Campus as Laboratory

The beautiful Olney Friends School Farm is the physical and practical bridge from our heritage to our future. We have always practiced state of the art conservation methods so unlike most of the agricultural land in the United States. Thanks to this practice, the Olney Friends School farmlands are possibly even more fertile today than they were when the lands were given to the school.

Today we are developing organic farming practices to grow healthy food for our community in sustainable ways. We can continue to improve soil fertility and health while improving our students’ health. We use the food from the farm as a way to teach our students to become healthy food consumers and informed community leaders. Olney Friends School students gain an awareness of the importance and complexity of a healthy sustainable food system.

A few students are drawn to join our Farm Team, offered as a sports option. This experience teaches teamwork skills, more knowledge about how to grow our food sustainably, and how farmwork can be great fun.

-Sandy Sterrett, assistant farmer