By The town of Hatch in southern New Mexico is known as the Chile Capital of the World. Farming is at the heart of this small town, engrained in families for multiple generations. It is an area filled with rich histories, cultural legacies and community pride.
“There's no other place like it in the world. The Hatch Valley community is a huge family and we always help each other out, no matter what. All we want to do is help and all we want to do is grow.”
R. J.’s family started farming near Hatch before New Mexico was even considered a state.
A few years ago, Hatch Valley Public Schools (HVPS) Superintendent Michael Chavez posed a challenge to his teachers: how could the district help students learn in ways that connect them with Hatch Valley’s rich agricultural history and engage the community? One of the teachers who helped brainstorm the solution is HVPS Ag Instructional Coach Kim O’Byrne.
In 2022, O’Byrne led efforts to apply for a $300,000 Kellogg Foundation grant. The grant’s purpose is to support Hatch Valley Public Schools’ vision of improving the quality of life for students through the development of life skills and career and college readiness. Many students are dual-language or English Language Learners, which can create barriers to opportunity and equitable outcomes, especially in a state experiencing an ongoing shortage of bilingual teachers. In addition, the Hatch community is home to a large immigrant population, so providing bilingual education to students and career pathways to families who do not speak English as their first language helps educators address this gap.
The first step was installing water-conserving vertical gardens in every elementary classroom. These gardens experiential taught over 200 students ages 4 to 12 the important of farming in STEM while honoring their language and bridging the inequities gap in learning. The neighboring high school students volunteered to support this experiential learning and all educational materials where both in English and Spanish.
“It has been amazing to see the kids get so excited about seeing tendrils coming off their pea plants and then tell me in Spanish about the plant’s pH level and how to correct that. These are first graders talking high-level science skills in their native tongue.”
The tower gardens are designed not only to inspire pride in growing food but also to grow future teachers, marketers, scientists, and researchers who can potentially give back to the Hatch Valley community later. The big project at the adjacent high school is a 40-foot climate-controlled freight container that will grow the equivalent of 3 1/2 acres of produce using 97% less water and uses indoor plant lights with a variable spectrum to replicate the sun. Hatch Valley High School is growing romaine and butterhead lettuce to start out, producing enough to donate to the local food bank once a month, serving an average of 65 families. The school is inviting local growers to check out the freight farm as a potential solution to the lack of water and plans to experiment with chile varieties and herbs like cilantro.
Another asset in short supply is veterinarians, especially bilingual. With help from the WKKF grant, HVPS is about to open the doors of its new Hatch Valley Vet Clinic/Learning Lab to help small animal pet owners while educating students interested in becoming veterinarians. Next, the project is expanding to include a large animal vet clinic supporting food production animals. Students are taking care of the school’s “lawnmower goats,” and working with accurate animal models to learn veterinary medicine
“When I go into the vet science class, students have these huge smiles on their face. Seeing what they can do in the classroom gives them confidence that goes to a whole new level when they go to school for it and go into that field. Students in Hatch Valley don’t have many opportunities, so these vet science courses really expand that,” observes Goray.
In addition to science, biology and agriculture – marketing was also a main priority in this program – providing a full sense of all the elements of a successful vet and agribusiness program.
The New Mexico State University agriculture marketing students collaborated with Hatch Valley students to develop a brand and logo for the Hatch Valley Vet Center and Animal Care & Learning Lab. The semester-long brand project led to students at HVHS to understand the concepts of brand and logo creation – evaluating, comparing and offering suggestions for change. The culmination of the projects have been impactful for a full range of students interested in different professions.
For Superintendent Chavez and the teachers in the Hatch Valley Public School system, this project shows what can happen when leaders think big, follow through with action and work to create future leaders with skills the community needs. They’re sowing seeds to grow the future and advance equitable outcomes.
When Kim O’Byrne is asked what she’s most proud of, she doesn’t hesitate:
“Seeing these kids become confident and proud of something. For too long, they felt like they were from a small rural school and didn't have anything.”
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