Five Fullerton students who are part of a Future Farmers of American program decided the slaughterhouse wouldn’t be the final stop for three goats and a pair of sheep they raised.
Instead, they took the rare step of sending their animals to a refuge called Farm Sanctuary near Palmdale.
According to the Orange County Register, students generally spend their own time and money to purchase and care for animals through FFA programs, and they typically recoup their investments during auctions at the OC Fair.
Not all are slaughtered after they’re sold. Some are used for breeding, others to help clear unwanted brush. But the students from Fullerton Union High School didn’t want to take the chance that their animals would end up on dinner plates.
“I won’t judge other people,” Rilea Reed, 15, told the newspaper. “But I personally don’t want to do that.”
It might surprise some to know that some Orange County schools offer robust agricultural programs, including Orange High School and Westminster High.
And here are some other education stories from the week ending Aug. 2:
- Relying on pasta and epoxy as their construction materials, a team of high schoolers from Irvine and Diamond Bar recently won the 14th Spaghetti Bridge competition at Cal State Fullerton. The July 19 contest was part of the four-week Engineering Innovation program organized by CSUF and Johns Hopkins University.
- More than 3,000 educators from across California gathered this week for a conference aimed at promoting equity by understanding and supporting students’ academic, behavioral and social-emotional needs. The theme was “All Means All: Know My Name, Face and Story.”
- About 76 percent of high school graduates in Orange County went on to enroll in college last year, according to new data released by the state.
- To address the state’s shortage of math and science teachers, the CSU system says it will invest an additional $10 million in its Mathematics and Science Teacher Initiative over four years. The funds will help to recruit students, provide financial aid and establish new credentialing pathways.
- Fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade girls were taught how to run their own businesses and be tomorrow’s leaders during a four-week program that culminated with an entrepreneurial showcase at Chapman University.
- The California Department of Education is seeking feedback on a proposed ethnic studies curriculum that would serve as a guideline for districts. It would be the first of its kind in the nation.
- Thousands of students in California might no longer be eligible for free or reduced-price school meals if a federal plan to restrict food stamps is realized, EdSource reports.
- Football continues to reign as the most popular high school sport in California, but there are signs it may be losing yardage. Statewide CIF statistics indicate the total number of players has decreased by at least 2,700 every year since 2014-15.
- Lottery revenues are soaring, reaching nearly $7 billion last year, but some are questioning whether schools are getting their fair share of the pot.
- Orange County teacher Gina Whitcomb has become the OCDE Newsroom’s unofficial international correspondent. She recently shared highlights from a two-week tour of German schools through the Transatlantic Outreach Program.
This is the part where we encourage you to keep up with local education news stories by bookmarking the OCDE Newsroom, subscribing for emailed updates or following us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.