Marcella Peyre-Ferry | For LNP | LancasterOnline

June 18, 2023

When: Conestoga Valley school board meeting, June 12.

What happened: While reviewing the agenda for their June 19 meeting, board members heard a presentation from Chief Finance and Operations Officer Adele Huntzinger on the purchase and installation of a freight farm at the high school campus.

What it is: A climate-controlled Freight Farm container will be outfitted to grow hydroponics equivalent to 2.5 acres of farmland.

Why it’s important: The facility will serve as a modern classroom used for STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education and extracurricular programming, problem-solving and collaboration for students.

Quotable: “It’s really a dynamic initiative,” Huntzinger said.

The cost: The $180,000 cost of the freight farm and additional items to set up the site was provided by a grant from the Conestoga Valley Education Foundation.

What happens next: Delivery is expected before the end of December. Once in operation, the freight farm could produce 600 to 800 heads of lettuce per week. The produce may be sold or donated to area food banks.

Other happenings: The board went over upcoming policy revisions including home schooling, board practices policies with only minor changes. There is also a pending amendment to the Buckskin Activities Alliance bylaws, and the new addition of a new fraud policy. The district has not had a formal fraud policy but was alerted to the need for one during monitoring of federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief grant funding.