{"id":354680,"date":"2026-06-10T13:50:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T13:50:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/354680\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T13:50:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T13:50:10","slug":"sacramento-schools-urban-garden-teaches-students-to-grow-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/354680\/","title":{"rendered":"Sacramento school’s urban garden teaches students to grow food"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Abridged version: <\/p>\n

Students at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento are learning about the world of agriculture through a program that teaches city students about food production and farmwork. <\/p>\n

The focus on \u201cgreen collar\u201d careers emphasizes ways to incorporate agriculture and sustainability into more traditional careers and education.<\/p>\n

Urban agriculture and small-scale farming introduces students to a farming industry that has grown older and smaller in recent history. <\/p>\n

Nathan Xiong walked around the farm at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento, making sure his classmates weren\u2019t getting too overheated on the hot May afternoon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Xiong, a senior, is one of two student supervisors of a crew participating in the Center for Land-Based Learning\u2019s paid Urban Ag Internship Program. All of these students are members of Burbank\u2019s Urban Agriculture Academy and work paid hours in the Burbank Urban Garden at the back of the campus.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Garden\"The Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

That day, interns installed trellises for tomato plants, and handled other tasks to prepare for a farmstand scheduled for early June. The students learned how to run a farmstand from farmers at Root 64, a 1-acre farmstead in Sacramento\u2019s Tallac Village neighborhood. Earlier this spring, the farmers advised students on their annual plant sale.<\/p>\n

Xiong said he applied to be an intern for the money, but gained much more during his two internship years and this three years taking the Urban Agriculture Academy series of classes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really enjoy learning about regenerative agriculture and learning about cover crops, trying to be sustainable,\u201d Xiong said. \u201cThe aquaponics system, which is one of my favorite things, uses the fish to grow plants. It\u2019s a really cool system.\u201d<\/p>\n

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This fall, Xiong will attend UC Davis to major in mechanical engineering. He plans to incorporate agriculture into his college studies.<\/p>\n

Attracting teenagers to consider future professions in agriculture isn\u2019t easy, but those doing so say it\u2019s much-needed. The U.S. is losing both farmers and farmland. The average age of an American farmer is over 58, according to the most recent Farm Census<\/a>, and farmers over 65 own nearly 40% of all farmland. The country has lost more than a half-million farms in the past few decades.<\/p>\n

Agriculture jobs, including those besides farming, may offer promising career pathways for young people. And an effective place to start in Sacramento is with urban agriculture, where small-scale farms and community gardens can exist right where most people live.<\/p>\n

\"ManUrban Ag Academy Founder and Instructor Todd McPherson teaches students at the Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Attracting a new generation<\/p>\n

Luther Burbank is the only high school in Sacramento City Unified School District that offers an agriculture-focused academy, which teacher and coordinator Todd McPherson founded in 2017. Grant Union High School, in Twin Rivers Unified School District, has the Grant Environmental Organization<\/a>, a three-year Career Technical Education academy focused on agriculture, environmental science and \u201cgreen-collar\u201d careers.<\/p>\n

Once Burbank and Grant students complete the first year in their academy, they can apply to be selected for the Urban Ag Internship<\/a>. Each year, the organization has about 25 paid interns. This upcoming school year, the Center for Land-Based Learning will expand to Sacramento Academic and Vocational Academy, adding seven interns and about 40 non-intern participants.<\/p>\n

The interns gain job experience and professional development skills. They visit farms, ranches and colleges, and work on school gardens and habitat restoration.<\/p>\n

The academy services component of the program is open to all academy students at both high schools. These non-interns, numbering about 280 to 300, also have access to field days, guest speakers, and workshops on topics like interviewing, resumes and networking. All students also learn about leadership training and relationship building.<\/p>\n

The program aims to increase opportunities for students of color. Both Burbank and Grant have a population<\/a> of about 95% students of color.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Sacramento, as the Farm-to-Fork capital, there\u2019s a lot of opportunities for agriculture and for natural resource stewardship in this area,\u201d said Morgan Caudill, who manages the program for the Center for Land-Based Learning, which is based in Yolo County. \u201cWe need more of a pipeline for our students directly into those careers that is also equitable. A lot of the students that we work with, they\u2019re coming from historically redlined neighborhoods.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ManUrban Ag Academy Founder and Instructor Todd McPherson works with Angelie Xiong, a senior, at the Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Pathways for economic mobility<\/p>\n

Sacramento may be the country\u2019s self-proclaimed Farm-to-Fork Capital, but a robust farming industry does not necessarily mean food security for residents.<\/p>\n

Learning how to grow food and pursue a career in agriculture is an all-around benefit for Sacramento residents, said Gabrielle Gonzales, assistant professor of sociology at Sacramento State. Gonzales is one of three professors behind a program called Growing Educational Pathways for Food Sovereignty.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe students we service tend to be \u2026 from the most marginalized communities,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cIf we can increase pathways for economic mobility, then we\u2019re looking at a more equal and sustainable society, essentially.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sacramento State program \u2014 now in its first full year \u2014 incorporates food justice and sustainable farming education. In partnership with the Center for Land-Based Learning internship, high school students at Burbank and Grant get college-level education and hands-on training.<\/p>\n

\"Garden\"Crops at Burbank Urban Garden at Luther Burbank High School campus on June 3 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Leah Joyner, assistant professor of kinesiology at Sacramento State, notes that although people of color in urban areas, including Sacramento, report high levels of interest in urban agriculture, systemic barriers result in low levels of access to amenities like community gardens.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Urban agriculture can improve food security and address \u201cfood apartheid,\u201d which refers to how racially inequitable access to food \u201cdoes not just happen,\u201d Joyner said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In urban centers, she said, food apartheid can often be connected to the legacy of redlining, an old practice in which banks denied home loans to people of color, and instituted restrictive property deeds that prevented minorities from buying or living in predominantly white neighborhoods.\u00a0These residents were limited to neighborhoods more likely to be zoned for industrial uses. <\/p>\n

Beyond limiting the ability of residents to build generational wealth, the practice also left a lasting legacy of pollution in some Sacramento neighborhoods. People must first learn how to improve soil health, said Si Gao, an assistant professor of environmental studies at Sacramento State. Gao helps students see soil science as a good career option, especially important for those whose parents might be farm workers and have a negative view of agricultural work.<\/p>\n

Learning about land stewardship and growing food can be about more than just a career for young people, Joyner said. It\u2019s also about exposing students to the joy of being in a garden setting.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"StudentCody Huang, a junior at Luther Burbank High School, harvests crops in the Burbank Urban Garden on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Expanding career pathways<\/p>\n

Former intern Kylie Capacete graduated from Grant in 2025 and said one of her favorite field days was at Bobcat Ranch in Winters for habitat restoration on the 6,800-acre cattle ranch that practices sustainable grassland stewardship.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like what I remember most about the program was just the community I had there,\u201d Capacete said. \u201cNot only my co-workers and teachers, but also when we would go out on field days I would learn a lot about the people there, the work they did on their ranches.\u201d<\/p>\n

Capacete attends USC where she plans to major in environmental engineering.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Caudill, Center for Land-Based Learning program manager, said up to 75% of the students move on to study agriculture and natural resource careers in college. Many study environmental science; others study engineering. Only about 10% of students pursue farming.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you think about the opportunity for future green careers, there\u2019s a wide and really necessary opportunity for all of these careers, especially in California,\u201d Caudill said.<\/p>\n

Randy Stannard, co-owner of Root 64, agrees that the program exposes young people to the full breadth of food-system jobs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just growing vegetables,\u201d Stannard said. \u201cYou could go work for the state and be a soil scientist or an agronomist. Or you could be very interested in tech and want to fly drones, and that\u2019s very involved in agriculture as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

McPherson\u2019s vision for Burbank\u2019s academy has been to provide a bridge to post-secondary education for students who are interested in school gardens, being outside or the environment, but may not know the terms of what to look for in higher education to study these interests or pursue one as a career.<\/p>\n

They may not know about soil science or entomology, for example. They may not be familiar with the horticulture program at Cosumnes River College or American River College. The school\u2019s Urban Agriculture Academy fills the gap by providing that exposure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s real hard to be a farmer, but at minimum, they graduate knowing where their food comes from a little bit more,\u201d McPherson said. \u201cThe best case scenario, [we] open some doors, and they\u2019re the next leading environmental scientist.\u201d<\/p>\n

But farmers are still needed, too.<\/p>\n

\"WomanNicole McDavid with Root 64 Farms at the Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Countering a crisis<\/p>\n

Caudill said the small percentage of interns that eventually pursue farming is related to challenges of land access, capital costs and starting a business.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think it is also simply because farming is incredibly hard work,\u201d she said. \u201cStudents know they must dedicate immense physical, mental, emotional and financial energy to succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adriana Toste, chair of Sacramento County Farm Bureau\u2019s Young Farmers & Ranchers<\/a> committee, agrees that the hardship of a farming life deters many people. Toste grew up in a dairy farming family in Merced County. The local committee serves young people from 18 to 35. Of the local group\u2019s dozen or so active members, many come from agricultural backgrounds and move to Sacramento County from more rural areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think for a lot of us, we like having a like-minded environment where we can share ideas and advocate for an industry that we value so much, and (this is) just a good outlet to do that,\u201d Toste said.<\/p>\n

Several Young Farmers & Ranchers members work in agricultural marketing, representing growers or marketing to growers. Some members are in consumer-facing roles for food brands, others are agricultural teachers for Future Farmers of America programs at area schools. And then some members work in the legislative realm.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Toste studied agricultural communications at Oklahoma State University, and works at a communications and consulting firm in Sacramento for agricultural clients. Toste and her two siblings work in agriculture, but only her brother was interested in taking over the family dairy operation.<\/p>\n

\u201cFarming is 365 days a year,\u201d Toste said. \u201cIt\u2019s a really tough life, and it truly is, I like to say, a labor of love. You have to be dedicated to that labor of love 365 days a year. A lot of times, farmers are working well before the sun comes up and well into the evening and nights.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"studentsChantz Glasper Evans, a senior, and Cody Huang, a junior, wash harvested crops at the Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Mari Mahoney, a senior at Burbank and an intern in the Center for Land-Based Learning program, doesn\u2019t plan to major in an agriculture field, instead opting to pursue art.<\/p>\n

On that hot afternoon in May, Mahoney walked around pointing out the many parts of the farm. Seasonal beds with peppers, zucchini, tomatoes and artichokes. An area of carrots, lettuce, bok choy and other vegetables. A garlic patch and a strawberry bed. There are lots of trees \u2014 mulberry, fig, peach, pomegranate, apricot, plum, lemon, pear. A California native plant area. There\u2019s a greenhouse, with one corner for the aquaponics system.<\/p>\n

Mahoney said her school\u2019s annual plant sale has improved each year she has been involved. \u201cI remember the very first year I participated, which was my sophomore year, goodness, (it) was very hectic, very hectic,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was like Black Friday at the mall.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"StudentMari Mahoney, a senior, at the Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

The students have since fine-tuned their operations, including with better labeling and charts, and a more efficient layout.<\/p>\n

The Burbank Urban Garden area has a large expansion space that used to be the school\u2019s tennis courts. Students recently planted cover crops to add nutrients back into the soil, but the space\u2019s future remains unknown. There are challenges to the Urban Agriculture Academy model, McPherson said, and the program isn\u2019t guaranteed to last forever. McPherson and others are exploring how to make the program sustainable over the long term.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For Burbank\u2019s farmstand in June, the third-year students decided to give the food away for free. Making the produce available to the community was more important than making money. This decision was part of the bigger picture focus of third-year academy students, as they considered the role of their school farm in Sacramento\u2019s local food system.<\/p>\n

McPherson said this is the food justice side of their work \u2014 and it\u2019s informed by the lived experience of the people making the decisions, with many of Burbank\u2019s students residing in Meadowview, a certified food desert.<\/p>\n

\u201cStudents are learning, but we\u2019re also generating high-quality, organic, nutrient-dense produce for our community where it\u2019s lacking,\u201d McPherson said. \u201cIt\u2019s important to me that they understand the gravity of that too. It\u2019s about producing the food, but also about meeting community needs, and not waiting to solve community problems, and not waiting for other people to come and do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even though the school year is coming to an end, the farm work won\u2019t stop. Only a couple weeks after the school year ends in June, the crew will be back out in the summer heat.<\/p>\n

\"KidDaniel Castelar, a senior, harvests carrots at the Burbank Urban Garden on the campus of Luther Burbank High School on June 3, 2026. (Tyler Bastine)<\/p>\n

Sena Christian\u00a0is a veteran journalist and freelance writer from Sacramento. She teaches journalism at Sacramento City College.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Abridged version: Students at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento are learning about the world of agriculture…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":354681,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[121,123,122],"class_list":["post-354680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=354680"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354680\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/354681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=354680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=354680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=354680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}