See what's happening at Tollgate this month!

MSU Tollgate Farm April 2020

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Save the Date! Upcoming Events

Tollgate programming andevents during CoronavirusCOVID-19

Michigan State University hasmade the decision to cancel orpostpone all in person activitiesuntil September 1st. There is

nothing we love more than sharing the farm with each one ofyou. However, providing a safe place for social, emotional,and physical growth is paramount for all our programming.The MSU Tollgate team is in full support of the decision tokeep our communities safe. This news means the farm will be closed to the public untilSeptember 1st and we will be cancelling all our summeractivities including Summer Camps, Starry Night on the Farm,Story Hour, Night Hikes, and Stewards Teen Leadershipprograms. Program Coordinators will be in touch with eachprogram registrant to provide details on how and whenrefunds will be issued. The MSU Tollgate team is working with

MSU Extension leadership to find out what this means onmany fronts. Please be patient as we navigate this ongoingsituation. We will provide updates on adult programming,volunteering, and 4-H Club livestock projects as we havethem.Our team will be pivoting work to support schools and virtuallearning. In the true spirit of 4-H, we will be resilient andsearch for opportunities to make a difference in ourcommunity. We encourage each of you to consider how youare applying your head, heart, hands, and health to supportthose in need.We recognize that many children will be missing out on theirnormal school studies. The MSU Tollgate team has sharedonline video content on Facebook and will continue to sharemore resources on our social media pages. There are alsomany free resources available from Michigan State UniversityExtension.

MSU Tollgate Special ProjectsCommittee

The MSU Tollgate team issearching for individuals, with apassion for making a difference,to join our new Special ProjectsCommittee. This committee willwork together to identify andexecute projects that will make adifference in the lives ofeveryone that loves MSUTollgate Farm. The committee isopen to anyone interested insupporting the farm whether they are an adult, youth, existingvolunteer, MSU Alumni, or program attendee.

What will the Special Projects Committee do?Identify emerging needs and planned improvements forTollgate in cooperation with the Tollgate Director andTollgate strategic plan.Lead fundraising and communications efforts to addressemerging needs.Support camaraderie and communication between allMSU Tollgate users.

Support Volunteer Appreciation Picnic & Annual Meetingevent.

What will be expected of me if I participate? The committee will determine the scope and intensity ofthe projects that they pursue. There will be opportunitiesfor individuals with all levels of time availability toparticipate.A donation is not required to participate.A willingness to cooperate, lead, and think big.Support for achieving the committee's goals through yourown personal strengths and interests.Successful completion of the Michigan State UniversityVolunteer Selection Process.

What will I get out of being a part of the committee?A sense of personal fulfillment for giving back to a worthycause.An opportunity to make a positive impact on mycommunity. Connection to a network of amazing people.Experience and knowledge related to agriculture,horticulture, and non-profit leadership.Recognition as being a leader for the MSU Tollgatecommunity.

How do I get involved?Email Mike Mathis, MSU Tollgate Director, with yourname, phone number, and email address to expressyour interest.Attend an initial information meeting to learn more. Dateis to be determined.

Michigan State UniversityExtension to host listeningsessions for children andyouth programming

Michigan's children, youth,families and communities are

facing unprecedented challenges as a result of COVID-19pandemic. These challenges vary widely and are influencedgreatly by geography, economic status, race, ethnicity,

gender, sexual orientation, and many other factors.In order to best understand these challenges and how we caneffectively support them, Michigan State University Extensionis launching a series of listening sessions. Michigan children,youth and those who support them, including parents andcaregivers, as well as agencies and other organizations, areencouraged to join these sessions and share their thoughts.Information collected will be used to adapt existingprogramming, or develop new educational programming, toaddress the critical needs of our communities.

Please register here for one or more of our listeningsessions.

Most of the sessions will have an area of focus in an effort tosolicit feedback from specific targeted groups for MSUExtension programming. Though we hope to hear from youthand individuals who support those areas anddemographics, all are welcome to attend any session.

Remote Teaching andLearning:A Survey for Formal and NonFormal Educators Michigan State UniversityExtension helps people improvetheir lives by bringing knowledgeand resources of MSU directly tothe community. One way thatMSU Extension fulfills thismission is through TollgateFarm's learning experiences forteachers and students. The farmoffers the unique opportunity to explore agriculture andnatural resources with an inquiry learning and place-basededucation focus. As a means to better serve teachers,students, and school districts during this time of remotelearning, Tollgate seeks your input on the types of studentand teacher learning opportunities that would be most helpful. Tollgate 2020 Teacher Needs Survey Here

Virtual Mornings on theFarm

Mornings on the Farm withsustainable agricultureeducator Will Jaquinde willcontinue to be virtual for

the rest of the spring and summer with a $15 cost forattendees. The next workshop on May 31st focuses on tipsand tricks for low energy garden maintenance. Will is in his5th season managing the vegetable production at MSUTollgate, which grows more than 150 varieties across 50crops and three acres using organic growing practices for acommunity supported agriculture (CSA) program. In thisseries, Will shares his decades of plant experience to helpyou grow a low maintenance, productive vegetable garden! Can't make the May 31st workshop? Sign up for July 12th,and August 16th. If you have any questions about the series,please email Will Jaquinde.

For more information or to register, visit the event page.

Coming soon: School GardenVirtual Learning Series

Prepare for next year's schoolgarden with virtual learningopportunities about school gardenbasics, cool plants for every garden,planting a pollinator garden, and fallcover crops. Stay tuned for moredetails and registration information.To be added to the mailing list, emailKristine Hahn.

Coming Soon: The PollinatorProject

What are pollinators, and whyare they important to us? Howcan we help pollinators?

Teachers, students, and families can explore and investigatepollinators and pollination with MSU Tollgate Farmeducational leaders, MSU experts, and community partners.Become a citizen scientist and learn more about how you canhelp pollinators with the Pollinator Project. Designed tocoordinate with studies about plants and their partners, thisproject kicks off in mid-May. For more information, email EllenKoehler.

Easy At-Home Activities forYouth

Check out our ExperienceTollgate Blog for some simpleat-home activities that inspirecreativity, exploration, andscience. We will continue to update this page with moreactivities weekly!

Maintaining connectionthrough virtual summer camp!

We are excited to share that thestaff at MSU Tollgate Farm arein the process of creating avirtual summer camp platformfilled with youth activities,videos, recipes, a blog, and somuch more! It won't be able toreplace our traditional summercamp that we dearly miss thisyear, however, we will try ourbest to create a sense of

community as we bring some of our favorite farm and outdoorexperiences to the comfort of your home. Be on the lookoutfor a survey and more updates soon!

Looking Forward: DevelopingResilience as Stewards andStewards-in-Training

MSU Tollgate Farm wants tothank each of our stewards andstewards-in-training who give somuch of themselves to helpmake our summer camps thebest they can be. They are alarge and important part of ourfarm camp community. To stay connected with our amazingstewards and SITs, youth voice is needed to gather ideas forsummer sessions so that we are able to continue to meet,learn, and grow as a community. Please take a moment to fillout our Looking Forward: MSU Tollgate Farm Steward/SITSummer Sessions Planning Survey. Also, check out ouryoutube video here. Questions? Email Ellen Koehler.

Rescheduled: Starry Night onthe Farm now September 19-20th, 2020

Starry Night on the Farmcombines adventure andlearning for a fun familyovernight. What better way tocelebrate fall's arrival than to joinus at MSU Tollgate Farm andEducation Center for an excitingoutdoor overnight learningexperience? This family-orientedvisit will give you a rare glimpseinto what goes on after sundownon the farm. Come explore thenight sky and the importance ofagriculture and the sun in ourdaily lives. Arrive Friday evening afterdinner to enjoy an eveningwagon ride, investigate the

nighttime woods, and visit our animal friends. Explore thescience of the summer solstice and the night sky with theOakland Astronomy Club. Enjoy astronomy investigations,solar system games on the hill, and s'mores around thecampfire before settling down for the night. Depending onweather, we'll camp outdoors or in the historic 1850s barn

before waking to a farm fresh breakfast and morning animalchores. Leave with warm memories and new friends. Formore information or to register, please visit the event page.

This Month's 4-H Newsletter isHere!

Oakland County 4-HConnections is a monthlynewsletter for 4-H members,families, and the generalcommunity with news andinformation about 4-H youthdevelopment activities inOakland County.

April Newsletter

Tollgate News & Announcements

Missing Tollgate Farm?

Our essential employees are stillbusy taking care of the livestockand crops at Tollgate andwanted to share some photos of

the farm for everyone missing our animal and plants. Makesure to check out our Facebook page for more photos andvideos.

Another Great Maple SugaringSeason

Even though the Governor'sStay Home, Stay Safe orderbrought a premature end to themaple syrup season, the maplecrew still did a great job. TheTollgate maple volunteers made just a bit over 100 gallons ofsyrup this year. They also demonstrated the fine art of maple

making to visitors at our annual Maple Feast event and toseveral groups that were able to come to the farm before theseason ended. Congratulations and thank you to all thevolunteers who made 2020 a successful year in the woods inspite of the early end to the season!

New! A Newsletter for theTollgate Learning Community

Our new quarterly newsletter foreducators is a place whereformal and non formal educators

can share ideas and best practices for teaching scienceoutdoors and for connecting classroom learning to the placewe know as Tollgate Farm.

Tollgate Newsletter for Formal and Non Formal Educators

Volunteer Opportunities forPumpkinfest 2020

As we plan our annual 2020MSU Tollgate FarmPumpkinfest, we would loveyour help. Because of the helpof our many volunteers, Tollgate is able to positively impactadults and children in our community in life-changing ways. Tollgate's Pumpkinfest, sponsored by Vibe Credit Union andBarton Malow, is a family-oriented event open to the public11:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday, October 3rd, and Sunday,October 4th. Click here for more information or sign up tovolunteer.

School-to-Farm Visits2020/2021 School Year

Reservations for school-to-farm visits are beingaccepted at this time withpayment postponed until20/21 school year comes

into focus. Using research-based curriculum and methods,school and community groups explore the farm and thenatural world through inquiry learning and place-basededucation.

Tollgate strives to provide opportunities for youth andadults of all income levels and welcomes a broad cross-section of participants to experience farm-based experientiallearning. The goal of the financial aid process at Tollgate is toprovide as many youth and adults as possible with theopportunity to enrich learning and broaden their experiences.Funding is limited and applications are reviewed based on theneeds of the participants, potential impact on their learning,cost of the program, and potential for meaningfulcollaboration.

Reserve School-to-Farm Visit for 2020/2021 School YearHere

Coming Soon! VolunteerCentral for MSU ExtensionVolunteers

We are grateful and appreciateour volunteers at MSUTollgateFarm. Coming soon is a newvolunteer selection process called Volunteer Centralwhich all volunteers with MSU Extension will be asked tocomplete. Watch for word from Tollgate staff or, if you are anExtension Master Gardener, from your County MasterGardener Coordinator.

Tollgate Opportunities

Rent the TollgateConference Center StartingSeptember 1st, 2020

The MSU TollgateConference Center, historicbarn, and Americanaboardroom are available for

your next business meeting, bridal or baby shower, privateluncheon, or special event. Our catering staff are available tomeet your needs for your event!

To learn more about hosting your event at Tollgate, visitthe Conference Center Website.

MSU Tollgate Farm and Education Center offers programsthroughout the year designed to allow adults and children to

experience learning hands-on, explore the joys of gardening andthe natural world, appreciate and promote locally grown food, and

build community.

MSU Tollgate Farm and Education Center28115 Meadowbrook Rd.

Novi, MI 48377248-347-0269

tollgateprograms@msu.eduhttp://tollgate.msu.edu/

MSU is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer. Michigan StateUniversity Programs and materials are open to all, without regard to race,

color, national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, height, weight,disability,political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital, family or veteran status.

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