This Earth Day, E.L. Haynes Public Charter School is proud to announce Euphemia’s Arboretum, an educational PreK-12 tree campus at our Petworth Campus (4501 Kansas Avenue NW) for the enjoyment and education of students, staff, families, and community. Named for the school’s namesake, Euphemia Loften Haynes, a teacher and educational advocate in DC, and the first Black woman to receive her PhD in mathematics. Dr. Haynes advocated against academic tracking and segregation, championing equitable education for all DC students in her long career.
E.L. Haynes is a public charter school serving approximately 1,200 students in grades PreK-12 in the District. Founded in 2004 in Columbia Heights, the school added a larger campus in Petworth in 2011, where it has planted many trees over the years for shade, beauty, and environmental benefit. Now, it is deepening its commitment to the growth and educational use of its trees through the
establishment of a formal arboretum.
Euphemia’s Arboretum will join the District’s four currently accredited arboreta, including the National Arboretum (Level IV) and U.S. Capitol Grounds (Level III). Arboreta are most often established at botanical gardens, parks, or universities, and their educational components are aimed at the general public. Uniquely, Euphemia’s Arboretum connects tree species, campus ecology, and observable life science to the school’s developing STEAM+ curriculum. To date, there are no other public school or public charter school campuses with arboreta in DC, Maryland, or Virginia.
The Petworth campus is currently home to over 36 biodiverse tree species and 155 total trees – thanks to recent plantings by staff at Casey Trees and the school’s Green Design Studio club. The digital map also details 91 street trees along the school’s fence – thanks to continued plantings and maintenance by the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and its Urban Forestry Division (UFD). Select trees will be labeled for student and public education with support from Plantsoon. As the seasons go on, we’ll strategically expand the arboretum map, biodiversity, and lessons.
Designed by Sam Nelson, educational arborist and founder of Tree Stories LLC, Euphemia’s Arboretum will be an accredited Level I arboretum (through ArbNet) featuring digital tree maps, bilingual plant labels, QR codes, web-linked learning content, and interactive opportunities for student contributions. Cercis LLC also donated time and talent to make the initiative possible. Special thanks also to the science department and high school students Jocelyn, Romuald, and Zak, the founding members of the Green Design Club. We appreciate their dedication to this arboretum initiative, the school gardens, and indoor plants, all of which they help to design and maintain.
We honor the legacy of Dr. Euphemia L. Hayes with an arboretum accessible to teachers, students, and neighbors that will grow over the seasons and years for generations to enjoy