Page 18 - CFANOct13

FEATURE | agriprogram
THERE ARE
CURRENTLY
TAX BREAKS
about 400 MAY HELP
students participat-
YOU FUND
ing— a manifold
increase over FARMING
UPGRADES
the Ag Ed pro-

gram prior to the PCFB'S
aquaculture addi- AUTOMATION HAS BROUGHT

tion, and a great major changes to agriculture. As we invest
indicator of the in chemical application, injection, equip- AG PROGRAM

program’s success.
ment, and maintenance, we should con-

sider taking advantage of generous federal of the Year
income tax deductions to offset our costs.

When we lease, finance, or buy quali-
fying equipment and office software, we TLots of ‘Fishy’ Business at Crystal Lake Middle School

need to consider Section 179 of the U.S.
tax codes. We need to learn about it, how
by MICHAEL “JAMIE” SELF, Ed.D.
it works, and what qualifies for deduc-
tions. It’s important to know how it can
HE POLK COUNTY FARM BUREAU awarded the Outstanding Agriculture Program of the
help us become more profitable.
Year to a creative group of educators at Crystal Lake Middle School. The key to the C.L.M.S. Agriculture
Informed purchasing decisions greatly Education program’s success was changing from an exclusively traditional rural Central Florida Ag model—
influence our bottom line, so you'll want
citrus, cattle, etc.— to also include an aquaculture component.
to consider potential deductions as you
weigh any decision to update or upgrade.
The wheels were put into motion by the program’s a superintendent of schools in Iowa.
Section 179 may keep you from going into
debt to fund new equipment, or at least lead staff, Ag Ed teacher Gregory West. The idea came Retired principal Eileen Killabrew first brought
from an effort to engage more students in the more ur- Greg to C.L.M.S. about 15 years ago to start the Ag
minimize that debt.
Be sure to run your ideas past your ac- ban neighborhood, where C.L.M.S. is located. “Using a program. The current principal Chris Canning has
program like aquaculture more closely reflects the inter- been there about eight years, and oversaw the incep-
countant to get the most up-to-date informa-
ests of the school population,” says West. There are cur- tion and growth of the aquaculture element.
tion. And consider your options carefully.
rently about 400 students participating— a manifold in- West's favorite part of the program is watching the
You may find there's no need to put
crease over the Ag Ed program prior to the aquaculture joy in the student's eyes as they experience success with
off upgrading that old equipment. Newer, addition, and a great indicator of the program’s success.
the projects. “I take a lot of pride in the fact that they
more efficient equipment may pay for it-
Aquaculture is the farming of aquatic life. The pro- work really hard and are dedicated to their success and
self sooner than you think, especially with
help from Uncle Sam. You'll find more gram at C.L.M.S. has 20,000 gallons worth of tanks. the success of the program,” he says.
They started the program six years ago, raising just red There are about 32 Ag Programs in Polk County,
information about Section 179 here:
http://www.section179.org/
fish. The number of species has extended now to cat- according to West, 15 of which are in middle schools.
fish, bass, tilapia, tropicals, ornamentals, and others.
The programs encourage hands-on learning environ-

The aquaculture program is a huge commitment of ments and are touted as excellent practical learning ap-
resources, especially staff and student time since it has plications for math and science.

to be manned every day of the year— including holidays C.L.M.S. has a Future Farmers of America chap-
and summer break. West is quick to recognize the ef- ter and participates in the annual competitions. The

forts and support of the Polk County School Board staff. C.L.M.S. aquaculture program took first place in the

“Buying equipment for a big operation like this takes state for Aquaculture last year, in addition to stu-
resources and resolve. We couldn’t have even gotten dents winning in 18 other categories. “Aquaculture is

by BRAD WEIHRAUCH
started without support from people like [now retired] a good gateway for students to become interested in
David Byrd, who headed up the Polk County Ag Pro- the broader efforts of Agriculture Education,” explains

grams, and John Small, the head of Workforce Educa- West. “They start with the fish and move on to other
BIO: Brad Weihrauch is a Polk County native. He tion,” elaborates West. He also notes that a startup grant
traditional Central Florida staples.”
grew up around a family business of agriculture and
six years ago helped with initial expenses. The Polk County Farm Bureau recognizes outstand-
customer service. After Winter Haven High School, he Greg grew up in the “cornbelt,” at- ing programs and individuals who advance the inter-
went on to complete his education at Polk Community
College and Warner Southern. After serving 17 years tended Iowa State University for his ests of farmers and ranchers in Polk. The organization
in customer service for a large retailer, Weihrauch degree in Ag Ed, and was heav- is part of the larger Florida Farm Bureau, with more
returned to his agriculture roots and founded RWC, an
ily influenced to pursue his than 147,000 member-families representing Farm Bu-
agri-service and management company, in 2002.
career by his grandpar- reaus in 60 Florida counties. The C.L.M.S. program
ents, who were farmers, received the award and was recognized on October 3 at

and his father, who was
the PCFB Annual Meeting. ag

18 | CFAN
FloridaAgNews.com