Clovis East High School Students Gain Agricultural Experience Through Summer Farm Program

Clovis East High School students are spending their summer break working at the school’s farm, gaining hands-on experience through the agriculture program’s Supervised Agricultural Experience projects.

Students spend several days each week harvesting fruit, caring for animals, and preparing products for sale to the community. The farm co-op involves students in maintaining and harvesting stone fruit and grapes, as well as planting melons and pumpkins that will be sold in the fall, according to agriculture teacher Martha Marin.

Sophomore Cyrus Goodman is among the students helping with the harvest, learning to identify quality produce and avoid damaged fruit. After harvesting, students wash and prepare the fruit for sale at Saturday farmers markets and U-pick events.

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Participating students receive scholarships at the end of the summer in recognition of their work.

The program also includes floral design students creating arrangements for events throughout the summer, with some work extending beyond the classroom to weddings and other events. Students are also raising livestock including turkeys, steers, goats, sheep, and swine for exhibition and sale at the Big Fresno Fair, spending much of the summer feeding animals, maintaining their appearance, and preparing them for competition.

Community members can purchase student-harvested fruit at the Clovis East farm’s farmers market, held Saturdays on the Gettysburg Avenue side of the farm from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.

The Breakdown

• Clovis East High School operates a farm where students work during summer break as part of Supervised Agricultural Experience projects
• Students harvest stone fruit and grapes, plant crops for fall sale, and prepare products for weekly Saturday farmers markets
• The program includes livestock care for Big Fresno Fair exhibition and floral design work for community events
• Participating students receive scholarships at the end of summer

What This Means for You

If you live in the Clovis area, you can support local student agriculture education by purchasing fresh, student-harvested fruit at the Clovis East farm’s Saturday morning farmers market. The program provides local high school students with practical job skills and work experience while supplying the community with locally grown produce.