Agricultural group offering free busing for students to visit farms, ranches

The Doña Ana County Farm and Livestock Bureau (DACFLB) will provide a free bus to take students on agricultural field trips during the school year, DACFLB said in an August news release.

DACFLB’s Free School Bus Program “has helped students learn about local agriculture and its important connections to our everyday lives,” the news release said. The program is part of the nonprofit New Mexico Agriculture in the Classroom.

“The free bus program has allowed me to take our entire grade level to Dickie Salopek’s pecan orchard to see the pecan harvest in action” said Las Cruces Public Schools teacher Ashley Cartwright. “Students were able to see the equipment used to watch and hear the pecans fall from the trees. They also learned about soil, insects and pecan by-products. When we returned to school, students were able to tell what was happening in the orchards around our community. This hands-on learning was made possible by the free bus program,” Cartwright said.

The program is open throughout the school year and offers a free bus to K-12 classrooms throughout Doña Ana County – which includes LCPS, the Gadsden Independent School District and Hatch Valley Public Schools – that want to attend an agriculturally oriented field trip,” DACFLB said.

“Agricultural topics are vast and have many connections in the community,” DACFLB said. “There are many unique opportunities to learn about agriculture and explore career opportunities in the Mesilla Valley. The Mesilla Valley Corn Maze, the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum, the NMSU College of Agriculture, Consumer & Environmental Sciences each have a plethora of unique opportunities to learn about agriculture. Through these opportunities, students are able to see the many possible careers in agriculture, learn about current research, as well as get excited about attending college.”

Schools can access the free bus program at www.nmaitc.org under the “Happenings” tab. Registration is now open. Buses for the program are limited and will be awarded on a first come, first serve basis, DACFLB said. 

Ag in the Classroom is primarily funded by the New Mexico Farm & Livestock Bureau (NMFLB) “to educate the general public, with an emphasis on K-12 students and educators, about the importance of agriculture,” the DACFLB news release said.

With 19,000 members, NMFLB is the state’s largest, private agricultural organization. It was founded in 1917.

For information call 575-532-4703.

Visit us at www.nmaitc.org.