USA - NEW YORK: Grant Supports Campus and Community Gardens
Students work on the garden near Stuyvesant Ha
March 10, 2026
Faculty members from the Department of Geology, Environment, and Sustainability– Professor and Chair Bret Bennington and Assistant Professor Sasha Pesci – have received funding from the New York State Department of Agriculture to establish community gardens on campus through the 2025 Urban Farms and Community Gardens Grant Program.
Their proposal was awarded $49,348 – just shy of the program’s $50,000 maximum. The grant includes two $5,000 subawards to support partnerships with Succotash Gardens and the Roosevelt Community Garden in Roosevelt, New York.
The funding will support the construction of two gardens on North Campus, where members of the Hofstra community and residents from surrounding neighborhoods will be able to sign up for one of approximately 30 raised beds. Grant funds will also cover tools, soil, seeds, organic fertilizer, equipment storage, and stipends for students working on the project.
The 8-by-4-foot raised beds will be installed at the existing student garden site near Stuyvesant Hall and just south of the Wellness Center, between the new basketball and pickleball courts and the fence along Oak Street. According to Dr. Bennington, construction is expected to be completed in summer 2026, with the first full growing season anticipated in spring 2027.
In addition to the community gardens, Dr. Bennington is overseeing plans for a hydroponic shipping container farm, first announced in November 2025. The container farm is slated to be located adjacent to the Wellness Center, near the new garden space.
“Together, the community garden, student garden, hydroponic container farm, and the sustainability greenhouse on the roof of Gittleson Hall will form the core of what we are calling ‘Pride Farm,’” Dr. Bennington explained. “These initiatives in urban agriculture create opportunities for experiential learning and promote interdisciplinary collaboration among Sustainability Studies and professional programs across campus, including the Zarb School of Business, the DeMatteis School of Engineering and Applied Science, and the School of Health Sciences. They will also strengthen community partnerships and advance the goals of the Hofstra 100 strategic plan.”