Broughal Middle School in Bethlehem gets grants for greenhouse

BY SARA K. SATULLO
The Express-Times

BETHLEHEM | Two grants will allow Broughal Middle School students to work in their school's greenhouse to nurture seedlings into plants that will eventually find new homes on South Mountain and in the city's greenway.

The $3,000 state and the $1,000 Highmark Blue Shield grants were announced by Mayor John Callahan Friday as the school celebrated the one-year anniversary of first lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move!" campaign.

Broughal opened in August 2009 but the greenhouse has never been fully outfitted with an irrigation system and other equipment needed to fully use it. The grants will help change that, Broughal Principal Ed Docalovich said.

The greenhouse sits on the school's roof alongside a vegetative roof. Docalovich hopes the greenhouse soon will be filled with thriving plants. The plants will eventually be transplanted to community gardens and students will get to eat vegetables they grew, Callahan said.

Callahan and Docalovich outlined initiatives the city and Broughal have undertaken as part of the campaign, like city visits to daycare centers to measure the body mass index of children.

"Our goal is to make Bethlehem one of the healthiest cities in the country," Callahan said.

The grants will also help buy sports equipment for before- and after-school activities Broughal is implementing as it adopts the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley's COMPASS community school model.

The highlight of the assembly for students was the arrival of two Eagles cheerleaders who led the crowd in stretching exercises. Five students, who've been showing up an hour before school to work out twice a week, got to join the cheerleaders on stage for the stretches.

The morning fitness club is one of the community school initiatives, said coordinator Alicia Searock, who works for Lehigh University. A core group of at least 15 students come in Monday and Wednesday mornings at 7 a.m. to work out with and learn from Jason Brader, of FASST Performance in Quakertown.

Students also stay after school on Fridays to work out, Searock said. The program is funded through a Highmark Healthy High 5 grant.

Reporter Sara K. Satullo can be reached at 610-867-5000 or ssatullo@express-times.com. Talk about issues in your town at lehighvalleylive.com/forums.