Michelle Obama tours garden, indoor farm at Newark school

The First Lady visited Philip's Academy Charter School as part of her efforts to promote healthy eating in schools

NEWARK - First Lady Michelle Obama stopped by a Newark charter school Thursday as part of her ongoing efforts to promote better access to healthy foods for students across the country.

The visit to Philip's Academy Charter School included time in a rooftop vegetable garden, where students help plant and harvest lettuce, tomatoes, kale and other greens, as well as a sit-down in the "Dining Room" where the food is incorporated into school breakfasts and lunches.

"Just the fact the First Lady is here is exciting for all of us, including our kids," said Frank Mentesana, director of the Philip's Academy's "EcoSpaces" program.

"It's most especially exciting for us because our mission of healthy eating and health and wellness is directly in line with everything Michelle Obama has been doing for the last 7 years."

Obama did not address or take questions from the media during the hour she spent at the school. The visit marked the second time a member of the family visited Newark in the last six months, after President Barack Obama announced major criminal justice reforms at the city's Rutgers campus in November.

Mentesana added that students in the K-8 school, where just under 50 percent of families qualify for free and reduced lunches, were able to show off the skills they had earned through the program to the First Lady.

How Rutgers-Newark landed a (last-minute) visit from President Obama

Beginning in the early grades, children work in the garden as well as an indoor growing lab through a partnership with vertical farming company AeroFarms - which is building the world's largest vertical farm in the city's Ironbound section. The lab produces lettuce and other leafy green for use in the school's salad bar.

Mentesana and other employees also work with students and their families to incorporate healthier habits outside at their homes - where Newark's many so-called "food deserts" make access to fresh produce and other nutritious food difficult.

"We really try to not only address nutrition but try to address it very comprehensively," he said.

Julian Igwebuike, a 14-year-old Philip's Academy eighth grader, was one of about a dozen students who sat with Obama in the dining room after she toured the indoor growing lab.

"It was pretty crazy, but exciting at the same time," he said. "She was a really inspiring person."

While his favorite lunch option remains macaroni and cheese, he added that the school had allowed him to appreciate with foods such as broccoli and beets that many of his peers might otherwise hope to avoid.

"All vegetables aren't bad for you," he said. "They taste good sometimes."