Methacton’s Hydroponic Farm has growing impact on students, community

Supported by $35,000 donation from Ambler Savings Bank

EAGLEVILLE » Students at Methacton High School are growing vegetables in an unlikely place — a shipping crate. It’s called a Hydroponic Farm. Inside the shipping crate, plants grow in vertical rows, without soil, using a mineral rich water system. LED lighting is built into the walls to provide the ideal environment, and to expedite growing time. Plants go from seed to harvest in just seven weeks.

This is one of the School’s new STEM Innovation Labs, part of the Environmental Science and Biology curriculum. A select group of six students are part of the pioneer team, and have been growing on the farm since January. Now, over 70 students are requesting the class for the fall. So far they have grown a variety of lettuces, herbs, cucumbers and tomatoes.

Steve Savitz, Science Department Chair, and Mr. Jeremy Walton, Biology Teacher, started with this idea three years ago. Now, seeing the harvest brought to life has been rewarding beyond what they imagined. Methacton is the first school in Pennsylvania with this state of the art greenery farming system.

“When we had the idea for this project we weren’t sure it was even possible. So to see it become a reality is incredible. It’s thanks to the strength of our Education Foundation and donations like the one from Ambler Savings Bank that brought it to life,” said Steve Savitz.

The farm has an impact reaching into the community too. Food is distributed in multiple channels, to students, teachers, the Daily Bread Food Pantry and, soon, businesses.

“Teaching the business applications of farming is another important part. We are making plans to sell the greens to local restaurants,” says Steve Savitz.

Total cost for the lab was nearly $175,000, funded by the Methacton Education Foundation.

“Seeing the excitement from our students and the cross-curriculum educational opportunities this provides is exactly what it’s all about,” Shannon Peffer, Vice President, Methacton Education Foundation.

Several seniors in the class have decided to pursue environmental science in the fall at college.

“Experiential learning is the way of the future and we are proud to support what Methacton is doing with the Hydroponic Farm,” commented Roger Zacharia, President and CEO, Ambler Savings Bank.