Robbinsville High expanding agricultural initiative
Robbinsville – Fall 2023 promises to be an exciting new school year at Robbinsville High School.
If you have visited the campus during summer break, you may have noticed a new project going up: this building will be the new “barn” for an Agricultural Education program that has been added to the high school curriculum.
Carpentry instructor Rick Parham and a new agricultural teacher – Nikki Stewart – have worked this summer to construct the barn.
The building is nearing completion, with the metal siding to be added and stalls to be built on the inside.
That will be completed by the carpentry class once school begins.
When Robbinsville High School Principal David Matheson became the CTE (Career Technical Education) Director two years ago, he felt a program in agriculture would be beneficial to our community. Supportive Ag programs can improve the livelihoods of the community by teaching skills that everyone should have.
An agriculture program at Robbinsville High has the potential to spark an interest in food production or animal science, leading to self-sufficiency as well as a possible career path. Students will not only learn to provide for themselves and their families but create employment opportunities to help meet the needs of a growing population.
The new program will offer classes in horticulture and animal science. In addition to the barn, the school has also purchased a farm tractor with a tiller, a scrape blade and a bush hog.
The program hopes to follow the process through, from the early stages of planting to the harvest and storage of produce, and to teach proper techniques and practices to keep animals healthy and conditions sanitary.
Such a large undertaking needs a strong, capable instructor to carry out the necessary steps that allow students to gain the knowledge and confidence they need to pursue an agricultural endeavor for personal or business purposes.
A resident of the West Buffalo community, Stewart recently completed her bachelor of science in agri-business at the University of Mount Olive.
Stewart married Robbinsville native Caleb Stewart 11 years ago and they have two children: Chasity – who is a member of the volleyball and track teams, as well as the Graham County 4-H Club – and Marshall, who is also a member of 4-H.
Stewart is not a newcomer to Graham County Schools, as she became an employee in 2020. She has spent the last year in the classroom at Robbinsville Middle School, subbing for the second semester in the agriculture classroom. She took advantage of the building site adjacent to the new middle school wing, to allow students some lessons in horticulture and landscaping. Stewart is a local agricultural enthusiast who enjoys poultry/gamebird farming, volunteering with 4-H, horseback riding and learning about equines. She is a volunteer for not only 4-H, but the Back Country Horsemen of America (Nantahala Chapter) – an organization partnered with the U.S. Forest Service to maintain trails for equine use – and she has co-managed her husband’s lawn care business for over 10 years.
“The new Agriculture Program will produce great opportunities for students in our rural community,” Stewart said. “I am looking forward to growing relationships with students and local farmers and businesses to aid student success at RHS and beyond.”
“I’m excited it will provide two more CTE Pathways for RHS students to be completers in, and give them lifelong skills to help them be successful,” Matheson added.
The Ag Program will network with agencies such as the N.C. Cooperative Extension and the 4-H program, as well as both the N.C. and U.S. Forest Service.