TOWARD A GREENER FUTURE

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December 23, 2024

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here. 

An educator from MSU says getting more young people interested in agricultural careers is critical for humanity both on Earth (and in space). She also believes NDP's "high-tech" greenhouse and academic program are outstanding assets in a primary and secondary education setting.

According to NASA, the United Nations predicts Earth will have to feed another 2.3 billion people by 2050, mostly concentrated in urban centers far from farmland. Conventional agriculture may not be able to meet that demand, but fortunately, NASA has been working for decades to tackle food production both on Earth and in space. 

"Feeding astronauts during long-term space exploration means stretching resources to grow plants in space, including minimizing water use and energy consumption and eliminating soil," said Margo Pierce, who authored an article called "NASA Research Launches a New Generation of Indoor Farming" published in NASA’s annual Spinoff publication.

Pierce goes on to say how various crops were planted by NASA scientists on stacked trays to test how well they would grow in water and without the benefit of sunlight or open air — using hydroponic technology.

This innovative approach to farming, which is creating a foundation for the industry of controlled environment agriculture, or CEA, could not only feed astronauts one day, it could help feed future generations on Earth, says NASA.

Greenhouse opens in 2018

Utilizing hydroponic growing technology for current and future applications also is something students at Notre Dame Prep have been studying thanks to the school's innovative Melissa Kozyra Greenhouse and Botany Learning Lab. 

Constructed in August 2018, the facility, part of the 26,000-square foot academic wing that launched that same year, is a fully functioning greenhouse that includes two state-of-the-art hydroponic systems along with a traditional bench growing system, an adjoining equipment/storage room, an outside garden area and a viewing window in the school corridor.

At the time the greenhouse came online after the Timothy J. Easterwood Science, Art and Technology Wing opened, school administrators said the facility would benefit the campus community, especially the students, in every way imaginable.

"The new greenhouse will give our faculty and students the means to study plants and plant survival under many different conditions," they said at the time. "It also, for example, will lead students toward understanding how plants and microbes can collaborate to improve plant growth without the extensive use of fertilizers or pesticides."

According to school officials when the new facilities were still on the drawing board, the greenhouse and outdoor garden were planned to be a powerful new environmental education tool. 

"It also will nurture the students’ mind, body and soul," added a study making a case for funding for the project's campaign, which was called "March on to Victory." 

"Hands-on, cooperative-learning opportunities will foster responsible caretakers of the Earth," the case study continued. "Concepts that seem abstract in the classroom will come to life in this greenhouse."

Studying plant biology and agriculture benefits broadly

Other studies show that students in unrelated areas of academic programming — such as natural and social science, math, language arts, visual arts and more — benefit from having a greenhouse and a garden-like setting nearby. Students who work in a garden and on plants perform better on standardized measures of academic success in reading, writing, math, science and social studies. Gardening also increases student engagement and enthusiasm for learning, as well as a sense of pride and ownership.

Heidi Lindberg, who is the greenhouse and nursery extension educator at Michigan State University, said there are numerous other advantages to working with plants and having a greenhouse in school.

"Studying agriculture is a great way to expose students to science, technology, and to learn about from where their food comes," she said in a recent interview. "Teachers can use plants to teach the scientific method and critical-thinking skills. It also teaches important skills such as dedication, accuracy and teamwork."

Lindberg, who called NDP's greenhouse truly state-of-the-art, also said she and her colleagues visit various school greenhouses in the state and very few are set up as well as Notre Dame Prep's facility. 

"It is a great asset to your school and for its curriculum."

She also said there has been a noticeable bump lately in the number of other schools that have added gardens and greenhouses.

"An increasing number of schools have put in school gardens since 2010 as there has been some government funding dedicated to children learning to produce their own fruits and vegetables," she said. "I also have seen a rise in the number of schools with high tunnel or greenhouse facilities in recent years. Greenhouses can range from basic to complex and high-tech, such as your learning lab." 

More students going into MSU Ag-Tech

Notre Dame Prep's science curriculum includes a number of courses that also take advantage of the greenhouse and learning lab.

Horticulture, which is offered in the fall to sophomores, juniors and seniors in the upper school, explores the science, technology, business and art of plants through the use of the greenhouse, researching the green industry in general, hydroponics and using outdoor gardening. 

Botany, offered in the spring semester also to grades 10, 11 and 12, is an introduction to the anatomy, physiology and morphology of plants. Students analyze the relationships between plants, their environments and human interactions, which are assessed through the means of research in the greenhouse.

MSU's Lindberg says that it's never been more critical that students consider following career paths into agriculture and plant biology.

"Globally, there is a decreasing percentage of the population involved with food production in highly developed nations such as the United States," she said. "There are other nations where sustenance farming is more prevalent, such as in India or South America."

But in the U.S., she says, only 2 percent of the population is directly involved in food production and it is increasingly important to promote agriculture in any form as a viable career and to expose students to the food supply chain. 

"There has been, however, an interest in local food production to decrease the carbon footprint and increase the ‘freshness’ of products reaching the end consumer," Lindberg added. "As a result, there seems to be a more consistent flow of students going to MSU’s Ag Tech two-year program or our four-year program to learn about agriculture, horticulture or plant science."

For NASA's future astronauts and for humanity on Earth, that surely must be a good thing.

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

About Notre Dame Preparatory School
"At Notre Dame Prep, we inspire our students to become the best versions of themselves. We challenge them through an experience of academic excellence, focused on active, project-based learning. We invite them to explore a world of opportunities beyond the classroom. We guide them as they grow in spirituality within a community strong in its Catholic and Marist identity."

Notre Dame Preparatory School is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School's upper school enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame Prep's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDP is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the National Association of Independent Schools. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School, visit the school’s home page at www.ndprep.org.