Lessons in urban farming: Seabreeze Agricultural Land Lab opens

Two pigs, two goats, two cows, multiple rabbits, a flock of chickens and one belligerent rooster are the current residents of the newly built Seabreeze Agricultural Land Lab.

After a collaborative six-month effort between Seabreeze agriculture teacher Craig Lungren; building trades, construction and design teacher Raymond Grimard; their students and a generous group of local donors, the land lab opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony and afternoon open house on Tuesday, Feb. 21.

Principal Tucker Harris began the event by introducing the district’s “fearless leader,” Volusia County Schools Superintendent Carmen Balgobin. She was joined by Ormond Beach Zone 3 City Commissioner Susan Persis, District 4 Volusia County School Board member Carl Persis, Ormond Beach Zone 4 City Commissioner and Deputy Mayor Harold Bailey and Career Technical Education Specialists Amy McAllister, Daniel Cox and Vince Roeshink.

Balgobin commended Lungren on deciding to teach at Seabreeze over other opportunities. 

“He chose this option because this is where his heart is,” she said. “When he heard there was a possibility that the program would go away, he said, ‘I can’t let that happen.’ That’s what it takes in a community — that type of passion and dedication.”

Lungren has worked as an agriculture teacher intermittently for nine years. He was previously the supervisor of the education department at Seaworld, organizing field trips and conferences.

Six months ago, he accepted the Seabreeze position, becoming the school’s agriculture teacher and an advisor for the Seabreeze chapter of the Future Farmers of America. 

We made sure that everything you see could be in any type of urban farming environment. We took a very small area, where literally our animals can see the waves of the ocean, and brought it to life.” — Craig Lunden, Seabreeze High School agriculture teacher

He immediately began overhauling the land lab to make every aspect educational. Now, students can learn basic livestock veterinary science, greenhouse functions, composting and how urban farming can work in a controlled environment.                                           

“This would not be possible without the community’s support as well as all of our school and staff making sure this is a success,” Lungren said. “Who would have thought that this would only take six months — a lot of time with no sleep, and I have grey hair now. We are excited to open this, do the ribbon cutting and start our community off the right way, by allowing them to see what type of program farming is all about and how that can be involved in a city-type environment.”

Before Lungren arrived, the area that is now home to the land lab consisted of two rundown greenhouses that needed irrigation and a cooling system, six raised planters in disrepair and a few structures to house animals. There were only a few chickens and ducks. Now there are separate livestock structures for cows, goats and swine, a chicken coop with a run, and a rabbit hutch. A standing desk was built for note-taking, and everything is painted in cheery Seabreeze red and white.

Many students in the agriculture class are also members of the Seabreeze FFA Chapter. Members go through an interview process to become FFA officers. Officers in attendance were president Cody Thomas, secretary Summer Martin, treasurer Shasta Varlesi, Casey Jensen Gainey and Colby Parrish. Thomas got emotional when he addressed the crowd before the ribbon cutting.

“When I got here, none of this was here,” Thomas said. “Watching it grow into this wonderful thing and the community that we’ve brought together feels amazing. We have cows now, we have pigs now, we have goats, we have too many rabbits to count. I feel like I can’t say enough about the community. It’s been our biggest help. If we need something, they’re there to help us.”

A common thread among the officers was their exposure to farming and livestock as they were growing up. Varlesi and Gainey own horses and are barrel riders, while Martin was raised in a family with cattle and has always wanted to show an animal. 

Last summer, Parrish transferred from DeLand, where he was an FFA member but only participated in the FFA’s welding program. This is his first year being involved in the agricultural aspect of FFA and serving as an officer. His family owns a farm on Lake Seminole in Tallahassee, and he’s a natural at helping kids who are new to farming.

“I love FFA because, honestly, it’s opened so many new doors for me,” he said. “It kind of just opened my eyes to see that I have chances to do something great in life that I didn’t even know I could. I can get a scholarship and go to college, which I never even thought about. I was always like, I’ll go to trade school and be in construction the rest of my life.”

Lungren’s goal is to create a top-notch CTE program through a partnership with the construction class and by partnering with Seabreeze’s culinary academy this year to provide their fruits and vegetables. A floriculture department is being created, with a floral shop. Students will learn basic communication skills, marketing strategies and how to run a business.  

“We made sure that everything you see could be in any type of urban farming environment,” Lungren said. “We took a very small area, where literally our animals can see the waves of the ocean, and brought it to life.”