James I. Munger, President
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom
MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE IN THE CLASSROOM, INC.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2005
Officers
James I. Munger
President
Jerry Myers
First Vice President
Marjorie Cooper
Secretary
Wayne Stuart
Treasurer
Consultants
Educational Consultant
Debi Hogan
Administrative Consultant
Heather Ware
Advisors
Commissioner David Driscoll
Massachusetts Department of Education
Commissioner Douglas Gillespie
Massachusetts Department of
Agricultural Resources
Jay Slattery
Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation |
Board of Directors
Jim Alicata, Fitchburg State College
Carol Borglund, Tower Hill Botanic Garden
Ed Bourgeois, Pioneer Valley Sheep Breeders Association
Annie Cheatham, CISA
Janet Christensen, former staff, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources
Marjorie Cooper, Worcester County Farm Bureau
John Conners, Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation
Susan Gentile, U.S.D.A Food and Nutrition Program
Ron Hall, Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation
Jay Healy, Former Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources
Henry Hicks, Massachusetts Council of Social Studies
John Kinchla, Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape Association
Kimberly LaFleur, Massachusetts FFA
John Lee, Massachusetts Association of Roadside Stands & Pick Your Own
Mary McBrady, Massachusetts 4-H Foundation
Mary McCaffrey, Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association
Kathleen C. Millett, Massachusetts Department of Education
June Millett, Massachusetts Grange
James Munger, Bristol County Farm Bureau
Jerry Myers, Eastern States Exposition
Mary Nourse, New England Vegetable & Berry Growers Association
Ken Oles, Assistant Principal, John F. Kennedy School, Canton
Lenore Paul, Massachusetts Teacher, Veterans Park School, Ludlow
Dianna Provencher , Northeast Organic Farming Association
Russell Powell, New England McIntosh Growers Association
Gus Skamarycz, Massachusetts Beekeepers Association
Scott Soares, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources
Janice Wentworth, Massachusetts Maple Producers Association
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A special thank you to Joan Monaco and the Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation for their bookkeeping support.
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom 2005 Donors
Partners in Progress: Donations of $3,000 or Greater
Agway Foundation, Syracus, NY
Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources
Massachusetts State Lottery in Mass Building at Eastern States
Partners in Progress: Donations of $1,000 to 2,999
Bobby's Farm, Inc. Acton
Bristol County Farm Bureau
Essex County Farm Bureau
Massachusetts Nursery & Landscape Association
Middlesex County Farm Bureau
Worcester County Farm Bureau
Partners in Progress: Donations of $500 to $999
Allandale Farm, Brookline
Christensen-Dunn Early Childhood Foundation
Hampshire County Farm Bureau
Massachusetts State Grange, P. of H.
James Munger, South Dartmouth
Plymouth County Farm Bureau
Randall’s Farm, Ludlow
Tranquil Lake Nursery, Rehoboth
Warren Farm & Sugarhouse, North Brookfield
Partners in Progress: Donations between $150-499
Berkshire County Farm Bureau
June and Jim Johnson, Tewksbury
Mass. Association of Roadside Stands & Pick-Your-Own
Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation
Massachusetts Flower Growers’ Association
Massachusetts Fruit Growers’ Association
Massachusetts Maple Producers’ Association
Middlesex County Beekeepers Association
Lenore Paul, Ludlow
June Millett, Whitman
Mary and Tim Nourse, Whately
Gus Skamarycz, Tyngsboro
Frederick and Susan Winthrop, Ipswich
Program Associates: Donations between $100-299
Agri-Mark, Inc., Lawrence
Apponagansett Bay Vineyard, South Dartmouth
Dorothy W. Bartlett, Bartlett Ocean View Farm, Nantucket
Bob's Turkey Farm, Inc., Lancaster
Bristol County Beekeepers’ Association
Cape Cod Cranberry Growers’ Association, East Wareham
Lucy G. Carter, Woodleigh Farm, Weston
Paul Cavicchio, Jr., Cavicchio Greenhouses, Sudbury
Janet M. Christensen, Milton
Suzanne Colloredo-Mansfeld, South Hamilton
First Pioneer Farm Credit, ACA, Enfield, CT
Russ French, OESCO, Inc., Conway
Griffith Cranberry Company, Inc., South Carver
Debi Hogan & Warren Leach, Seekonk
Ashley V. Holmes, Plymouth
Nan and George Hunt, Orange
Stephen and Susan Knowles, Boxford
Mary McBrady, Plymouth
Charles H. McColough, McColough Associates, Bedford
Barbara W. Meyer, Medfield
NE Vegetable & Berry Growers’ Assn.
Norton Grange P of H #218
Oiva Hannula & Sons, Carver
Francis H. Phillips, Kingston
A. Russo & Sons, Watertown
Wayne P. Smith, Abington
Frank White, Holly Hill Farm, Cohasset
Friends of MAC Donations up to $99
Abington Grange P. of H. #57
John H. and Dorothy M. Angley, Carver
Sarah L. Barnett, Newton Center
Francis E. Bingham, Dedham
Maria Rose Blewitt, Reading
Alden Booth, People’s Pint, Greenfield
Robert A. Borawski, Leeds
Braintree Grange #262, Braintree
Cape Cod Conservation District
Ronald Carriveau, Holyoke
Cecchi & Sons, Feeding Hills
Connecticut Valley Pomona Grange
Katherine Conway, Stockbridge School
Beth Cook, Flavors of Cook Farm, Hadley
Warren and Marilyn Cook, W. Wrentham
Lawrence H. Cournoyer, Paxton
Edward Craig, Jr., Eastham
William Craigue, Leominster
Martha L. Dailey, Bidwell House Museum
Marcia B. Dexter, Taunton
Caryl A. Dyer, Bernardston
Carol Edelman, Morris School, Lenox
Anne E. Ely, McCray’s Farm, S. Hadley
Linwood M. Erskine, Jr., Worcester
George T. Falardeau, Agawam
Luther C. Flanders, Jr., New Braintree
Janet D. Ford, Arlington
Elizabeth Fydenkeyez, Hadley
Carol Gancorz, Ware
Geldmacher Cranberries, Inc., Duxbury
Susan Gillis, Holyoke
Jim Gilman, Huntington
George C. & D.D. Harrington, Framingham
Cheryl Hopson, Blandford
Robert and Barbara Johnson, Rutland
Jean Crum Jones, Jones Family Farm, CT
Rachel Keen, Amherst
Judith B. Kimball, Haverhill
Evelyn K. LaRegione, Pittsfield
Roseanne Luvisi, Weymouth
Gordon and Barbara MacPhee, Holden
Cynthia and Orrin Mason, Jefferson
Mayflower North Pomona Grange #40
Raymond E. McKay, Foxborough
Roy Miller, Monson
Nathan Nourse, South Deerfield
Northfield Garden Club
Oakhill-Seekonk Grange #212, Seekonk
Rochester Grange #257, Carver
John Skorupski, Belchertown High School
Scott Soares, Dartmouth
Richard Starkey, Greenfield
Gordon MacDonald Starr, W. Barnstable
Stockbridge Grange #295
Joanne and Wayne Stuart, Brimfield
Cindy Trahan-Liptak, Rutland
Lee T. Venolia, Williamstown
David Wartel, Chicopee
Frederick and Virginia Weston, S. Carver
David White and Family, Washington
Hudie Wiezbicki, East Longmeadow
Memorial Gifts
In Memory of Christine Worthen Eames
given by Janet Christensen
In Memory of John (Jim) Whittier given
by Nan and George Hunt
In Memory of Jane E. Gourlis given by
Charles P. Gourlis
In Honor of John Lee of Allandale Farm
In- Kind Donations
The Board of Directors wishes to thank the following individuals and organizations that made in-kind donations throughout the year.
Allandale Farm, Brookline
Aristocrat Products, Upton
Diane Baedeker-Petit, USDA NRCS
J. P. Bartlett Company, Sudbury
Bemis Farm Nursery, Spencer
A. Richard Bonanno, Methuen
Billingsgate Shellfish, Wellfleet
Carol Borglund, Westborough
Ed Bourgeois, Amherst
Bliss Brother’s Dairy, Attleboro
Brigham Hill Community Farm, N. Grafton
David Brownell, Dartmouth
Burncoat High School, Worcester
Frank Carlson, Carlson Orchards, Harvard
Janet M. Christensen, Milton
Karen and Glen Cook, Amesbury
Marjorie Cooper, Rochdale
Susan Cornelia, Mass. Farm Bureau, Ashland
Ed and Marcia Cothey, Hawley
Nina Danforth, Weston
Davis Farmland & Mega Maze, Sterling
Jonathan Dowse, Dowse Orchard, Sherborn
Eastern State Exposition, West Springfield
The EcoTarium, Worcester
Edaville USA, Carver
Essex County Farm Bureau
Bill Gauld, MA Christmas Tree Growers Assn.
Susan Gentile, USDA Food & Nutrition Ser.
Jim Geoghegan, Sherborn
Hancock Shaker Village, Hancock
Lynn Hartmann, Barre
Denise Hobby, John Stalker Inst., Framingham
Debi Hogan & Warren Leach, Seekonk
Beth Hook, Shrewsbury
June and Jim Johnson, Tewksbury
Kim Kapala, The Sherborn Inn, Sherborn
John Kinchla, Sunderland
Michael Koski, Plymouth County 4-H
Kent Lage, MA Dept. of Agri. Resources
Judy and Don Leab, Hancock
Rick LeBlanc, MA Dept. of Agri. Resources
John Lee, Carlisle
Leicester Farm and Garden, Charlton
Carol Lively, Rowe
Roseanne Luvisi, USDA Food & Nutrition
Mass. Department of Agricultural Resources
Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation
Massachusetts 4-H Foundation
Mary McBrady, Plymouth
Mary McCaffrey, East Taunton
Sandra Medeiros, Stoughton
Elizabeth Montandon, West Roxbury
Gilbert Moore, Slatersville, RI
James Munger, South Dartmouth
Jerry Myers, West Springfield
Jonathan Nourse, Westborough
Mary and Tim Nourse, Whately
Oakdale Farm, Rehoboth
James O'Brien, Brooksby Farm, Peabody
Oleana Restaurant, Cambridge
Ken & Bobbie Oles, Wrentham
Rita Brennan-Olson, M.S, Mass DOE
Kim Pond, UMass Extension, Worcester
Lenore Paul, Ludlow
Gordon Price, Ingaldsby Farm, Boxford
Dianna Provencher, Leicester
Quansett Nursery, South Dartmouth
Karen Randall, Randall’s Farm, Ludlow
Tom Raposa, Attleboro
Gus Skamarycz, Tyngsboro
Jay Slattery, Mass. Farm Bureau Federation
Scott Soares, MA Dept. of Agri. Resources
Stoney Meadow Farm, South Dartmouth
Wayne and Joanne Stuart, Brimfield
Suburban Enterprises, Abington
Sylvan Nurseries, Inc., Westport
Bill Taylor, USDA NRCS
Topsfield Fair, Topsfield
Tranquil Lake Nursery, Rehoboth
USDA Food & Nutrition Service, Boston
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Ser.
USDA Rural Development, Amherst
Verrill Farm, Inc., Concord
Bethany and Robert Walton
Wampanoag Aquinnah Shellfish, Aquinnah
Heather Ware, NY
Warren Farm & Sugarhouse, North Brookfield
Timothy Wheeler, Berlin
A Special thanks to the Sponsors of our 2005 Seasonal Workshops
Brigham Hill Community Farm, North Grafton
The EcoTarium, Worcester
Lively Spring Farm, Rowe
Nourse Farm, Whately
Soule Homestead Farm, Middleboro
Sunshine Farm, Sherborn
Tranquil Lake Nursery, Rehoboth
Tregelly’s Fiber Farm, Hawley
Warren Farm & Sugarhouse, N. Brookfield
Program Overview
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom (MAC) operates under the guidance of a 30-member volunteer Board of Directors who represent Massachusetts’ agricultural commodities, associations, and state and Federal Agencies involved in agriculture education and awareness. Programs include:
Mini-Grant Program
The Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom Mini-Grant program is now in it’s twelfth year. The Mini-Grant Committee awarded $9,235 in 2005, to support twelve worthy initiatives submitted by Massachusetts educators. Since 1994, MAC has awarded more than $160,000 to nearly 200 projects to educators across the State of Massachusetts.
Grants of up to $1,500 per projects are awarded three times a year. Deadlines are April 1, September 1 and November 1. A MAC Board member serves as a liaison to support each project. The Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom Mini-Grant program celebrated its Tenth Anniversary in April.
Workshops for Teachers on the Farm
In 2005, MAC conducted nine workshops for educators on farms across the state. Ten professional development points were offered for each of the workshops, reaching over 120 educators. Each session offered a farm tour and the opportunity to meet the farmer and learn about the work that goes on at that farm. Related hands-on activities conducted on the farm helped bring agriculture back to the classroom. The 2005 topics included: Aquaculture; Botany and Nursery; DNA & Genetics; Fiber; Goats; Heirloom Tomatoes; Hunger and Nutrition; Maple Sugaring, Modern Plant Propagation Techniques; Soils and Composting, and Sustainable Agriculture and Farm Viability. MAC has offered more than 80 workshop on the farm for educators since 1996, bringing on-farm education experiences to more than 1,000 educators.
Growing Minds Conference
In January 2005, Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom held our Fourth Annual Winter Conference titled “Growing Minds Through Massachusetts Agriculture” at the EcoTarium in Worcester. It offered a full day of workshops on a variety of agricultural topics. Each session, participants chose from five different workshops. Some provided hands-on activities for the classroom, while other explored new technologies or offered a chance to talk with farmers and learn what they do on the farm. During the year, the Board of Directors planned the 2006 Conference pairing classroom educators with farmers for hands-on workshop that link to the Mass. Curriculum Frameworks
Educational Newsletters
The MAC newsletter is published three times a year. Each newsletter focuses on one aspect of the organization and also provides in-depth background materials and activities for one agricultural commodity or issue. 2005 newsletters described our Graduate Credit course, mini-grant program, creative ways that farms can contribute, as well as our 2005 Teacher of the Year, Heirloom Tomato efforts and collaboration with the Massachusetts State Lottery and Department of Agricultural Resources at the Eastern States Exposition. Featured Massachusetts agricultural topics included DNA and Genetics, Hunger and Value-Added Agriculture. We currently print 10,800 copies for distribution and also send the newsletter by e-mail.
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom Web Site
Visit the MAC Web Site at www.aginclassroom.org to find an ever expanding site including information on workshops and conferences; educational information from past newsletters; mini-grant guide-lines and recipients; a regional AITC page, and many links. The web site was recently revised using a new more consistent web application.
DNA and Genetics Curriculum
In 2005, Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom partnered with UMass Extension to develop two new curriculum units for middle school focusing on Genetics. The project titled “Green Genes” was partially funded by an Enrichment Grant from the National Agriculture in the Classroom Program.
Graduate-Credit Course for Teachers
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom also developed a Graduate-credit course “Growing Agriculture in the Classroom.” This course was developed in 2005 and will debut during the summer session of 2006. It provides a college-credit summer institute in agriculture for new teachers and student teachers. Each educator will be assigned a MAC board-member liaison and will receive three years of follow-up support. This project was funded by a grant from the Northeast Farm Credit Ag-Enhancement Program and Agway Foundation.
School Community - Green Industry Gardening Handbook
The School Community - Green Industry Handbook provides resources to facilitate cooperative gardening efforts between schools, local community groups and businesses. This handbook was reformatted and reprinted in 2004. This handbook was developed by Diane Syverson as part of a Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources & Federal Specialty Crops Grant Program.
Massachusetts Agriculture Calendar
MAC collaborated with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to produce the 2006 Calendar of Massachusetts Agriculture. The calendar is a tool to educate teachers, legislators and the general public, while at the same time creating an attractive color calendar to offer a daily reminder of Massachusetts agriculture. A calendar was sent to every public library in the state as well as all legislators.
In 2002, a Farm Field Trip Manual was developed to assist Massachusetts farmers who want to offer field trips on the farm for school groups. It included an outline on how to develop or expand the farm education program, pre-activities and post-field trip activities for the classroom, suggestions for carrying out the field trip and connections to the Mass. Curriculum Frameworks. It was funded by an Agro-Environmental Technology grant from the MA. Dept. of Agricultural Resources.
Other Education Materials
Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom continues to distribute our “Farm Field Trip Manual” (a resource for farmers who want to offer field trips on the farm); “Eight Lesson About Agriculture and the Environment” (a resource with sample activities for elementary and middle school teachers with sample); “Reprints of Ten Past Newsletters”; an “It’s Your World” curriculum for grades K through 12 and our Teacher’s Resource Directory of free and low cost agricultural education materials Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom continues to distribute our Teachers Resources Directory, What’s Up, MAC? video of Massachusetts agriculture with, with ten accompanying lessons plans targeted towards grades three to five, and "It’s Your World" curriculum offering twenty lessons for grades K through 12.
For additional information on any of the projects or proposed initiatives in the Annual Report
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