Wylde Center hits pause on school garden programs
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The Wylde Center's Oakhurst Gardes recently underwent a large-scale renovation. Photos: Thomas Wheatley/Axios; Special to Axios
The Wylde Center's popular programs at Decatur and Atlanta public schools are on hold due to the nonprofit's precarious funding position and amid staff concerns over its management.
Why it matters: The Oakhurst nonprofit operates gardens in Decatur and Atlanta's eastside that have become embedded in their communities.
- Its education programs and camps teach children about where their food comes from, along with composting and planting.
Catch up quick: In May, the Wylde Center informed Atlanta Public Schools and City Schools of Decatur that the nonprofit was pausing its in-school programming, executive director Jennifer Gerndt told Axios in a statement.
Context: Elizabeth Goethe, who told Axios she and the only other educator were let go in late July, said her department taught as many as 8,000 students every year.
- The programs — 70% of which are offered at no cost, according to the nonprofit's most recent tax disclosures — are a core part of the Wylde Center's mission, said Goethe, who joined the Wylde Center in October 2022.
Caveat: In a statement, an APS spokesperson said the system would teach students "environmental sustainability lessons such as planting, composting, and recycling as part of our robust science curriculum."
- A CSD spokesperson deferred comment to the Wylde Center.
Zoom out: According to Axios interviews with one current Wylde Center employee, one former employee and reporting by Decaturish, which first reported on the center's struggles, staffers have felt in the dark about the nonprofit's financial situation and strategy.
- Gordon Dyker, who oversees a Wylde Center garden in Edgewood, told Axios that roughly 25 staffers have left over the past 18 months.
- In July, employees launched a union effort to advocate for more transparency from the center's leaders and more input on strategy.
The other side: Gerndt said the center has been set back by decreased giving, lower revenue and higher costs.
- A capital campaign for a long-overdue renovation of the Oakhurst garden's building was beset by "fundraising shortfalls, uncollectible pledges, and unexpected expenses," which exacerbated the situation, Gerndt said.
- Gerndt, who said involving all staffers in planning was not feasible or practical, told Axios the nonprofit plans to bring youth and school programming to its green spaces "and must do so within our financial means."
Flashback: The center is named after Sally Wylde, an Oakhurst resident who, with her husband, Britt Dean, turned a half-acre lot they owned into a community garden.
What they're saying: "In difficult situations it can be tempting to armchair quarterback the people who have to make difficult decisions," Gerndt told Axios.
- "But what the Wylde Center needs right now is support and maybe a little grace. These are difficult times for all of us."