{"id":15734,"date":"2012-09-06T12:00:47","date_gmt":"2012-09-06T16:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=15734"},"modified":"2012-09-28T15:54:52","modified_gmt":"2012-09-28T19:54:52","slug":"dome-field-advantage-mini-u-to-unveil-new-greenhouse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2012\/09\/06\/dome-field-advantage-mini-u-to-unveil-new-greenhouse\/","title":{"rendered":"Dome field advantage: Mini U. to unveil new greenhouse"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo<\/a>

A ribbon cutting for the formal opening of the geo-dome will be on Thursday, September 13, at 10:30 a.m. at Mini U. The event is open to the public.<\/p><\/div>\n

Moms and dads, don\u2019t be surprised if your son or daughter comes home from preschool with a green thumb this fall.<\/p>\n

Rain or shine, snow or drought, students at the Mini University (Mini U) child care center at Wright State University will soon be heading to class in a state-of-the-art geodesic greenhouse\u2014a self-sustaining, dome-shaped structure that\u2019s been built next to the school.<\/p>\n

One of many important upgrades to Mini U over the summer, the construction of the geo-dome has students, staff and parents eager for classes to begin in the greenhouse. Mini U also renovated its kitchen, added an additional infant classroom and replaced all flooring and carpets in the center.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s quite amazing,\u201d said Kim Kramer, director of Mini University at Wright State. \u201cIt gives the children a year-round benefit by exposing them to lessons about planting fruits and vegetables, the growing life cycle, sustainability technologies and of course a great outdoor classroom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>

A photo of the geodesic greenhouse while it was being constructed this summer. Parents, students and staff all volunteered to build it.<\/p><\/div>\n

The geo-dome is 33 feet in diameter, stands over 14 feet tall and occupies 850 square feet of real estate in the Mini U backyard. Powered by three solar panels, its fans, vents and four-foot-deep water tank independently irrigate and ventilate the chamber, creating an ideal climate for growing plants, flowers, vegetables and fruits in the many raised beds within its walls.<\/p>\n

Kramer said one staff member will be in charge of the greenhouse and will teach classes there on a weekly basis, incorporating science experiments, life-cycle lessons and plenty of digging in the dirt. Partnerships with university departments in biology, earth sciences and sustainability are also being pursued.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve always been a strong supporter of exposing children to every opportunity possible, and we know that children learn best through hands-on, developmentally appropriate activities,\u201d said Kramer.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>

A look inside the Mini University at Wright State University's new learning space\u2013a geodesic greenhouse.<\/p><\/div>\n

Mini U students have long been involved in green-thumb activities, but Kramer believes the geo-dome will take their learning to the next level and provide an experience that few preschool students get to have.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am proud of the high quality care we provide for children, and we are confident they will benefit from using this greenhouse.\u201d Kramer said. \u201cIt is certainly a unique addition to Wright State University and our surrounding communities, and it is something you will not find at other child care centers.\u201d<\/p>\n

With so many Wright State faculty, staff and students using the Wright State Mini U for their child care, Kramer said the volunteer support they received in construction of the geo-dome was overwhelming. Many Wright State engineering, service-learning and early childhood development students also pitched in to make it happen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think for the parents and students that volunteered, it definitely gave a sense of buy-in and ownership,\u201d said Kramer. \u201cWhen I see the look on people\u2019s faces when they see the geo-dome, you can tell they\u2019re proud they helped build that, and that\u2019s what our community is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n

A ribbon cutting for the formal opening of the geo-dome will be on Thursday, September 13, at 10:30 a.m. at Mini U. The event is open to the public.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Moms and dads, don\u2019t be surprised if your son or daughter comes home from preschool with a green thumb this fall. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":15736,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[729,2038,711,336,725,727,715,717,719,2024],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15734","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-around-campus","category-campus-growth","category-faculty-staff","category-features","category-home-news-sidebar","category-homepage-photos-and-video","category-news","category-photos","category-special-categories","category-staff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15734","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15734"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15734\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16327,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15734\/revisions\/16327"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15734"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15734"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15734"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}