Lisa Whittlesey, senior program specialist with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and international program director for the Junior Master Gardener, JMG, program in the Texas A&M Department of Horticultural Sciences, earned a national award for advancing youth development through global gardening programs.
Whittlesey received the American Horticultural Society Jane L. Taylor Award, a national honor recognizing leadership in youth gardening and education. Through the Junior Master Gardener program, Whittlesey leads a global AgriLife Extension initiative using hands-on gardening to support youth health, learning and environmental awareness.
Lisa Whittlesey, AgriLife Extension Program Specialist and International Junior Master Gardener Program coordinator, Department of Horticultural Sciences, received the Jane L. Taylor award from the American Horticultural Society for her lasting impact through children and youth gardening initiatives. (Sam Craft/Texas A&M AgriLife)
“I was very honored to receive the award because Jane Taylor was a pioneer for children and youth development through gardening,” Whittlesey said. “Gardening programs connect kids with nature and soil and plants and teaches them lessons they can carry throughout their lives, and being able to carry that torch as an educator is special.”
Expanding youth development through gardening
Whittlesey directs the JMG program, which operates in all 50 states and has expanded globally through partnerships with the Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture, JMG Korea, and U.S. military and National Guard projects.
Over a three-decade career, she has authored and implemented 12 award-winning youth environmental curricula and online courses for youth and educators. An outstanding example is the JMG’s “Learn, Grow, Eat and GO!,” a research-based program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to improve child activity and nutrition and reduce obesity through school-based gardening and education.
Whittlesey’s work extends into classrooms and communities. In her role within the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Whittlesey lectures for basic horticulture, floral design and socio-horticulture classes.
The annual Bugs N Blooms event hosted by the Junior Master Gardener Program is one of many experiential learning initiatives Whittlesey conducts to reach youth. (Sam Craft/Texas A&M AgriLife)
Whittlesey is an instructor for AGLS-125 for incoming freshman students in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences each fall semester and has been honored as a finalist for university instructor of the year from the Texas A&M University Hullabaloo U freshman experience program.
She provides hands-on instruction during JMG events and coordinates with school districts to incorporate program curriculum for school-based gardens on dozens of campuses around the state.
Beyond program leadership, Whittlesey has presented at over 320 conferences and shared her expertise through national media outlets including HGTV, Southern Living, and Better Homes and Gardens, and as an author for Texas Gardener magazine.
Whittlesey earned her bachelor’s and master’s degree in horticulture with an emphasis in education/curriculum development from the Department of Horticultural Sciences.
“We know that gardening program experiences positively impact kids and families,” she said. “It’s important for them to have these experiences and discover how nature, plants and planting seeds can help them be happier and healthier.”
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