“THIS PROGRAM isn’t really about growing plants,” says career tech and special education teacher and San Bernardino Teachers Association (SBTA) member Hector Magallanes, who leads the hydroponics program at San Bernardino’s San Andreas High School. “It’s about students having exposure to things they’ve never experienced before.”

For more than a decade, the Growing Hope program at San Andreas High has been introducing thousands of students to the wonders of agricultural technology, a state-of-the-art hydroponic growing facility and a commercial capacity greenhouse. Students of all ability levels at the continuation school learn the basics of horticulture using industry-standard equipment and technology, including the science behind plant growth, fermentation and lighting systems.

Between 6,000 and 8,000 heads of lettuce can be grown simultaneously in the large greenhouse, with the program providing the greens to the San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) Nutrition Services Program to be served to students districtwide. But Magallanes says his students are doing so much more than growing produce — they’re learning confidence, exploring and learning about their interests and talents, and thriving in a world that isn’t always a friendly place for many of them.

“Whether it’s a welding or ag tech class, these skills are transferrable to other industries. Exposure is crucial for these students, so they know it’s possible.” —Hector Magallanes, San Bernardino Teachers Association

“The exposure is most important. Whether it’s a welding or ag tech class, these skills are transferable to other industries,” says Magallanes, who previously worked as a classified employee in the district. “Exposure is crucial for these students, so they know it’s possible.”

Greenhouse produce is served to students districtwide in the district’s nutrition services program.

After 18 years in the classroom as a special education teacher, SBTA Vice President Barbara Pastuschek-Cox was recruited to San Andreas to develop special education-inclusive career & technical education (CTE) programs at the continuation school. She applied for a grant to get her idea of a hydroponics garden program off the ground, and when it wasn’t funded, SBCUSD officials decided they wanted to make her idea a reality.

What’s blossomed from those initial seeds is a world-class, fully inclusive agricultural tech program where students of all abilities work side-by-side as peers, classmates and friends.

“Not all our students will go to university and we need to provide options for them, too. Our special education students need hands-on learning in math and the sciences that could lead to a career for them,” says Pastuschek-Cox. “It’s been a great opportunity for all our students to practice leadership and learn skills that we don’t always get to practice in the classroom setting.”

CTE Pathway Business Partner Sherryl Anderson has worked with Pastuschek-Cox since the program’s inception more than a decade ago. When the two first met, Anderson and her partner were running their project management and marketing business — with a passion for special education and an interest in food ecosystems. They looked at the hydroponics project as an opportunity to reimagine education, working with Pastuschek-Cox to understand the goals for her students and build a professional grade greenhouse with cutting-edge equipment retooled to make it accessible and usable by students of all abilities.

“It ’s so important to talk about opportunities other than college that are meaning ful for students,” says Anderson, who says the experience is particularly impactful for students with different abilities. “The level of confidence by our special education students is astronomical. They lead presentations about the growing process and how the equipment works.”

While students in general education cycle through the program every seven weeks, San Andreas’ students in special education spend all school year learning about the greenhouse and equipment. This helps create a unique classroom environment where students in special education are literally subject-matter experts and get to teach their classmates about how things work.

“Our special education students need hands-on learning in math and the sciences that could lead to a career.” —Barbara Pastuschek-Cox, San Bernardino Teachers Association

“It’s a unique program because it’s at a continuation school and includes special education,” says Pastuschek-Cox, who has presented about the program at Stanford University and attracted the attention of school districts here in California and around the world. “We have now laid the groundwork so other alternative schools can do this too.”

SBTA has been instrumental in the program’s success since before it was even in existence. Pastuschek-Cox says being involved in the local helped her connect with fellow members to build interest in the program and lean into relationships with district admin to get it approved and supported. Anderson added that SBTA awards scholarships to help some of these students pursue their dreams after graduation.

“I felt like I was ahead of the game with SBTA supporting a brand-new teacher like me,” Magallanes says. “I didn’t have to go through it alone. It’s meaningful for my union to have my back.”

Teaching the Skills to Pay the Bills

“The largest number of tradespeople were Baby Boomers, who are on their way to retirement, taking their skills with them. So, we need to figure out how to pass those on,” says Josh O’Neal, a CTE teacher and member of Hemet Teachers Association (HTA). “There’s a gap that’s growing — everyone went off to college to be philosophers but when their water heater goes down, they’re out of luck.”

Hemet Teachers Association’s Josh O’Neal, left, with one of his students.

O’Neal had been working in the trades for more than 20 years when he first got a taste of teaching in 2019. A former framing carpenter, mechanics helper and heavy diesel mechanic, O’Neal earned his third associate’s degree and a bachelor’s in social psychology that year, when he also began teaching night classes at Barstow Community College after finishing his shift at an open pit mine in Boron.

“And I just fell in love,” O’Neal says. “From that point, I tried to figure out how to teach full time.”

O’Neal began teaching at Barstow High School, where he had attended, taking a big pay cut to get into education and looking to make a difference. In 2020, he started working at Riverside County Office of Education (RCOE), teaching welding online (“it was a trip!”), which included how to read blueprints and welding symbols. When school resumed physically, O’Neal realized he was teaching at a continuation school, which made him love the work even more.

“We’re the continuation high school where kids come who are credit-deficient and the perception is that this is where the bad kids go. But here, we all work together to support the students from all angles and get to the bottom of what might be their barriers,” he says. “I’m helping these students graduate with a skill set that will help them make more money out of high school than their parents ever made.”

O’Neal’s impact on students attracted the attention of Hemet Unified School District administrators, who hired him to continue his popular career tech offerings — working with HTA to increase the salary schedule to match RCOE’s and be able to bring O’Neal to their district. O’Neal says it feels good to know the program and his students have the support of his local union.

“HTA supports what we’re doing here and really works to involve the community as much as possible,” he says. “Our union also supports the first responder and entrepreneur programs, which is giving our students opportunities they didn’t have before. HTA understands that we’re trying to change the cycle of generational poverty.”

Last year, O’Neal had a student with a two-year-old son and a full-time job at McDonald’s, who asked for support getting into the construction business. O’Neal supported his learning, helping the student to earn a stick welding certification by graduation and connecting him with the superintendent of a local construction business, who hired him.

“He started making $30 an hour, now he makes $47 an hour and he’s not even 19 yet. He’s one of my success stories,” O’Neal says. “I used to ask myself ‘what do I want to be when I grow up,’ but now I feel like this is what my purpose has always been, because I have the ability to connect with these kids.”

O’Neal continues building the program and working to share his knowledge with the greater Inland Empire. He created a program at Mt. San Jacinto College and has also started teaching welding at Hemet Adult School, bringing the same opportunities to Hemet’s adult population.

“This was the first time I’ve ever had parents asking how they can get into my program,” O’Neal says, adding that he recently received approval to make his school an accredited testing facility for the American Welding Society, solidifying their place in the community. “I’m bringing the college to our campus!”

O’Neal says it is gratifying to be leading the charge in a renaissance of career tech and vocational opportunities in public schools. With more than 600,000 California high school students currently enrolled in CTE programs, O’Neal is excited to continue supporting California’s next generation of trades workers.

“These are essential needs in society,” he says. “Our infrastructure depends on the skills of our tradespeople. We need running water, gas to warm our homes and cook, and roads to drive on.”