Lancaster farming. (Lancaster, Pa., etc.) 1955-current, October 14, 2000, Image 32
A32-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 14, 2000 New Ag Science Construction (Continued from Pago A 1) it’s working. Each of these kids have managed an area and man aged it really well. Young kids are seeing what are they’re in terested in and picking their specialty areas.” Not only do TLAs oversee general maintenance and inven tory of their areas, they are also drafted as teachers as they set up laboratory demonstrations and even deliver an occasional lecture. “They only get one credit,” said Miller. “The real reason they go at it is because they like the area. They run the place.” Miller also sees the TLA posi tion as an excellent resume builder. “They’re already set up to be a lab assistant because they’ve already done it,” he said. The position changes each se mester, with new students moving in to take on TLA re sponsibilities. An extensive video library provides another avenue of learning for the students. More than 1,000 titles address specific agriculture, science, and envi ronmental science topics. The titles are cataloged in a com puter, which allows students to search by subject or keyword. In the “wet” laboratory, stu dents perform chemical, biotechological, and genetic ex perimentation. Last year stu dents inserted a gene into the e.coli bacteria to make it blue. A stereo microscope is attached to a TV screen so all of the students can observe the slides. Students grow bacteria and plant tissue culture as they learn about microbiology in the school’s labs. Here they place plants, as little as one cell, into a special media with essential nu trients a plant needs to grow. Students perform the process in the laminar flow unit which blows the sterile air needed to keep the bacteria from the cells. “This is actually research lab like conditions,” said Miller. “We hope to develop inventory to sell $7 apiece tubes to other schools across the East Coast. Greenhouse ferns start this way, in a totally sterile environment, so the plants start disease-free and contain no pathogens. “Our goal here all through the place is not to produce but train kids to success in the agricul tural science program,” said Miller. According to Miller, 95 per cent of Conrad Weiser agricul tural science students go onto a four-year university, with more These tanks will be used to raise Koi and teach students about fish production. Students study the internal anatomy of fish with teacher Harold Dietrich. than 65 percent of those stu dents entering agricultural science-related majors and the remaining students in health and medical fields. “They don’t survive four years here unless they like the science,” said Miller. Approximately 45 broilers have taken up residence in the “animal laboratory” of the agri cultural sciences wing. The chicks, which came in when they were about a day old, are now three weeks old. The fence which hems in chicks is portable and will be rearranged to become a residence for lambs and pigs during the school year. Senior Amy Moyer takes care of the health of the chicks by making sure they have proper light and ventilation and keep ing the area clean. As a TLA, Moyer also oversees the nutri tion program and checks to see if the chicks can easily reach the food and water. Moyer will also oversee the upcoming chicken barbecue. After the chicks fully mature they will be sent off to slaughtered, dressed, and re turned to the school, where stu dents will finish preparing and host the barbecue. “It will be adventurous, it’s all new,” said Moyer. “It’s what the room was de signed to teach,” said Miller, who wants students to see the farm-to-table aspect of agricul ture. “We only have a minority of kids from farm families,” said Miller. The greenhouse and soil prep aration room is Elliot Hoffman’s TLA territory. “We can control the heat and climate,” said Hoffman. “We can have the desert next to a tropical rain forest because we have climate and irrigation control for every square foot in the greenhouse. This is really college level, almost to the laboratory level with the control we have here.” Interestingly, you won’t find any soil in the soil preparation room. Instead, a soil media is used for potting. Besides plans for a dwarf orchard and disease resistant American Elm and Chestnut nursery, the digging is now in progress for an outdoor turf plot. In the upcoming year stu dents can also look forward to a symposium where the freshmen will write proposals and get local funding for research proj ects. Current projects include nine teen generations of milkweed bug housed in the classroom, or the coral reef slowly building in a tank which mimics Mediter ranean longitude and latitude conditions. In addition, aquaculture stu dents take daily reads on the school’s striped bass population. Also 10th grade ag science stu dents will perform caponization surgery this spring. Academics is stressed, said Miller, who makes sure the stu dents keep a scientist-type jour nal which features drawings, daily notes, class notes, profes sional contacts, and extra study. Twin Valley At Twin Valley High School, 300 ag science students study environmental, agricultural, and technical areas. In all, the ag science area boasts a shop, two-sectioned greenhouse, two classrooms, an (Turn to Pago A 33) Senior Amy Moyer, a teaching laboratory assistant, takes care of the health 45 broilers chicks by making sure they have proper light and ventilation and keeping the area clean. Moyer will also oversee the upcoming chicken bar becue. Ag science chair and teacher Ron Frederick has plans for production and sale of plants, plus installation of rain forest plants. Senior Amanda Hettinger does not have a farming back ground, but has enjoyed her ag science courses at Twin Valley for four years. “I enjoy working with and learning about animals,” said Hettinger. "I also like the students in the classes.” In aquaculture class, students learn to in stall a power filter and fill the tank with decorations, be sides cleaning, and checking the water level and temperature of the tank.