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The Community as Classroom uses the Fruit Belt neighborhood of Buffalo, NY, as a “classroom” where students use the knowledge and skills learned in the traditional classroom to understand the challenges their community faces and solve neighborhood problems. Four components comprise the initiative: (1) Community Art, (2) Futures City and Neighborhood Building, (3) Community Heritage, and (4) Community Parks and Gardens. The varied components are highly interactive and relate to different aspects of the community development process. The Community as Classroom complements the school’s curriculum, but it is not integrated into regular classroom activities. All of the activities occur during the school day, with students participating in the program being given release time from their science/social studies blocks. Referrals to the program come from the school’s guidance counselor, principal, and teachers, with some students referring themselves after hearing about the program from participating students. Community as Classroom programs are taught by UB undergraduate and graduate students from a wide array of UB Departments, including Urban Planning, Architecture, Education, Engineering, and Visual Arts.

1. Frida's Rebel Gardens: In 2001, the UB CENTER transformed three vacant parcels of land across from Futures Academy, where dilapidated housing once existed, into a community garden. The project was more than symbolic. The vacant parcels were the first and last thing Futures Academy students saw to start and end the school day. The message the vacant parcels sent to the children was that no one cared about the neighborhood. The community garden, designed by Futures Academy students, was the first step to helping the students understand that they could change their community if they were willing to put forth the effort. Since then, the UB CENTER has added a vegetable garden as well as a bird garden. The gardens are used as a home for several public art projects to teach the principles of community gardening and urban food systems and assist in the visual transformation of the areas surrounding the school.