CONNORVILLE — Buckeye Local Junior-Senior High School has gained funding to expand its agriculture program through a $35,000 Grow Ohio Grant.

The money, which is provided through the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce, will help acquire hydroponics equipment that will be used by the junior and senior high students and the intent is to have home-grown produce for the school’s Foods program and cafeteria. BLHS Ag teacher and FFA adviser Cameron Best said the “Panther Produce: Growing Futures Hydroponics Lab” would serve as a catalyst for agricultural career awareness and food systems learning at Buckeye Local Jr. High.

Best said officials applied last spring and learned of windfall in September. The hydroponics equipment should be installed during the next few weeks and will bolster opportunities to learn about farming and agriculture, which is a leading field in Ohio. The equipment will be provided by Fork Farms of Wisconsin and includes a six-month starter kit with seeds which will grow without the use of soil.

“It will provide key hands-on learning opportunities for students in grades 6-12,” he added. “Students will learn how to maintain and care for hydroponic grown produce that we will put to use in our Foods/home economics programs and in the school cafeteria.”

He worked with Superintendent Coy Sudvary, high school Principal Luke Parsons, BLJHS Principal Andy Long and Dustin Pyles and Marcy Raymond of VAZA Consulting on the grant submission and was pleased to receive the grant.

“We are extremely excited to have been awarded the Ohio Grow Grant and are beyond excited to implement and get things rolling for our students. Last year, we received the Ohio Farm Bureau grant for $25,000 that allowed us to build a state-of-the-art greenhouse for our Ag program and we also received a Best Practice Grant through the Jefferson County Educational Service Center last fall.”

Construction has begun on the greenhouse while a corn plot and vegetable gardens were planted last spring to supply the Foods programs. Best said the hydroponics equipment will be kept inside the school and maintained by students, while it will grow leafy greens, herbs, and vegetables to supply the Foods program.

“The hydroponics towers we plan to buy with the Grow Ohio grant will be kept inside of the school with one being in a junior high science room and the other two in the stairwell lobby between the junior high and high school wing,” he commented.

The FFA organization is now in its second year and yields about 40 members, while other activities have included hatching chicks in a classroom incubator with plans to establish Panther Farms on the school grounds this spring to house poultry for laying eggs to further the food supply.

“This will allow students to get hands-on experience with learning all aspects of animal care and management in addition to providing our foods program with farm fresh eggs,” Best commented.

He said officials were currently applying for a Farm to School grant to help provide key equipment and features to expand Panther Farms and take it to the next level.

Parsons said it was another layer of learning for students at BLHS.

“We started building on the FFA program and we knew it was popular, and it’s growing faster. The greenhouse is going in for the high school FFA and they are teaming up with the junior high for career-tech education to bring in the hydroponics lab. This is all building up and we’re very grateful to expand the FFA program,” Parsons commented, adding that Best was responsible for its success. “We hope to have the Panther Farms in Haven’s Field, and with agriculture being No. 1 in Ohio, we have families that have farms and students who want to get into the field.”

Long added that it will expose the junior high students to the process and hopefully sprout interest in future careers.

“We’re excited to receive the Grow Ohio Grant at Buckeye Local Junior High. This funding will allow us to set up a hydroponics system, giving our students hands-on experience in agricultural science,” Long said. “Our goal is to spark curiosity about where food comes from and introduce them to potential careers in agriculture and food systems. We believe projects like this help students connect what they learn in the classroom to real-world applications.”

The superintendent noted that the financing will help the program go a long way.

“We’re working on USDA Farm to School Grant and (VAZA Consulting) is looking for other grant opportunities. We’ve gotten nearly $60,000 in grants so far and the USDA grant has a matching portion,” said Sudvary. “We’re also looking to get heavy equipment to mobilize the fields that are there and we’re expanding opportunities for our students.”