More than "Alternative"

Alternative: unusual, different, unconventional, unorthodox, extraordinary. Those words are all apt descriptors of the students and staff you’ll find and Givhans Alternative Program, and they are also descriptors of Givhans Farms, a farming entrepreneurship program that will be in full swing with the beginning of the 2008-2009 school year. Funded by Oprah’s Big Give and WCIV TV, the farm will be used as a teaching tool across the curriculum.

From specific entrepreneurship courses designed around operating a small business to units of study incorporated into English, Math, Science and Social Studies classes, the farm will bring a myriad of concepts from the textbook to real life. With guidance from teachers, students will operate all aspects of the farm, from sales and marketing, to production, to bookkeeping, along the way learning valuable job skills. Start-up costs for this venture? $2000. The opportunity to become a successful employee or business owner? Priceless.

OK, that was goofy takeoff on an overdone commercial. But I do have a vision for this farm. Groups of kids learning the value of hard work, gaining confidence as they produce a valued commodity and sell it. Young adults completing business plans and starting their own businesses. Students connecting their studies to the real world. A financially sound school based enterprise contributing to the school and funding scholarships. Nothing wrong with dreaming big, but it all starts with the small stuff, like planting a row of lettuce and convincing a 15 year old not to be scared of the earthworms.

Please use this blog to share your vision of what this farm can become and how we make it happen. And welcome to Givhans Alternative, an unusual, unconventional, sometimes unorthodox, always exraordinary Program.

Sandy