Common Ground – High School, Urban Farm, and Environmental Education Center

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High School Home Page

Visit our High School Home Page to learn all about our unique school and view information for current or perspective students.

Become A Student!

Are you or a young person you know looking for a high school where you can blaze your own path to college success, powerful leadership, a meaningful career, and a happy, whole, sustainable life?

Common Ground High School’s lottery is open now through March 7th! If you want to learn more about Common Ground High School, fill out an interest form, sign up for an Open House, or shadow a current student, use the link below!

Learn more & apply today!

Programs for children and families

Use the button below for links to all of our programs for children and families, including after school programs, school field trips, birthday parties, and more!

The Latest from Instagram

commongroundct

common ground is a high school,
urban farm and environmental
education center in a forest,
in the city. new haven, ct.

🍅 Farm Share Sign-Ups Now Open! 🍅 Head to bi

🍅 Farm Share Sign-Ups Now Open! 🍅 Head to bit.ly/cgfarmstore to join our farm share running for 14 WEEKS, from June 27th to Sept 26th. Each week you'll get a bag of in-season, chemical-free, farm fresh veggies (like kale, peppers, tomatoes, lettuce, tomatillos, cabbage and more) from the CG Farm! 🥬 This year, add-ons include: flowers 💐, eggs 🥚, coffee from @RaicesRebeldes ☕, corn from @MerryMountainFarm 🌽, fruit from local CT farms 🍎, and compost drop off! 🌱

🍅 With just $30 each week, you can support our farm and our farm’s future! With your help, we are able to provide fresh, local, organically grown food for you while training young people from our community! We also have “pay what you can” and payment plan options available at checkout.

🍅 Pick up will be on Thursdays from 3:00-5:30pm at Common Ground (358 Springside Ave, New Haven, CT) Sign up TODAY at bit.ly/cgfarmstore! More info here: bit.ly/farmshareFAQ *LINKS IN BIO*

Thank you to the @ctnofa Farm Share Program for their support of accessible shares! #ctnofafarmshare #ctfarmshareprogram #ctfarmsharecsa #farmshareCT #Connecticut

It's time for Friday Fauna & Flora with Aurora! 🎉 Featuring special guest contributors our NatureYear students & teachers. Message us YOUR photos 📷 to be featured next week! 💚

It was a cold, gray week but our NatureYear students still found plenty of reasons to smile - from playing & finding deer tracks in the mud, to hanging gorgeous frozen suncatchers, to becoming official tree-tectives. 😊🔍 Keilly's students made their own extra effective camouflage suit with added pine boughs! Plus, the Ravens group made and tested out a giant Eagle’s nest, and the Owl’s group needle felted birds and handcrafted miniature nests for them. 🪹🐦

Today marks the halfway point between the winter and spring solstices! 🎉 Aurora spotted bright green pea shoots sprouting inside the farmhouse. 🌱 School groups who visit Common Ground on field trips will harvest them to top pizzas they make!🍕Aurora also saw blue sky peeking through the clouds over Springside. 😶‍🌫️

There’s more blue sky in the forecast tomorrow - come see CG’s fauna and flora for yourself! Our campus is open every Saturday 10am-2pm. The animal yards are closed to visitors in the winter and staff hosts are not outside, but you are welcome to enjoy self guided play and exploration all winter! Our regular Open Farm Day season resumes April 6, 2024. 🥰

✨ Registration is open for the gardening worksho

✨ Registration is open for the gardening workshop series hosted by the @nhsofnewhaven, a longtime partner of Common Ground! 🌱 The 2024 NHS Organic Vegetable Gardening Class starts on Feb 3rd and is now offering hybrid options for the first time ever! Register for in-person or online classes at bit.ly/nhsgarden (linked in bio) and help spread the word to anyone you know with a passion for gardening! Classes are free for community gardeners and individuals in need of a scholarship. 💚

✨ WE'RE HIRING! ✨ CG is looking for a full-tim

✨ WE'RE HIRING! ✨ CG is looking for a full-time Senior Manager, Grant Writer and Contracts Specialist - APPLY TODAY at bit.ly/grantwriter24! Join our growing team of passionate, experienced fundraising professionals and help support CG’s programming needs.

✨ If persuasive grant writing comes naturally to you, you are a fast learner, a curious and persistent person, you bring a strong background in project management, and you want to be a member of a close-knit, supportive team - this might be the perfect role for you!

✨ For more details and how to apply go to bit.ly/grantwriter24 (LINK IN BIO). 💚

It's time for Friday Fauna & Flora with Aurora! 🎉 Featuring special guest contributors, Keilly (Environmental Educator & CG Alum), Schandra (Compost Coordinator), Rebecca (Community Programs Director) and our NatureYear Blue Jays group. Message us YOUR photos 📷 to be featured next week! 💚

It was quite a rainy week and most of the snow melted away. 🌧️ Keilly and her students made the most of the wet weather by sliding in the mud! Schandra saw a curious orb-shaped chicken staying dry in the coop. 🐔 She also spotted Barley the goat cheesin’ for the camera! 🐐😂 Rebecca discovered some thriving witch’s butter fungus, and the Blue Jays group found some little brown mushrooms in a tree! 🍄 Aurora admired the sky over the farm in between rain showers.

It’s not supposed to rain tomorrow - come see CG’s fauna, flora and fungi for yourself! Our campus is open every Saturday 10am-2pm!The animal yards are closed to visitors in the winter and staff hosts are not outside, but you are welcome to enjoy self guided play and exploration all winter! Our regular Open Farm Day season resumes April 6, 2024. 🥰

✨ Celebrating Staff: Meet Paul! ✨ CGHS Biology

✨ Celebrating Staff: Meet Paul! ✨ CGHS Biology teacher Paul Clare started with us this past fall, teaching Life Science to our 9th grade students. Paul previously worked in Jamaica in various school settings. Once he got to CG, he enjoyed the similarities that our campus shared with his last school - the farm, nature, and the green open space. Paul loves teaching and motivating students to learn, and we are equally as happy to have the opportunity to work with Paul at CG!

💚 “Students come with experience, knowledge and information,” Paul says, “You have to value who they are as individuals and what they bring to the table. You have to value their opinions and what they have to say.” We love Paul’s approach to working with our young leaders here at CG and teaching! Thank you so much for being a valuable part of our spirited team of educators, we see how much the students enjoy working with you! You can read more about Paul and his passion for teaching science in our CG blog at bit.ly/cgwelcomepaul *LINK IN BIO* ✨

🎉 Shoutout to Gammy, our Student Affairs Manage

🎉 Shoutout to Gammy, our Student Affairs Manager at CG (Photo 2), for organizing amazing trips for our Outdoor Leadership class and to CG’s Support Educator Ericka (Photo 5) for capturing some incredible photos of their overnight adventure to the @appalachianmountainclub Mohican Outdoor Center in NJ. Students got to use their hiking, camping and outdoor skills and it was “the best camping trip with the best people,” in Ericka’s words. The love and joy truly shines bright through these images! 💚

⬅️ Swipe for a look at the Outdoor Leadership Class on another hiking trip to Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden, CT (Photo 10), where students focused on trip planning, route planning, leaving no trace, and essential hiking equipment. 🥾 Kudos to our CGHS students for practicing good outdoor leadership skills! 💚

🌱 If you know a student who would benefit from outdoor experiences and leadership opportunities like these offered at CGHS, they can apply at bit.ly/becomeacgstudent (link in bio). Our lottery for new students is currently open and accepting applications through March 1st at 5pm!

📸 Photos 1-9 by Ericka Toney (@eismorethanphotography)

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Upcoming events

Common Ground High School Open House

March 25 @ 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Common Ground High School Accepted Student & Family Open House

April 5 @ 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Common Ground High School Open House

April 22 @ 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm

See Full Calendar »

Recent Blog Posts

Common Ground Board Meeting Agenda for February 24, 2025

February 24, 2025 AGENDA By Microsoft Teams Join the meeting now Meeting ID: 277 710 433 795 Passcode: sN3CC9XP Welcome Public Comment (5:30) (two minutes per person for a total time limit of 30 minutes,

Common Ground Board Meeting Agenda for January 27, 2025

January 27, 2025 AGENDA By Microsoft Teams Join the meeting now Meeting ID: 240 000 422 943 Passcode: xt3PB3Ac Welcome Public Comment (5:30) (two minutes per person for a total time limit of 30 minutes,

Seeds of Change: A Celebration of Growth, Community, and Empowerment

On a snowy Saturday, January 11, 2025, Common Ground hosted the first Seeds of Change summit, a powerful gathering that brought together 40 attendees from 15 organizations, high schools, and colleges across New Haven, united in their commitment