Projects

Bringing agriculture to MPPS

One of Mobridge’s main industries is agriculture and the services that support it. We also have a lot of residents that experience food insecurity. Despite that, our students currently have preciously little space to learn about agricultural science and the joy, pride, and peace that can be found in growing a garden. In past years, the school has used a space next to the city water tower on the corner of 12th St and 2nd Ave E for a school garden. The students love it during the spring, but with our short growing season, they haven’t been able to observe much of the growing cycle before summer vacation begins.

We are currently working to fund a $30,000-plus geodesic dome-style greenhouse where students can learn about sustainable agriculture practices, native plants and their uses, hydroponics, and many other topics. The space will allow life science students to conduct experiments about soil health, beneficial insects, and nutrient content. The culinary arts program is also very excited about the project and using produce and herbs from the garden in their dishes.

We have recently received some really transformative funding for the project, including a $10,000 Working Here Fund grant from Farm Credit Services of America, a $3,000 Ag Innovators grant from the SD Ag Foundation, and almost $2,400 from local online and in-person donations to an official SeedMoney campaign. A special thank you to Mobridge Ace Hardware who provided a $600 match for the campaign, and Bridge City Real Estate, who donated $500 the last day of the campaign. Because of these businesses and all the individuals who stopped by with checks or donated online, we were able to almost quadruple our orginial SeedMoney goal of $600—and won an additional $200 grant from SeedMoney for being one of the most successful campaigns in 2022. We are currently over 50% to our goal of $30,000!