![Tim Miller (left) wanted students to be engaged with the outdoor learning area throughout the process of building and construction. MARK JUDSON/NEWS BULLETIN]](http://127.0.0.1/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/ghows-DA-48fd670f-669f-2432-e053-0100007fe921-a310ffdb.jpeg)
Editor’s Note: This continues our Celebrate Community series on North Okaloosa County nonprofit organizations that improve our quality of life.
CRESTVIEW — Richbourg School will have a new outdoor learning environment due to volunteers’ construction efforts.
A central courtyard area at the school was empty and used in a limited capacity until the project began. Volunteers built a deck, three raised garden beds and a modified picnic table to allow wheelchair access. The school also assembled several outdoor sheds to store gardening supplies.
“We’ve been planning this project for about a year,” Tim Miller, the project’s administrator, said. That planning process included grant applications and the design, which Richbourg students contributed to, in addition to helping with measurements.
The project will allow students to participate in gardening, outdoor cooking projects and learn outside the classroom environment.
“It’s a place to get outside and breathe fresh air while they’re learning,” Miller said. “[Richbourg] has fluorescent lights, which aren't the best lighting for some students.”
Richbourg School is a special education day school with 81 students, ranging from pre-kindergartners to 22-year-olds.
Having an outside setting with natural lighting can be beneficial to some students who might otherwise face difficulties in traditional classroom settings, according to Miller.
The project was funded by two grants the school received, totaling $5,700. Miller applied the school for a Toolbox for Education grant through Lowe’s and received $5,000, and the Autism Society awarded the school $700.
The Toolbox for Education grant donates up to $5 million at about 1,000 schools each year, according to a company spokesperson. This is the first major grant the school has applied for, Miller said, adding that he plans to explore more opportunities in the future.
In addition to students’ assistance with planning, 10 volunteers performed the building work. Volunteers included Lowe’s employees and military service members.
Miller expects construction to be completed soon but the ongoing project of planting and cultivating the raised gardens will last into the spring.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: A place to breathe