George Washington Carver Freshman Campus (GWCFC) student Leana Atkinson, makes and sells her own cane syrup. Leana, who’s a member of the GWCFC FFA and current secretary, began growing cane for her Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) while in middle school. This project was natural for her to get into because she grew up around syrup making. Her grandfather, Waldo Chaney, has made cane syrup his whole life and was instrumental in teaching Leana everything he could about growing sugar cane and processing it into syrup.
During her SAE project, Leana has learned all facets of the syrup making process from growing the sugarcane, cutting down the cane, grinding the cane into juice, and cooking it into syrup. Leana has had to learn a lot about safety because of all the dangers surrounding syrup making. Leana said “I’m very cautious around the cane mill because it’s dangerous to use and could easily crush a hand if placed in the feeder and I’m also very careful around the boiling syrup in the kettle because it does splash and could burn me.”
Even though she was scared of these dangers at first, she overcame her fear in time through experience with using the cane mill and working around the syrup kettle. Leana learned how to be responsible and cautious from her grandfather who made sure she learned safety first!
Agricultural Education students across Coffee County learn valuable information every day in the class rooms, but with SAE projects, these same students learn hands on skills that they can use throughout their lives that just can’t be taught in a classroom. These FFA students learn by doing with the SAE. Agricultural Education teachers assist students in developing an SAE project based on their interests. Leana’s interest in syrup making has spanned her middle school and now ninth grade years.
Leana’s father, David Atkinson, is an Agriculture teacher of 28 years here in Coffee County and along with Leana’s current Ag teacher, Mr. Spencer Highsmith, they have assisted Leana in developing her SAE project.
While completing her SAE, Mr. Atkinson and Mr. Highsmith have encouraged Leana to learn as many skills as possible to help her with her future goals in life such as: record keeping and sales.
Mr. Highsmith said, “Throughout this agricultural experience I have seen Leana grow as an agribusiness leader and make the marketing decisions necessary to continually produce a product that consumers repeatedly purchase to meet their utility.” If you ever saw Leana you would see that’s she’s a tiny person, but she’s doing big and great things in her life.
– Submitted by Jacquelyn Reid, Journalism Student at GWCFC