The Kutztown School District agriculture program received a $25,000 grant. Faculty, administration, local farmers and the Future Farmers of America students celebrated with ice cream during a check presentation ceremony Oct. 3.
“The celebration was wonderful on Monday. We recognized our students and staff for their hard work and determination in securing the $25,000 grant from Monsanto. A speech was given by our students to thank the local farmers who supported our grant as well as thank families and teachers,” said Kutztown Superintendent George F. Fiore, Ed.D. “The best way to describe the reactions was appreciation and pride. Our students were appreciative of the support shown by our community, administration, and staff. Our FFA program is one of the best in the region because our students show such great pride in their work. This is due to the leadership of Mrs. Celeste Ball, our agriculture teacher, the support of our families, and our dedicated School Board of Directors.”
The grant, from the America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education Program and sponsored by the Monsanto Fund, will be used to raise a small barn at the back of the high school to house animals, supplies and equipment needed to give hands-on opportunities to students taking agriculture classes.
“The grant is significant for Kutztown because we can grow our STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and agriculture programs through the building of the barn. There, we can provide real-world, hands-on experiences for our students in veterinary science by housing large and small animals as well as growing and storing of crops that can be utilized in our Family and Consumer Science classes farm-to-table- fresh herbs and grains mission. Additionally, our students will be involved in every aspect of the building of the barn which fosters engineering, mathematics, and physics skills.”
According to the grant release, farmers from across the U.S. nominated and selected the America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education grant recipients, awarding $2.3 million to rural public school districts to benefit science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs. Earlier this year, farmers from the Kutztown and surrounding areas, nominated Kutztown School District for consideration. After the nomination, the district developed its submission to enhance its STEM education offering through the “Barn Raising Project”. A group of science and math teachers reviewed each submission and selected Kutztown Area School District as a finalist.
“The Kutztown Area School District is thankful to our local farmers and Monsanto for providing our students with the opportunity to expand their learning opportunities outside the traditional classroom,” Fiore said.
“This grant provides opportunities for students and FFA members to grow in many different directions,” said Ball, Kutztown agriculture instructor and FFA advisor.
“Right now we don’t have a lot of open space in the lab area. There’s not enough room for everything that the kids want to do,” said Ball. “We don’t have animal facilities here so we’re limited to very short term projects.”
The barn, which will replace a small unused greenhouse, is 24 feet by 40 feet. Ball said the barn will provide space for short term animal projects, mechanics projects such as tractor restorations and small class trainings like tractor safety.
“It is a versatile learning and teaching space,” said Ball. “It provides a much needed open area for programming.”
Ball said there will be an outside overhang that can shelter things like rabbit pens and equipment. There is also a planned upper story that should provide storage space for feed, straw, hay and other supplies, she said.
“The barn will provide another needed dimension to an already strong and diversified agriculture program by providing hands-on opportunities for students who may have never have set foot on a farm as well as an opportunity to work with a variety of animals and mechanical projects,” said Ball.
The grant, in addition to funds raised by the Kutztown FFA members and community donors will be used to build the barn. Ball said the grant should cover most of the costs like the concrete base and a retaining wall, electric and water line installation and other building costs.
“The students and FFA members are excited about the addition of the barn and have been working hard for several years to provide the extra funding needed for the barn completion. They still need to raise additional funds to cover the entire cost of the building. These students are hardworking and devoted to seeing this project to fruition,” said Ball.
Kutztown FFA President Ayla Blatt and FFA Treasurer Zach Schell are also excited about the grant and the future barn.
“I think it’s going to be a big opportunity for the ag department,” said Blatt. “Kutztown’s ag department is kind of small so I think this will give us some room to grow and expand, to do some new things that our space right now does not allow with the facilities that we have.”
Schnell foresees more development of Ball’s animal classes.
“We can house animals and properly take care of them,” said Schnell. “There’s going to be a lot more opportunities.”
Blatt said agriculture education is important at Kutztown.
“We are from Kutztown so we are a very rural farming community. Many people in the FFA are going to go into ag careers,” said Blatt. “I think with this barn, it might draw some new people in… and they might decide that they want an ag career in the future.”
Schnell likes everything about the ag program.
“To have hands-on opportunities. With some of my classes its lectures, but in the ag program I can make projects and do my own thing so it’s a unique experience.”
“We’re very versatile. We have wildlife classes, horticulture classes, animal science, agriculture technology. I think that just because we’re small doesn’t mean that we can’t do great things,” said Blatt. “We have a very broad spectrum that we offer.”
Blatt hopes to attend Penn State, majoring in animal science and minoring in agriculture communications. She hopes for a future career in the dairy industry and maybe later an agriculture teacher. Her family operates a cattle and goat farm.
While Schnell does not plan to go into an agriculture career, the wood working and welding courses in the program help him toward his goal of becoming a mechanical engineer.
For the barn project, Ball also hopes to receive community and business support in the form of donated equipment time for the leveling and prepping of the area, building supplies like electrical wiring, piping. There will also be a need for farm gates and hardware, lighting fixtures and such.
“Last but not least, we’re hoping that former Kutztown FFA members and parents will pitch in and lend their expertise and help to the project,” said Ball.
Ball said she and technology teacher Zack Rudy, retired technology teacher and still active volunteer Harold Shaeffer spent much time and fact gathering to write the grant.
“If not for the many community farmers voting for the project through Monsanto, we would not have received the grant. We are very grateful for their support and faith in our ability to follow this through to completion,” said Ball.
The America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education program’s Farmer Advisory Council, which is composed of approximately 30 farmer leaders from across the country with an interest in agriculture and education, selected Grow Rural Education Grant recipients. Grant applications were judged based on the merit of the application, need and community support.
The America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education program began in 2011 and has since awarded more than $11 million to more than 700 rural school districts to enhance STEM education. For more about the America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education program, visit www.GrowRuralEducation.com.
