Denver Urban Gardens

“The 990 is reviewed by the Executive Director and the Controller. The Controller compares the information in the 990 to the annual audit report for accuracy and addresses any inconsistencies found with the auditor any necessary corrections would be made prior to filing. The 990 is available to any board member upon request.”

“All staff and board members are required to review the conflict of interest policy and complete and sign a conflict of interest statement at the beginning of each fiscal year. New hires and any new board members added during the year are also given this policy and are required to complete and sign the conflict of interest statement. This statement includes disclosure of all current and potential conflicts of interest.”

“The policy of DUG is to have the Board of Directors conduct a performance review of the Executive Director, which includes a self-evaluation from the Executive Director. The Board then reviews the annual budget and financial information and on occasion does a review of prevailing market rates for a similar position, the conclusions of which come in the form of documentation of any potential increase in salary in the Board meeting minutes.”

“Financial information is available through the websites of GuideStar and the Colorado Secretary of State. Governing documents and conflict of interest policy documents are on file in the DUG office and are available for public review as requested by the general public and grant sources.”

“Program Service Expenses 201,942, Grants and allocations 0, Revenue 0 See Schedule O”

“School Gardening and Nutritional Education Programs - More than 40 of our community gardens are located at schools, where students and community members garden side-by-side. Our Connecting Generations mentoring program brings older adult volunteers into schools to support teachers and maximize use of gardens year-round to advance hands-on learning in science, while improving the nutritional health and well being of both the children and older adults. Our Helping Kids Get Healthy Workshop Series provides ongoing training for youth educators in how to effectively use school gardens, and our summer Garden Clubs keep children engaged in growing and healthy eating when school is no longer in session, but gardens are thriving. Our Youth Farmers Markets provide access to fresh fruits and vegetables to underserved neighborhoods, and provide students tangible entrepreneurial learning opportunities, such as math, customer service, and marketing. Research from the Colorado School of Public Health shows that community gardens contribute directly to participant increases in fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity, while strengthening critical social networks in the school community. DUGs Helping Kids Get Healthy Workshops served 77 youth educators in 2013, and DUGs youth education team provided onsite trainings in nutrition and gardening education to more than 700 teachers, parents, and school volunteers. 20 Connecting Generations Mentors worked with 726 students in 7 schools.”

“Ongoing Training Programs - Our Master Composter and Master Community Gardener Education Programs feature a train-the-trainer model that serves as a way to deeply engage those we serve in our mission, while enhancing the connections and capacity of our metro-wide network of community gardeners and volunteers. Through these programs, we train more than 50 individuals per year in composting, organic horticulture, and community organizing. Those trainees then utilize their new skills to support our growing network of community gardens. This model allows DUG to significantly and efficiently expand our capacity to reach more people through our education programs, while providing meaningful community leadership training and opportunities to members of our community. DUGs Master Community Gardener Program trained 29 volunteers, who contributed a total of 532 Giveback Hours to community members throughout Metro Denver. DUGs Master Composter Program trained 27 volunteers, who contributed 1,513 GiveBack Hours of compost education at our Gove demonstration site, at schools and farmers markets, and at community gardens throughout the state.”

“Technical Assistance - Denver Urban Gardens staff provided technical assistance to at least eight youth/school garden programs, 20 community garden programs, and 5 market SNAP redemption programs outside of the DUG network in 2013.”