OSU’s littlest learners benefit from professor’s pursuit of Master Gardening CertificationPage Title
Monday, November 10, 2025
Media Contact: Kirsi McDowell | Communications Coordinator | 405-744-8320 | kirsi@okstate.edu
From seed to salad plate, Cleo L. Craig Child Development Laboratory students at Oklahoma State University are gaining hands-on experience in cultivating
produce.
Dr. Lauren Amaya, dietetic internship director in the Department of Nutritional Sciences and state diabetes Extension specialist, is providing outreach to CDL students in the Bobby Hayes Family Garden as she works toward completing her Master Gardening Certification.
Amaya — a registered dietitian who has taught courses such as the science of food preparation, culinary principles of nutrition and medical nutrition therapy — began the certification through OSU Extension’s Master Gardener program in early 2025.
The certification offers in-depth training in horticulture, gardening and sustainable practices, and includes a volunteer component to support community education and outreach. The formal coursework requires weekly attendance at a three- to four-hour class taught by OSU Extension subject matter experts.
“The training feels much like a college-level course and covers everything from soil science and composting to pest management and plant health, all grounded in research-based practices,” Amaya said.
Interns commit to donating between 40 and 56 hours of volunteer time over a year to become Certified Master Gardeners. Many participants continue contributing well beyond the required hours, staying involved with the program annually.
Certified Master Gardeners serve as local horticulture resources for their communities and help extend the reach of OSU Extension programming across the state.
“I chose to pursue the certification because it aligns with my passion for connecting food, health and education. Gardening plays an important role in food access, nutrition education and lifelong health behaviors — all central to my work in nutritional sciences,” Amaya said.
“This training strengthens my ability to support garden-based outreach, teach practical food skills and engage families in hands-on, meaningful ways.”
For the volunteer component of the certification, Amaya chose to volunteer with the CDL, where she already has an established partnership with them through her nutritional science cooking classes.
Amaya’s personal ties to the CDL — her child attended from 2021 to 2024 — sealed the deal.
“I’ve always been impressed with their commitment to early childhood development and experiential learning. I knew it would be a place where garden education could be meaningful and fun,” Amaya said.
CDL director Sandy Major was thrilled to have Amaya complete her volunteer hours with them, noting the role Amaya is playing in helping to train future gardening experts.
“In 2018, the Bobby Hayes Family Garden in honor of Bobby and Claranne Hayes was installed
at the CDL as a part of our outdoor learning environment,” Major said.
“... Dr. Amaya saw or heard about all the different types of plants we were trying to grow. Our first year was a lot of trial and error on what we could manage in the raised boxes. That experience — and her knowledge of how our classroom environments are set up for observation and teaching through hands-on learning — helped this project to blossom.”
The CDL students have been involved in each phase of the process, starting their own seeds in containers to establish growth ahead of transplanting. Each day, the children help to water the garden with one of the teaching staff and harvest the produce as it’s ready to be picked.
Most excitingly, the students are eating what they grow.
Children pick strawberries, which the kitchen cuts up for a sweet addition to their lunch. Carrots are also picked and taken to the kitchen to prepare a nutritious side dish.
“We may only pick 10 carrots and need 30 more for carrot coins on the next day’s menu, but the children see the items they have grown show up in salads, side dishes and snacks throughout their day — and that is the point of it,” Major said.
“We try to change what we grow each year. Having a fall and spring garden is important. The recently added student farm just west of campus is a great example of the larger-scale production for our children to see.”
The garden project is the type of hands-on learning the CDL strives to provide its students.
“We know that more and more curriculum has been developed to support classroom gardens or schoolwide gardens. Ag in the Classroom is one example that provides support through the OSU Extension,” Major said.
The project has touched every class at the CDL.
For toddlers, it has become crucial in engaging their senses, allowing them to observe changes, help water plants and otherwise experience valuable hands-on learning.
For the older classes, they are able to observe concepts of plant lifecycles and engage in sensory experiences such as smelling herbs. Later, they eat salads and pizza prepared in the school kitchen using their harvest.
“When the teachers tell the kids that the items from our garden are on their plates, they are more excited to try it,” classroom teacher Shelly Reagin said.
The garden ties in with a curriculum of plant and animal dependency, including the importance of pollination, adding another exciting layer to their usual butterfly and ladybug life cycle unit.
“The children were excited to release the ladybugs in the garden to help eat the aphids that can be harmful. It’s a great place for them to learn where our food comes from and how to care for plants,” Reagin said.
Amaya volunteered weekly at the CDL to complete her certification requirement. She helped maintain their raised garden beds and engaged children in the process — watering, checking on seedlings and talking about what’s growing — eventually advising when crops were ready for harvest along the way.
“What stands out most to me about the experience is how enthusiastic the kids are,” Amaya said.
“They get excited about every little sprout, and it’s a great reminder of how powerful early experiences with nature and food can be. I’m grateful for the chance to give back to a place that meant so much to my family and to support their mission in this small way.”
Photos by: Kelly Kerr
Story By: Kirsi McDowell | Aspire