Stephanie Steigerwaldt has served as Lapham Elementary School’s Garden & Green Team Lead since 2012, working to build a sustainable school model through energy conservation, waste reduction and a sustainable school garden program. In partnership with Community GroundWorks, a Madison, Wisconsin-based nonprofit that connects people to food, they have developed an innovative Gardener-in-Residence Program to facilitate experiential, garden-based learning through weekly classroom visits to Lapham’s Outdoor Classroom & Community Garden. The Gardener-in-Residence Program supports school staff to utilize the garden as a dynamic outdoor learning environment, leading students in growing, harvesting and tasting food based on teacher’s curricular needs and the growing season. Stephanie holds a Master’s Certificate in Sustainability Leadership from Edgewood College and a Permaculture Design Certificate through the Madison Area Permaculture Guild.
