As the relentless San Antonio sun beats down on the expanding city, a collective of dedicated teachers at Burbank High School has chosen to spend their summer cultivating more than just minds. In preparation for the new school year, these educators are maintaining a fully functional farm to provide hands-on agricultural education for their students. As reported by KENS 5, the farm covers five acres and serves as a practical backdrop for the student-run program with its three distinct pathways: animal sciences, horticulture, and agriculture engineering.
Battling this summer without the student involvement due to staffing changes, the teachers still found the time to invest in significant projects. "Our summer work, we mainly, focused on what can we do to revamp our new program, getting our shop completely cleaned out, reorganization of our tools, doing an inventory, deep cleaning, that kind of thing,” agriculture science director Shelby Parker told KENS 5.
Meanwhile, the battle against student hunger continues with San Antonio schools implementing summer meal programs. Holmes High School is set to distribute meals through the Seamless Summer Options program, an extension of their regular nutrition service, aiming to bridge the food gap for students during the break. "These meals will mirror the nutritious lunches served during the academic year," Gabriella Reyna, the NISD Operation Coordinator, proclaimed in a statement obtained by News 4 San Antonio.
The NEISD's Director of School Nutrition Sharon Glosson highlights how these food programs play a critical role in keeping the students' routine unbroken during the summer. Particularly for kindergartners, who are navigating the intricacies of the school system for the first time, it offers them an opportunity to familiarize themselves with cafeteria routines before the start of the school year, Glosson explained to News 4 San Antonio. The food distributions, crucial as they are for many families, are open to all children under the age of 18, regardless of their enrollment status in the district schools.
