The Montezuma School to Farm Project will host its final farm stand of the season Wednesday, Oct. 8, from 3:10 to 4:30 p.m. outside Mancos High School.
The elective course teaches students the business of small-scale farming, from planting seeds to selling produce at the local farmers market. In its second year at Mancos, the nine-week class, led by Executive Director Sorrell Redford and her husband, engages 19 sixth- through eighth-grade students in a hands-on curriculum blending agriculture, entrepreneurship and community engagement.
“We do not teach this class in Cortez currently, but we would love to. The nine-week curriculum was written so it could be replicated by any motivated middle school teacher,” Redford told The Journal.
The program introduces students to small-scale farming operations typically run on 25 or fewer acres, using hand tools, drip irrigation and organic methods. At the one-acre farm at Cortez Middle School, students grow crops such as blue corn, Hubbard squash, zucchini, yellow summer squash, Navajo sweet melons, garlic, potatoes, tomatoes, tomatillos, pears, blueberries, plums, beets, carrots, flowers and basil – yielding more than 5,000 pounds of food per season. The farm also includes an orchard, high tunnel and production field.
Profits from student-led farm stands help sustain the program by funding supplies such as tents, labels and produce containers.
Students explore every aspect of the farm-to-market process. They begin by learning about local food production and farmers markets, then develop marketing skills using Canva for posters and AI for logos, collaborating to finalize a design. The curriculum also incorporates Mancos School District’s Portrait of a Graduate competencies.
“Students absolutely love the farm stand class and many say it is their favorite class,” Redford shared. “This year, other teachers have reported how excited students are for Farm Stand and our alumni from last year's class often pop in to check out what we are working on and offer advice from when they took the class last year.”
Students also interview local businesses – this year’s picks include Fahrenheit, Hand in Hand and Zuma’s – and some have volunteered at the Mancos Farmers Market, sparking a spirit of entrepreneurship.
“One student shared their grandmother’s soup recipes with the class and made recipe cards to hand out at the market. This is the type of passion for learning we want to encourage,” Redford said. “Another student from last year's class said they were excited to start earning their own money as soon as they could and came up with all kinds of ideas, like starting their own snow removal this winter for neighbors.”
Redford also hopes the program enhances students’ food literacy.
“I hope all students who attend our programming take away a greater understanding of the food system,” Redford said. “Our goal is to increase students' food literacy, which means giving them knowledge and experiences with food, from seeds to plate. Montezuma County has a rich agricultural past, present and future, and MSTFP believes it is important to share this with students.”
The project faces challenges in Cortez, where it operates its farm. For the first time, Montezuma-Cortez School District has not approved funding as of this point in the school year. At the September board meeting, the board tabled a vote on MSTFP’s funding, saying the district had received only about 60 pounds of produce from the program this year. Redford told The Journal the program has provided 500 pounds.
“As of today, we have provided the Cortez School District with just over 500 pounds of food and we have harvested 5,000 pounds of food. Almost all this has gone to the food pantry which feeds many students and teachers in the Montezuma-Cortez School District,” Redford said. “We are providing the high school with produce based on what they request. This year is the first year we are providing large quantities of fresh food to the Good Samaritans’ food pantry because of specific circumstances related to grants we received, the loss of the AmeriCorps program and loss of funding at food pantries. Our mission is education, not food distribution, but we pivoted to meet the needs of the community.”
The current school district budget does not include the $20,000 needed for MSTFP. If approved, the budget would be adjusted in January.
According to board member Leland Collins, the mini farm is the largest garden in the U.S.
MSTFP will host its first Cortez fundraiser Friday, Oct. 24, at 5:30 p.m. at WildEdge Brewing Collective. The event features live music by Little Brother, a silent auction, a pie auction and a $1 donation from every Monkey Wrench beer sold. Tickets, priced at $15, go on sale Wednesday, Oct. 1, and are limited.
