforms two historic university-owned bungalows into a hub for food, environmental and community learning. The renovated facility features a commercial kitchen, a flexible community classroom, a greenhouse and an outdoor teaching and production garden.

"Sprouts House will be the linchpin in the School Garden Workshop's K-12 school garden pipeline and the coalescence of 15 years of school garden experience, deep community need, and the perfect time and place," said Moses Thompson, executive director of the U of A School Garden Workshop.

Thompson will be among the speakers at the event. Additional scheduled speakers include:

U.S. Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva
Lori Poloni-Staudinger, dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Gabriel Trujillo, Tucson Unified School District superintendent
Lyndsey Waugh, executive director of Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation

This lead gift was part of a larger $2.5 million fundraising campaign to establish a comprehensive school garden and sustainability hub, made possible through the generous support of additional partners including the T.R. Brown Family Foundations, Zuckerman Family Foundation, Marshall Foundation, U of A Office of Sustainability, and principal donors Ken and Linda Robin, and Norma and Matt Gentry.

Since its founding in 2010, the SGW has partnered with schools across Tucson to connect students to food, community, and the environment through hands-on learning. University of Arizona students serve as interns in more than 18 under-resourced K-12 schools in TUSD, helping to maintain more than 50 gardens while supporting teachers in integrating garden-based lessons into the curriculum.

The new facility significantly increases SGW's capacity. It is expected to serve approximately 150 educators, 150 university students and more than 6,000 K-12 students annually. The production garden and kitchen will also allow for the growth and distribution of fresh produce, helping students experience the full cycle of planting, harvesting, preparing and sharing food.

"No other organization does it better than School Garden Workshop when it comes to connecting the university, schools and the community in the school garden space," said Lyndsey Waugh, executive director of the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation. "All of us at Sprouts are proud to be part of this project and to share in the incredible impact it will have on children and our community for years to come."

Media contact:
Moses Thompson
School of Geography, Development and the Environment
520-591-2241
mosesthompson@arizona.edu