Student Plan Approved for Cultural Garden

The process began last year when 15 Hawken students and 7 students from Michael R. White School attended a daylong master-planning workshop at the Gries Center. Meeting with professional landscapers, the students generated ideas and their plan for an “ideal garden.” On February 12, Ian Burrows ’17, Jack Bonnes ’18, Zeki Zai ‘18 and Anna Shaulis ‘18 made presentations to the Design and Preservation Committee of the cultural gardens, and the Federation’s Executive board. The boards were impressed with the students’ work and unanimously approved their plan.

Renovation plans include making the garden more welcoming and accessible by adding benches, flat walkways, trees and landscaping. Central to the design is a Grand Ellipse to feature busts of Mark Twain, Booker T. Washington, and a water feature to honor Anna Ochs, a Cleveland icon who founded the American garden in 1935 with donations from school children. The renovation will utilize natural materials and native plants and include a history path and an American flag made from and seasonal flowers.

Seventh graders adopted the American Cultural Garden in 2008, and over the years have renamed the garden, restored and rededicated a bust of Mark Twain, and conducted countless hours of community gardening and outreach. This year students will focus on raising funds for their renovation work through events and grant writing, and will also search for busts original to the garden but lost over time.

The mission of the American Garden, written by Hawken students, states: “The American Garden is a gateway to the Cleveland Cultural Gardens and a key to promoting friendship within this community. Our mission is to create a student-led space to learn, memorialize American cultural icons, enhance the neighborhood’s natural beauty, foster clean and safe interactions, and provide a welcoming space for all.”

Read more about the project in this Cleveland Cultural Gardens news story and blog.