On Wednesday, Sept. 10, Sarasota County Schools hosted a ribbon-cutting for its newest educational endeavor, simply called The Farm. 

Adjacent to McIntosh Middle School, The Farm aims to expand agricultural learning among thousands of county students via its demonstration kitchen, greenhouse gardens and livestock pens. The project cost approximately $8 million to complete.

Farmers in Florida average 59.5 years of age and only 18 percent are under the age of 45. A joint analysis by the University of Florida and 1000 Friends of Florida indicates the state could lose as much as 2.2 million acres of farmland to development by 2070. Increasing education for the state’s young people, both during school hours and through extracurricular programs like Future Farmers of America (FFA) and 4-H, can help to generate interest for tomorrow’s agriculture professionals. Having a dedicated property and program like The Farm helps drive student interest through tactile learning.

Amenities at the 39.1-acre farm, designed by Seibert Architects, are housed in seven new buildings and two renovated buildings. They include a central pole barn (called an arena); greenhouses; a food science lab and kitchen; a hog, sheep and goat barn; and a cattle barn.

The Farm’s manager, Kate Traugott, whom everyone calls “Farmer Kate,” says students arrive at the property as early as 5 a.m. to care for their livestock, which can be kept at The Farm free of charge if a student’s home property doesn't allow for that. Some students may pen animals they already own or might lease from area farms. For example, Dakin Dairy, a local dairy farm, and M & B Dairy (based out of Lecanto, in Citrus County) both lease dairy calves to students to house and care for at The Farm. Traugott leases her own Nigerian dwarf goats, too. Students are responsible for their own animal’s care.

During the school day, county kids come to campus for field trips or for high school "block scheduled" learning—Sarasota High School students, for instance, come by bus to study agriculture, aquaculture and culinary arts. When the school day ends, The Farm hosts FFA and 4-H meetings into the evening hours.

“It's astonishing how many things students can learn here, that pertain to almost all of their lessons,” Traugott says. “I have had students in engineering classes troubleshoot things like how to move a barn to stop it from being demolished, but [students also learn] really simple things, like how to use scales and measurements to feed a baby cow on the elementary school level. That helps our students remember those lessons in a different way. We have better retention with things that we get to experience rather than just listen to.”

Before leading The Farm, Traugott worked as a 911 call-taker while also managing a CSA from her five-acre homestead, which she calls Season of Sun.  As she talks, she cradles a small rooster named Napoleon. “I left my career for this [position at The Farm] because I was excited about the opportunity to do something that I am so passionate about, to see improvement for our next generation,” she says.

At The Farm’s ribbon-cutting ceremony, Wilton Simpson, Florida's Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services, says, “We have worked very hard to figure out how to get more children engaged in FFA and 4-H. We don't want children to not participate in FFA because kids' families can't afford it. Three years ago, [the Florida Senate] launched a grant program and [Florida] went from 30,000 FFA students to 65,000 today.”

Simpson feels confident that sites like The Farm will help increase FFA and 4-H participation statewide—but with that increase, other communities will need bigger barns and greenhouses. Those communities can look to The Farm and its infrastructure to advocate for those needs, and Simpson is hopeful that Florida will go from the country’s fourth-largest population of FFA and 4-H participants to the largest, encouraging more young people to enter agricultural professions.

Thinking about agriculture from a national security lens helps put things into perspective, Simpson says. “We have a six-month strategic supply of oil in the country, just in case there's a major disruption in the world," he explains. "Now, imagine just seven days of no food in the grocery store. That will get you thinking about how important agriculture is.”

And in a full-circle moment, Traugott herself is a product of 4-H. “Their motto is learn by doing, and it’s mine, too," she says. "Experience is our most powerful educator. As an educator and as a mother, I know that what I'm teaching my children is less about what I say and more about what I do.”