Lexington, KY - Agriculture education may have taken a back seat in many school districts across the country, but in Fayette County it is being resurrected in big ways with the support of the local public school district and some dedicated educators who see its value.
In fact, one of the county's career and technical centers will soon take advantage of a land "gift" to expand their existing agriculture program. The expansion will result in a working farm of sorts, aimed at educating students in agriculture-related areas ranging from soil conservation to the handling of horses.
James Hardin, coordinator of career and technical education programs in the Fayette County Public School (FCPS) system, said the Locust Trace AgriScience Farm, as it will be known, is part of the Eastside Technical Center's present program, which until now has primarily revolved around horticulture.
"To my knowledge, there is nothing in the state that will come close to what we are about to put in," he said. "It will be an actual working farm that will have pasture land, paddocks for an equine program, hay production areas, crop production areas, outdoor classrooms, orchards, (and) a community garden. And we also plan on having an area for native grasses and forestry," he said. "We're talking about having beef cattle on the property, free-range chickens, goat and swine production, and sheep and rabbit production."
Once completed, the project will consist of the traditional agriscience program, an equine program and a vet-tech program. Hardin said there will also be an area dedicated to aquaculture.
"Our problem is not if we have enough programs but how many programs we will limit ourselves to. We really want to be as much a community partner as we possibly can," he said. "It's a massive project we are undertaking, and we are really looking at involving our entire community, even down to how we can provide some foods back to our local school cafeterias."
Of course, the catalyst behind the project was the donation of the land, which came by way of the federal government and was once part of Lexington's Federal Correctional Institute. Hardin said the land became available through a federal public benefit program, in which applications were taken from the community stating proposals for its use. FCPS initially submitted a proposal for a bus parking garage, but upon hearing about the desire to expand the ag program at Eastside from Hardin, principal Joe Norman and agriscience teacher Carrie Davis, a new proposal was submitted to the Department of Education in Washington. The request was granted, and the 82 acres were provided to the school system at no cost.
"I personally feel it is of the utmost importance that we put a program like this in place. A lot of people look at Fayette County and don't fully see how much agriculture is here in the heart of Lexington," said Hardin. "So putting this program in is so critical in bringing awareness to the students who live in the city to know how much agriculture is around. It is the same for those students that are a part of the agriculture community, saying that what they are doing is of vital importance to the survival of our community, our state, of our nation and our world."
Fayette County Public Schools Superintendent Stu Silberman said the prospects of the new venture being a success are very good.
"We are very excited about the possibilities the agriscience program brings to our students. What we're trying to do is provide as many niches as possible, because when a kid gets into his or her niche, they become more engaged. And when they become more engaged, they achieve at higher levels," he said.
Silberman added that in surveying students, 750 showed an interest in the program areas that will be available thanks to the expansion. He credited Hardin, Norman and Davis with making the idea a reality, as well as Mary Wright, FCPS chief operating officer, who drove the process of working with the federal government to get the land donation. Silberman also recognized the school board for their forward-thinking leadership.
"We are extremely fortunate as a community to have the board of education that we have. They supported us in moving in this direction, moving forward and doing what is best for the kids," he said.
Despite being home to the second largest city in the state, Fayette County is second in total agriculture receipts in Kentucky, making it a prime location to showcase agriculture education.
"There has been a tremendous response from the students in adding the areas of equine and animal science and a vet-tech program," said Norman. "We'll have a large land area now where students can get more hands-on experience than what we have been able to offer in the past."
And Norman is not wasting any time in putting the farm to use. "We're already using it some. As part of the construction process, in building and designing, we are taking students out to do soil and water samples," he said. "As we continue, we'll be implementing a lot of green technology like solar power and reclaimed water, and the students will learn about those technologies."
This, Norman added will be beneficial to future students as they learn the importance of lessening the carbon footprint on the land. He also said that the horticulture class that was established at the school in 1975 was the last of the ag education classes left in the school system, and this project is a big step for the district to bring back something that was dying out of the educational process.
Debbie Anderson, who heads up the Division of Career and Technical Education in the Kentucky Department of Education, said agricultural education is valuable to all students regardless of their backgrounds.
"Agriculture education is alive and well and is evolving into a higher level course of study. Students looking at agriculture for a career opportunity are looking beyond the actual family farm. They are looking at programs in agribusiness, food sciences and the sustainability of the planet," she said. "Ag classes are for everybody."
Anderson added that on top of what ag education already teaches, it has that leadership component as well.
"We have students developing high-level leadership skills, and there are businesses that seek out people with that kind of background," she said.
Davis has been in the classroom teaching ag-related courses for 10 years and has seen firsthand the importance of agriculture education.
"For my students that come from an ag-production background, it's exciting to teach them new production practices, and they become a resource for other students, bringing practical experience and examples to our class," she said. "But it's exciting for the new kids, to show them where their food comes from and to get them connected to the earth."
Davis added that it is also important to show students there are more ways into the agriculture sector other than being raised on a farm.
"That is exactly what we try to do - just to be a link or a stepping stone between them and the ag industry, whether it's through job shadowing, mentors or a co-op program. It gives them a set of skills."
Davis also said that today's students seem to really be in touch with knowing their food sources and taking care of the land.
For now, the farm will be a work in progress, but the promise it holds will be a focal point for all involved as it progresses to its full potential.
"The sky is the limit; there is nothing we can't do out there," said Davis of the farm. "For the students, this may never be a career, but it could be their hobby or their passion, and they will learn how to produce food and market it. It's very dangerous to not get past that shelf at the grocery store. There will be a place to apply every part of that education."