The Pulaski County Ag Day was another huge success as 5th grade students from each of the Pulaski County Elementary Schools visited the New River Valley Fairgrounds in Dublin to learn about agricultural opportunities in our area.
The program is hosted by the Pulaski Farm Bureau, Virginia Cooperative Extension – Pulaski, and the Pulaski County High School and Pulaski County Middle School Future Farmers of America (FFA) programs. The coordinators for the event are Cynthia Hurst, Morgan Paulette, and Chris Lichty.
Students arrived at 9 a.m. to rotate through 15 stations located throughout the livestock and agricultural area of the fairgrounds. Those stations had discussions and displays on horticulture, sheep and goats, poultry, beef, meat science, forestry, dairy, horses, soil and water conservation, beekeeping, tractor safety, and outdoor recreation. Another station taught students about the work of the New River Resource Authority. Another discussed nutrition. One station was about local agriculture and also served as a break booth, offering students a healthy snack of locally source milk, cheese, and apples.
Each station was operated by volunteers, who were also assisted by the FFA students. Other FFA student served as group leaders to take the different groups through the rotation of stations. Mother Nature even chipped in, with a flight of geese in their normal V-formation flying through as students watched.
By the end of the day, students had been given the opportunity to learn about not only agriculture in general terms, but also how agriculture impacts us locally.
“It’s a tremendous event that gives our students a chance to learn outside of the classroom without the costs of a distant field trip,” Pulaski County School Board Vice-Chair Tim Hurst said. “It’s a first-class operation that impresses the importance of agriculture in Pulaski County. I believe it opens the eyes of our students to just how vital the industry is here. Days like this are a win for our school system and our community.”
More photos from Ag Day can be found on our Pulaski County Public Schools Facebook page.