Lou rodarte

Louis (Lou) Rodarte is a native Arizonan and Master Gardener whose focus has been school gardens. He and his wife manage Echo Canyon School’s gardens, where there are more than 20 raised gardens, a desert habitat with native tortoises, a butterfly and hummingbird habitat, numerous hanging gardens, citrus and fruit trees and pots throughout the campus with flowers. Echo Canyon, a Pre-K through 8th grade school in the Scottsdale Unified School District, hosts a remarkable Chef in the Garden program through which a chef visits each class to prepare food grown and harvested from the gardens with students. Lou leads a progressive approach with the teachers toward utilizing the gardens to enhance curriculum and fills the gap between teachers and garden science. He has previously teamed up with ASU Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College in his work with Echo Canyon School and is sought out for consulting on school gardens regularly. Lou led the effort to organize the Maricopa County Master Gardeners into a committee supporting school gardens; he is also a member of the Blue Watermelon Project, a group of chefs, farmers and food advocates focused on encouraging students to develop healthy eating habits. Besides school gardens, Lou advises the community on raising desert tortoises and chickens. He is a Human Resource professional and owns a consulting business called Sanders Wade Rodarte Consulting Inc.