Huntington’s STEM School Lands Grant For a Greenhouse & an Aeroponics System

By Jim Hoops

Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School in the Huntington School district has landed a nearly $5,000 grant. It will be used to fund the purchase of a greenhouse, raised beds for gardening and an aeroponics system.

“The overall arching mission of the project is to teach students how to work together to grow vegetables, which will then be used as part of meals for themselves and other community members,” said Rae Montesano, principal of Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School. “Working together with classmates across grade levels, as well as community members, will help students practice important 21st century skills, such as critical thinking, collaboration, creativity and communication to help them become college and career ready.”

The $4,980 grant was awarded by Lowe’s and the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation. The new project is designed to build upon one that kicked off last year in collaboration with Fox Hollow Farms and the Long Island Community Agriculture Network.

The earlier project led to the creation of a garden club at the STEM school. It met once each week during the final three months of the school year. “Students were taught about organic farming and were able to plant their own seeds, watch them grow and then transplant them into raised beds in the community garden located two blocks away from the school,” Ms. Montesano said.

The plants were harvested late last spring and students tasted what they had worked so hard to grow. “Radishes were a hit,” Ms. Montesano said. “Many had never seen or tasted them before. The goal this year is to have a garden at our school so that we can involve more students and produce more crops. Students will plant seeds, raise them in the greenhouse and then transplant them to raised beds.”

The plants will be grown aeroponically, a technique developed by Israeli researchers in the 1980s that utilizes little water and no soil. Experts in gardening, nutrition and meal preparation will be consulted. “Students will manipulate variables in an attempt to determine which factors will give the largest yield of product,” Ms. Montesano said.

Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School students will plan and produce meals utilizing the vegetables they have grown. Planting and growing procedures and related data will be recorded in notebooks.

“This project will help our school fulfill one of our goals this year, which is community outreach,” Ms. Montesano said. “We are hoping the garden will serve to bring together students, families and community members. We want to include content about nutrition and have students prepare creative, informative pamphlets for distribution in the community.”