North Carolina Farm Bureau’s Ag in the Classroom program seeks to foster an understanding of the significance of agriculture in North Carolina. Agriculture is the number one industry in the state and certainly in Duplin County. Therefore, it is vital that students begin to understand how agriculture impacts their everyday lives - not only in terms of where their food and clothing come from, but also the myriad of services and careers involved and available to them. NC Farm Bureau’s educational materials, professional development opportunities, and financial support help teachers integrate the many aspects of agriculture into Pre-K-12 classrooms.

*Photo by Duplin County Schools: Tonya Novakowski - RHMES*

Tanya Novakowski, 6th grade Math and Science teacher at Rose Hill-Magnolia Elementary School, is well aware and takes full advantage of these resources. She has been awarded numerous Ag in the Classroom Going Local grants over the years and has led her school’s participation in the innovative program Nuggets on Mars. It is not outside the realm of possibility that human life on Mars will exist within our students’ lifetime. The Nuggets program challenges students to consider and problem-solve what life would be like on Mars, how could they get chickens to Mars, what would raising chickens on Mars look like, etc? Novakowski credits Duplin County Schools’ STEAMA kickoff in 2018 and the Nuggets program in 2019 for igniting her passion for integrating agriculture into her classroom.

It’s been full STEAMA ahead ever since for Novakowski and her students. The Eagles, Bees, and Blooms project converted a courtyard in the center of the school into a space with pollinator plants, beehives, bird houses and feeders, and student observation areas. In the back of the school, there is a chicken coop, where students care for the birds and collect their eggs. There are also raised vegetable garden beds in this area, muscadine grape vines, blueberry bushes, a pergola, and picnic tables. Inside the school, Novakowski’s materials were overflowing, so an Agriculture Resource room was created. It houses bee suits, incubators, aquaponic tower gardens, fish tanks, and a library of agricultural magazines and children’s books.

Most recently, Novakowski’s students are learning about vermicomposting or composting with worms. They are setting up and managing worm farms and plan to gift one farm to each grade level in the school to manage. In addition to this, her blessed and busy students are in the midst of their 50 State Rock Project. Each student was given a state to research and was responsible for reaching out to the state for rock samples. This project will culminate in an impressive display in the gymnasium lobby. Lastly, Ms. Novakowski is vitally involved in Rose Hill-Magnolia’s campaign to become a solar school. The start-up funding has been raised and the school is awaiting installation of the solar units and subsequent training.

*Photo by Duplin County Schools - Nova Chicken Coop*

With all of these activities to her credit and to the entire school’s benefit, it is absolutely no wonder that Ms. Novakowski has just been named the North Carolina Farm Bureau’s Ag in the Classroom Teacher of the Year for 2022! On March 16th, the entire middle school (RHM serves Pre-K-8th grade) was called to the gym for an “emergency” assembly where Justin Edwards, Duplin County Farm Bureau President, Heather Willoughby, Ag in the Classroom Assistant Director, and other Farm Bureau representatives surprised Ms. Novakowski with the award. She humbly accepted the award and gave thanks to her parents, who were in attendance, her students, who are always up for her ideas, a great STEAMA partner in Mr. Tim Mateer, and a super supportive principal in Mrs. Robbin Cooper.

When asked about her motivation and purpose for bringing agriculture alive for students at Rose Hill-Magnolia, Novakowski stated, “It’s all for the kids. The impact has been unbelievable. Students want to come to school to take care of the chickens they have fallen in love with. They want to see what vegetable or fruit is ready to be harvested so they can taste it. They are so proud of their work. Agriculture in our school has motivated students in ways that are hard to measure. Duplin County has a strong agricultural heritage and a promising future — it has been estimated that the agricultural output of Duplin County, combined with neighboring Sampson County, is equal to about 1/6 of the world’s food supply. Agriculture industries in Duplin County today range from family farms to corporate headquarters of major producers and the future of the industry lies in our students' hands. We need them to see the importance of wanting to stay within our county to help continue this rich heritage. They need to understand that there are endless career opportunities in agriculture, everything from the fields to the board room.”

*Photo by Duplin County Schools - Nova Bees*

Ms. Novakowski’s advice for other teachers, “No money, no problem! From Farm Bureau’s Going Local grants, Four County EMC’s Bright Ideas grants, House of Raeford’s FLOCK program, and others – there are plenty of organizations with the means and desire to grow the next generation of their employees. No expertise, no problem! Bring the experts to you. We have utilized the veterinarian from House of Raeford, the county 4-H extension leader, North Carolina’s state geologist, certified beekeepers in the area, our cafeteria manager, and sometimes the students themselves know more about something than me!”

Principal Robbin Cooper watches Ms. Novakowski in awe. “The list of what she has accomplished in the last few years is amazing. The funding and community support she solicits and secures, along with her intentionality to make these opportunities available to our entire school, have truly changed the culture of our school. Our school and our students are better for all that she does for our Eagle family.”

“Ms. Novakowski truly embodies the qualities of a STEAMA-strong educator,” adds Superintendent Austin Obasohan. “On behalf of the Board of Education and myself, we thank Ms. Novakowski for her passion and dedication to her school and her students. We also thank North Carolina Farm Bureau and all of our faithful community and business partners.”

Tanya Novakowski is in her 23rd year of teaching at Rose Hill-Magnolia Elementary School.