Condensed History of the Ohlone Farm April 2014

1984-85

Organic garden and farm, founded by teachers Bill Overton and Jana Littlefield, started as a tool for teaching students about like cycles, scientific observation, responsibility for living things, (including animals) and other values and academic goals including hands on practice of arts, mathematics and social studies.

The farm was a unique facility that include a vegetable garden, an orchard, a pumpkin patch, a native with a pond, a green house, a large gathering area that includes a stage, an animal area which house sheep, goats, and chickens, a composting system, supply sheds, gardening instructional area and an outdoor classroom.

2000-01

411 Students, 14 of 20 teachers used farm

80 attended a Farm Work day, 20 families volunteer for holiday and vacation animal care,

40-60 children work or play during lunch recess when it didn’t rain

$3000-4000 Harvest Festival in years past plus E Shop revenue allows farm to be self-sustaining.

Garden Enhanced Nutritional Project Proposed to district.  Many letters of support, Hidden Villa, Gamble Garden, City of Palo Alto Recycling….

Ohlone Farm Mission:

The Farm serves as a natural environment for building community: a living laboratory for learning about the scientific method, life cycles, and the natural world; and, a place to practice Ohlone values including responsibility, teamwork and caring for others.

At this time the farm had 2 sheep, 3 goats, 12 chickens, 2 rabbits, 3 ducks, wildflower garden, greenhouse, orchard, pond (with occasional blue heron).

Farm council charter purpose:

Discuss ideas, needs and plans of the farm, coordinate volunteers, publicity and budgeting, report farm accomplishments and needs to the Site council each semester.

Farm council addresses issues such as recess rules, animal management, capital projects (irrigation, animal pens, etc). Farm council meets with student council for ideas and to solve problems.  Farm Aide brings requests involving money and policy change to Principal who decides based on information provided by Farm Aide.  Routine decisions are made by the Farm Aide in consultation with Farm council.

(added here, not from 2000) Farm Aide:

Coordinates all garden details:  including determining when and where to plant seeds, seedlings, established transplants, to ensure adequate produce available for weekly class demonstrations, farmers market, specialty projects like Chinese New Year and the Simulations: Gold Rush, Colonial, Ohlone Natives, and Old Palo Alto.

Works with rotating parent volunteer harvesters to collect eggs and produce weekly for Farmers Market.

Manage animal and insect (bees) care including feed, maintenance, and health issues.

Oversee daily use of farm grounds including lesson preparation, tool and minor infrastructure maintenance.  Keep running lists of needed supplies, repair projects, farm work day tasks and projects.  Report on these issues monthly and provide possible solutions to Farm council for manpower and financial support.

Hold pre-Farm Work day “walk throughs” with Farm work day coordinators (and classroom liaisons) to determine identify and prioritize projects and tasks for upcoming work day.

Coordinates with District for debris/waste removal and care of “District trees and fences” (those in existence before farm began).

Train all new parent volunteers involved in direct garden or animal contact for their specific responsibilities.  Work with the volunteer coordinators to disperse work load.

Coordinate with teachers on special projects or requests as needed.

Garden Specialist/Social Science aide:

Coordinates quarterly with the K/1, 2/3 & 4/5 clusters for garden and farm lesson content that supports current curriculum including the; various simulations, for available extra farm time or projects.  Coordinates with Science Specialist and Farm Aide and conserve of resources and lesson plans.  Updates Farm council monthly on current lessons and happenings on the farm an on any need of support from council.

Science Specialist/Aide:

Coordinates quarterly with the K/1, 2/3 & 4/5 clusters for science lesson content that supports current curriculum including the; various simulations, for available extra farm time or projects.  Coordinates with Garden Specialist and Farm Aide for conservation of resources and lesson plans.  Updates Farm council monthly on current lessons and happenings on the farm or any need of support from council.

Farm Liaisons:

Each classroom provides one parent liaison (a volunteer or room parent) to coordinate their classroom’s involvement in:

• Farm Work days

• Encouraging families to sign up for weekend and holiday animal care by posting notices/sign up sheets, talking to families in person, by phone or by email.

Farm Volunteer Tasks:

• Weekend, holiday and vacation animal care is done by families who sign-up for blocks of time (ie: one weekend per month, one week during summer or holidays, relief help…)

• Garden and grounds tasks include tending vegetable and flower beds, annual trees pruning, and harvesting produce weekly.

Community events and fundraising:

Opening Ceremony, First Day of School

The entire school community (students, teachers, staff and parents) gather on the farm to welcome the first day of school.

Harvest Festival

In October, parent volunteers organized a festival to celebrate the fall, with booths from each classroom, crafts, and food.  Funds raised are used for animal care and other farm expenses.

Adopt an Animal

Families can “adopt” a farm animal and help pay for its food.  A parent volunteer does publicity and provides photo buttons or certificates for the sponsor.  (We do this now during Harvest Festival).

Everything Shop (later changed to Ohlone Farmers Market)

Parents and students sell farm eggs and produce, homemade crafts, sweets and savories after school on Tuesdays (later changed to Thursdays).  The proceeds are used to pay for animal feed and other farm expenses.

Farm Work Days

Families come to work on special projects and farm maintenance from 11am -2pm (later changed from 9am to 1pm) on one weekend a month except Dec-Feb (later changed to alternating Saturday/Sunday every 6 weeks.  Picnics are encouraged (later food and water to share is responsibility of host classrooms.  Typically 4 classrooms are assigned each FWD-one from each cluster: K/1, 2/3, 4/5, and a buddy class MI room.)

2005-06

$14,181 annual outflow ($700 extra expenses than usual)

$6,877 One check form

$7,583 Harvest Festival ($11,917 after wooden horses) “excellent”

$200/week Farmers Market

New Science Specialist position, weather station, 2 compost bins built, 20 pairs new rain boots and 2 storage sheds, duck ill-required many prescriptions/doctor visits

Teacher Julie started authentic Tule hut building

2007-08

$4,771 One check form

$14,441 Harvest Festival

$4,700 Whole Foods 5% fund raiser

$1,915 Garden Grant

12 new microscopes

District unexpectedly used Farm money for Science Specialist’s salary, Susan Charles promised it wouldn’t come from Farm, struggled to have District reimburse Farm over several months, ended -$5,000.  Created several months of imbalanced books, 3 years internal auditing of our books.

Mandarin Immersion began, 2 K/1 classes opened, no extra time/money given to Farm lessons

2008-09

Cash balance slowly decreasing for several years as spend-down planned from previous years.  Current reserve ~$25,000

$8300 est. deficit

-$2948 outflow

$11,400 One check form

$8,400 Harvest Festival ($10,526)

Increased spending on infrastructure, district charged 6% administrative fee on Garden Grant account ($34)

EShop name changed to Ohlone Farmers Market

New Office and Storage shed, Solar oven.  Garden grant money used for tools. Emergency evacuation plan for large animals w/ new leashes, orchard trees planted

Garden specialist (Marieluise) 19.9 hours/week, Summer care intern (Leigh) 10hours/week, began alternating two week Science/Garden rotation

Stanford undergraduate class on human nutrition w/ Christopher Gardner was offered 30 hour community service class on farm- 6 hours for 5 weeks

School and farm websites created

2009-10 “25^th Anniversary Harvest Festival effort” Celebrated

$3000+ outflow Science education as district changed science curriculum

Farmers Market down 25% revenue without as much junk food, thus was a deficit year overall

$4,283 Whole foods 5% back day!

$350 Downtown Farmers Market

New bees (after signed permission obtained from neighbors), old hens retired to Phipps ranch, new chicks raised 5 weeks in classrooms installed late spring (1/2 died in transit here, go reimbursed), first egg laid 9/21.

PTA Non-Com started recruiting for Farm Council co-chair

3 classes added in past 2 years, a few years back farm saw <400 students a week, now 516

Great FWD turn out noted in March, specifics not provided, “ran out of wheelbarrows”.

In May, Science Barn broken into, minimal damage-“probably just kids”.

2010-2011

$10,740 One check form

$500 Downtown Farmers Market

560 students ate farm raised corn! “Very chewy.”

Each class sees garden specialist once a month, they see science specialist twice a month.

Down to 13 chickens, so pullets were purchased.

Farm Council Positions:

Council chair/co-chair

Secretary

Treasurer

Auditor (looks like this hasn’t happened since 09 or earlier)

Historian

Farm Aide

Summer farm aide

Science Specialist

Garden Specialist

Principal/ Vise Principal of Ohlone

Web master

Farmers Market chair (over sees volunteer coordinators for set up/clean up, food prep and sales, & harvesters)

Harvest Festival chair

Animal Care coordinator

Farm Work Day coordinators

Noon Art

May Fete Parade/float

Community outreach

Communications to disseminate announcements and promotional material, Arrow articles

Fund raiser and Grant writer

Gold Award/Eagle Badge coordinator (needs formal written guidelines)