A34-Umc»»tef Farming, Saturday, May 17, 1997 Hershey School’s New Hort Center Reveals Ag Program’s Diversity ANDY ANDREWS Lancaster Farming Staff . HERSHEY (Dauphin Co.) Some of the best programs at the Milton Hershey School just got better. A short time ago, members of the school student body, staff, alumni, and board representatives broke ground on a 18,250 square foot horticulture building on the Milton Hershey School (MHS) campus. “With this new horticulture cen ter, hands-on activity will come to life.” said Marcia W. Paterson, director of the school’s Agricultur al and Environmental Education (AEE) program. 1 The school’s trademark hands-on educational experience offered through “real world” pro jects that has proven so effective for thousands of school graduates will be emphasized using some of the latest technology and tech niques at the center. The new building is situated on 131 acres on Meadow Lane just north of Rt. 322. The center is one of four MHS AEE centers sche duled for renovation or new con struction, according to the school’s five-year strategic plan. The horticultural center will be one of the four centers to serve the approximately 1,100 students enrolled at MHS, according to Paterson. The center, designed by St Ruff and Associates, will Terry Donaher hi is v ig at the >. School’s dairy and food processing center. Perspective sketch of the new Milton Hershey School horticulture center on Mea dow Lane north of Rt. 322. include compartmentalized green house projects matched to the appropriate student age and grade levels, according to Warren H. Hitz, associate director, AEE. Construction is being managed by Reynolds Construction at a cost of about $2 million. Three separate greenhouses on cement floors each measure 100 feet long by 24 feet wide and are spaced 20 feet apart. The green house environment will be com pletely controlled by computer. The greenhouses will be enclosed by clear lexan, said Hitz. One section of the center, the greenhouses, will include six com pletely separate zones. Elementary school children will be introduced to the greenhouse environment with several “beginner” projects. In another, high school students will study the control of green house lighting. They will also exa mine benching processes, includ ing ebb and flow and roller benching. According to Hitz, students will examine tropical plants and foliage systems. Still another will examine aquaculture and hydroponics projects. A headhouse runs the full length at the end of each greenhouse. The north section will include the AEE office, conference rooms, and administrative offices, includ ing horticultural staff and faculty. Research and graduate program offices are part of this segment. Milton Hershey School Agricultural and Environmental Education Program Horticulture Center Ground Breaking Spring 1997 From left, jul Clark, MHSdL ir of office v .eject management and Derry Town ship supervisor; Marcia Paterson, MHS director, Agriculture and Environmental Edu cation program; Christopher Rand, MHS FFA president and Senior Hall Student; Dr. William L. Lepley, MHS president and CEO; and William H. Alexander, MHS board of managers chair. The middle part of the complex will include a laboratory area with a walk-in refrigerator and refriger ated display cases. Also included will be a plant tissue culture labor atory. On the side will be a resour ce room with computers and a research library. The computers will have access to the Internet. The conference room would be able to accommodate 50 people. Hitz indicated that studies will include integrated pest manage ment in a greenhouse environ ment. The entire center is designed with an "open architecture" to accommodate projected student needs. The “student-driven” design forms the basis of the hands-on concept of Hershey’s AEE prog ram, according to Hitz. “AU the office space can be redesigned and reconfigured,” he said. “The entire greenhouse is computer con trolled, including the environment, the lighting, and other items.” The AEE plan is to combine the educational aspects of the school with the hands-on production approach to the school’s philoso phy. “We had to meld those together,” Hitz said. What plan ners came up with was a green house center that will adapt to the projects of the students. “We think in terms of the educa tional value in each square foot of space we have,” said Hitz. Scott Seibert, instructional adviser, will be manager of the new center when it opens at the beginning of the 1997-1998 school year in September. A school-wide celebration will mark the grand opening, according to Milton Her shey School officials, the recent Milton Hershey School students Brent Frick, left, and Amanda Estep work part-time after school at the school’s dairy and center as part of the Agricultural and Environmental Education program. Mp dents as productive citizens in the 21st century,” she wrote in the SepL/OcL 1996 issue of The Agri cultural Education Magazine. “AEE links to the future by show ing students the relationship agri culture and the environment have on life in general an in various career opportunities.” At the center, projects include Emit and vegetable trials, specialty gardens, and a deciduous tree nursery. Other centers include the environmental center, located on 85 acres that include environmen tal landscaping and stream bank (Turn to Pago A 35) ing ceremony, MHS President and CEO Dr. William L. Lepley said, “The. new horticulture center serves as an excellent example of Milton Hershey School hand related resources, enabling the nurturing and education of today’s children while incorporating the school’s best traditions such as our agricultural heritage, work eth ic, and educational values.” According to Marcia Paterson, AEE director, die center is one of four centers to provide “a bridge between the school’s history and the future development of our stu- indbrcak- The center, designed by St. Onge, Ruff and Associates, will Include compartmentalised greenhouse projects matched to the appropriate student age and grade levels, according to Warren H. Hits, associate director. AEE. Hits reviews the center’s floor plans.
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