Mission

The Community School is a private non-sectarian co-educational day school serving 30 students in grades 6 to 12. Our students are bright, highly motivated young people from 15 towns in central New Hampshire and western Maine.

We believe learning is a rigorous and joyful pursuit which calls on each individual's talents and interests, and promotes appreciation of the interconnectedness of people and places. At The Community School, our mission is to support students on their individual learning paths within a caring and respectful community.

Organic Garden

Click here for the 2010 csa brochure!

The Community School Garden is a 4-acre certified organic farm which connects the students in the school with the garden by having students help seed, plant, weed, harvest, and cook with the food harvested from the garden.

Organic gardening focuses on producing healthy vegetables through natural methods, which means no chemical pesticides or fertilizers. We build our soil through composting, mulching, and cover cropping; manage our pests with companion planting, organic pest control, and hand picking; and control weeds through mulching, and a whole lot of hand weeding. Using these methods provides healthier and safer foods.

Community Supported Agriculture
Through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), a strong partnership is created between the consumer and the farmer. CSA is an arrangement which enables consumers and farmers to share the risks and benefits of sustainable agriculture. Each growing season, members pay for a share up front and in return, receive weekly harvests of produce in season.

Shares are typically large enough for a family of 4, depending on how much your family eats. The CSA season lasts for 16 weeks (with an option of an 8-week share for just July and August) beginning in mid-June and going through the first week of October. There will be multiple days to choose from to pick-up your share. Produce is displayed and members pack their own bags.

As a member we want to give you every opportunity to feel a part of the farm. The weekly newsletter lets you know what is happening on the farm and there is always a recipe included to help you be creative with the vegetables you receive week after week as well as the specialty vegetables we will be introducing to you.

A typical garden share from the CSA

A typical garden share from the CSA

We encourage members to roam the fields, ask questions, and take advantage of the pick your own herbs and flowers which are included in the share price. Another way to get involved with the farm is through the work share. Members can receive $50 off the price of the share when 10 hours are worked on the farm. There are many different skills needed on the farm. What skill would you like to share with the farm?

National Gardening Association's Charlie Nardozzi (third from right) tours the TCS gardens for our first Sustainable Saturday.

Get to know Brady Potter, our farm manager.   Brady comes to The Community School from the Hawthorne Valley Farm in Ghent, New York, where she was trained in organic farming techniques, worked on the 300-member CSA vegetable garden, and led farm-based educational activities for teens aged 11-17.  According to Brady, “My passions focus on local, sustainable agriculture and on educating individuals about how to grow their own food.  Healthy food, grown with love, nourishes our bodies and brings community together.”

Brady graduated summa cum laude from the University of New England in Biddeford, Maine, and received her M.S. in Environmental Education from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she participated in the Audubon Expedition Institute (AEI).  Students involved in the AEI graduate program travel as a learning community throughout the different regions of the United States studying natural history and ecology, cultural diversity, community growth, and transformative education.

You may contact Brady at farm@communityschoolnh.org.

The Community School | 1164 Bunker Hill Road | South Tamworth, NH 03883
Phone (603) 323-7000 | Fax (603) 323-8240