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The Mahoning County Career and Technical Center’s school Board approved the “MCCTC School Farm” at a recent board meeting, and staff and students aren’t wasting anytime getting started.
Anthony Cycyk and Anina Karlovic, teachers at MCCTC, and School Farm student advisory members, already have a plan in place and are excited to get it started.
“It all started when we were studying the American food culture and the students could not believe how unhealthy Americans eat,” Karlovic said. “ They came up with ideas on what they could do to help, and starting a school farm was an overwhelming response.”
The students then came up with a plan and presented it to the school Board for their approval. The plan has three phases and is set to be completed by 2019. Phase one is focused on planting a half acre of a variety of crops to research the success and failures. They will also develop a system of summer volunteers to help work in the farm. In phase two they will concentrate on extending the growing season and focusing growing efforts on what can be used in the cafeteria. Grant writing and sustainability will also be a priority in this phase. In phase three there is a plan to incorporate community gardening plots so that community members can have a place to garden (zoning restrictions in developments do not often allow gardens).
The “MCCTC School Farm” will also include many programs from the school. They will be able to use the following programs: culinary program for fresh food as well as using the waste for compost, biotechnology for soil and plant research, Valley STEM for environmental science and clean energy classes, National Technical Honor Society for volunteer opportunities, digital print for marketing and floral design and landscaping opportunities.
“This will be such a positive hands-on learning environment for our teachers and students.” Cycyk said. “We are not only increasing the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, but we are also enhancing our platform for teaching core subjects.”