Graduates from Oakwood High School’s class of 1972, members of the community, and Oakwood Schools Foundation Trustees gathered on April 13th, a beautiful spring Saturday, to honor the generosity and dedication to education embodied by the Class of 1972’s project to revitalize the OHS Greenhouse for generations to come. The class welcomed remarks from Oakwood Schools Foundation Vice Chair Kevin Jones, Superintendent Dr. Neil Gupta, Class of 2024 Senior McKenzie Russel, OHS Educator Heidi Edwards, and Class of 1972 member Ellen Ireland, who spoke to the power of place and of setting a fundraising goal which meant something to their class—”the greenhouse represented an alternative learning space, a place where students could be inspired, a place where students found nature and could bring it inside, a place of solace and a place of peace. It spoke to something that we wanted in our lives and for everyone else, including students of today and in the future.”
This significant gift for Oakwood’s students leaves a legacy for the Class of 1972 which will leave an impact to be felt for years to come. In total, more than 60 classmates contributed to bring this project to life, making one of the largest alumni class gifts in Oakwood’s history.
In addition to expanding traditional science opportunities (medicine, biology, botany), the greenhouse will provide holistic and integrated offerings in environmental science, horticulture, food science and sustainability. One intended use, as part of a vision outlined by Heidi Edwards, will extend the greenhouse’s contribution to the Consumer Sciences class with fresh herbs for cooking, as well as vegetables for the Cafeteria’s salad bar. The new greenhouse also will be used as nontraditional classroom space allowing opportunities for hands-on education with greenhouse projects while learning important work and life skills.
Oakwood Schools Foundation, a component fund of The Dayton Foundation, is honored to be a part of this project. OSF would like to thank Rich Gowdy, Jane Beck Klieve, Dave Crowl, and Bill Dennison, for their leadership in rallying support, as well as all those who generously supported this project. OSF would like to give special thanks to Ellen Ireland for her unwavering support and dedication which brought this special project to fruition.