For many of the previous 40 years, the BHS family has included four-legged creatures as well as students. 

Brevard High has a 30-acre farm near the softball field for its animal science and agriculture classes and the Future Farmers of America (FFA) club to use throughout the year. The barn at BHS is called the Brevard High School FFA Farm. 

“We use the farm as our outdoor classroom and students get hands-on experience with raising livestock and growing and harvesting crops,” said animal science teacher Mrs. Clayton.  

Animals at the barn include cattle, goats, chickens, two farm dogs, puppies, and three farm cats.

The oldest animals are cows and they are 10 years old; they also have been there the longest, Clayton said.  

The reason we don’t have any horses or sheep at the barn is that they take a lot of effort to maintain, Clayton said.

Her favorite animal at the barn is Breanna the cow.

“She was born at the farm, was a part of our livestock show team, then has had two beautiful calves,” Clayton said. “She is a wonderful mother and will often let other calves nurse on her. She’s also very food motivated and likes snacks… just like me!”

The barn serves as a Livestock Show Barn from March through October, when it can house up to eight show goats and six show heifers/steers. 

It also serves as a maternity ward for nanny goats in November and December, when goats have their kids. Calves are born in January.

The farm where the livestock live is about 13 acres, which includes pasture land, barns and small pastures for the show animals.  

“We also have about 8 acres of crop land where we grow corn and hay,” Clayton added.

Chickens are occasionally raised in the fall and spring, and puppies in the fall for the Small Animal Project in the Animal Science 2 class.

In the past, the barn has also housed pigs.

“We don’t have a great place to house pigs year-round, so we sold our sows a few years ago,” Clayton said. 

Carrol Parker, a former agriculture teacher, started the farm in the ’80s and they raised beef cattle. In the early 2000s, though, the herd of cattle was sold and the farm was not used to its capacity for several years, Clayton said. 

“In 2015, we received a grant from the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund for $10,000 and were able to bring our farm back to life,” she added. “We replaced old fencing and improved the pastureland and were donated four bred heifers from Everett Farm in 2016. Our herd has grown from those heifers, and various grants and fundraisers have enabled us to continue to grow the farm to what it is today.” 

Clayton said the animals each serve a purpose – females are raised to become breeding stock and males are raised to be used for meat. When steers are a year and a half or 1,000 pounds, they are either sold or sent to a processing plant.

Wethers, which are castrated male goats, are sold once they are weaned from their mothers or after they are shown in the  livestock show team program and are 75 to 100 pounds.

FFA is a national organization that serves as a leadership club for students who are interested in agriculture. It offers opportunities for students to grow in their leadership skills through career development events and agriculture related adventures.

FFA is open to any student interested in agriculture and can open doors to careers and opportunities all over the globe. Currently, 67 students are in FFA.

Article by Selah Pearson. Photos by Selah Pearson and Rosa Olivares