Successful ‘Ag in the Classroom’ brings 1,000 keiki Upcountry for a day of learning

Imagine an outdoor classroom on the green grassy slope of a volcano, where the teacher is on horseback, and the students are learning about the soil, water and plants around them. This imaginary classroom is real—it comes to life once a year during the “Agriculture in the Classroom” (AIC) Field Trip, an annual educational event put on by Maui County Farm Bureau (MCFB).

Closing out the school year, the 2025 AIC Field Trip brought more than 1,000 second-graders with their teachers and chaperones up to Haleakalā Ranch for a day of hands-on instruction and fun. Groups of students rotated between tents, spending about 25 minutes at each activity station and learning from ag educators MCFB, Hawaiian Electric, Maui Soil & Water Conservation Districts, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience, Bayer, and Haleakalā Ranch with conservation partners.

For these keiki, it was a chance to get their hands in the soil making seed balls with koa (to reclaim native forests) and seed balls with diverse pasture forages (to reclaim bare ground/erosion scars from recent wildfires, deer and drought). It was a chance to learn about nutrition, canoe plants, the parts of a plant, watersheds, ranch animals and more. 

Fifteen elementary schools across Maui participated: Carden Academy, Ke Kula Kaiapuni O Maui ma Pāʻia, Pāʻia, Kula, Kahului, Pu‘u Kukui, Kamehameha Maui, Kīhei, Makawao, Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena, Doris Todd Christian Academy, Pukalani, Pomaikaʻi, Lihikai, and Kamaliʻi.

“We are so pleased and happy to have all the keiki come out for this event,” said MCFB Executive Director Warren Watanabe. “AIC gives us a chance to gather together with others in the agriculture industry and find ways to share the importance of agriculture with the next generation. For many of these kids, the lessons they learn at AIC are ones they take home and share with the ‘ohana. We are grateful to our ag partners for supporting this event.”

 MCFB extends a big mahalo to grant funders Maui County Department of Agriculture and Maui County Council. Another big mahalo goes to Old Lahaina Lūʻau, Maui Gold Pineapple Co. and Kula Country Farms, for providing the keiki with delicious treats of banana bread, chilled pineapple and fresh strawberries; and to Ethan Romanchak, co-owner of Native Nursery and MCFB board member, for helping with event set-up. 

To talk with the kids about the relationship between agriculture and conservation, Haleakalā Ranch brought in conservation groups East Maui Watershed, Maui Invasive Species Committee, Skyline Eco Adventures, The Nature Conservancy, Mauna Kahalawai, Ulupalakua Ranch, Maui Forest Birds and Maui Cattleman’s Association. Representatives emphasized the value of watersheds and discussed the threats and solutions that land managers face.

“The AIC field trip is a big deal in a lot of ways,” said Jordan Jokiel, vice president/land management at Haleakalā Ranch. “Many of our keiki don’t know where food comes from and/or what it takes to quietly manage land to provide food, water and everything else that we need to survive and live healthy, meaningful lives. AIC provides an opportunity to talk with the kids, and also to talk with our partners in the agriculture industry outside of meetings, phone calls and the busy-ness of work life.”

    “Our Bayer team is thrilled to have been part of Ag in the Classroom for many years. It’s awesome to see the keiki so excited to learn about the different aspects of agriculture, from ranching and native crops to how the different parts of a plant – the seed, roots, leaves, flowers – are all important to growing healthy fruit and vegetables. Kudos to the Maui County Farm Bureau for this very successful, very fun program for the schools,” Kai Pelayo, Community Affairs Manager, Bayer Maui

        As the noonday sun rose higher in the blue Maui sky, the children took a break from learning to enjoy their sack lunches with views of Maui spreading down to the ocean below.    

        As for the teacher on horseback? Greg Friel, vice president/livestock operations at Haleakalā Ranch, gave an exciting demonstration of how stock dogs help with herding and how to bring cattle up to the corral. He was joined on horseback by his granddaughter Skylynn Friel, a 2024 graduate of King Kekaulike High School and a longtime Maui 4-Her and Maui High School Rodeo rider. 

    MCFB has been sharing knowledge with students about local agriculture through AIC since 2006, both in the classroom and onsite. Haleakalā Ranch has served as host of the event since 2015. As the yellow schoolbuses drive away, the imaginary classroom fades, and the busy-ness of life returns, chances are the lessons learned on the green grassy slopes of the volcano will remain.