Georgetown ISD to build greenhouse at Future Ready Complex

Prior to the 2024 opening of the Future Ready Complex, Richarte High School and the Bridges program were housed in different locations that had smaller-scale, less accessible greenhouses, Schulz said.

Schulz said the district began planning for the greenhouse to be constructed as part of the complex in 2018 and took steps to ensure the planned greenhouse was Americans with Disabilities Act-accessible for students in the Bridges program.

“We didn't want the construction of the greenhouse to hold up the build out of the entire campus,” Schulz said. “So we didn't build it while we were building the rest of the facility. We knew it was going to come as kind of a Phase 2 of our Future Ready Complex.”

During this time, the district identified what features the greenhouse required and its size. The designed facility includes wider doors and a smooth concrete floor for wheelchair users, Schulz said.

“We wanted to make sure that we wouldn't have any limitations or barriers for kids to be able to use the greenhouse,” Schulz said. “We wanted it to be able to be accessible for them regardless of wheelchair mobility issues.”

The project, which has a listed cost of $81,000 according to a state filing, is funded by 2021 bonds.

The plan

Schulz said plants are currently being grown in an outdoor garden at the Future Ready Complex. The garden—which grows herbs and vegetables—currently serves the Bridges program as well as the culinary program.

The planned greenhouse will feature “primarily herbs and vegetables,” with an emphasis on Texas native plants and those that can be grown from seeds, Schulz said.

Students across various classes in the Bridges program will be able to access the greenhouse, especially those in the environmental living skills program.

“They're just learning how to be able to interact with the environment around them, so growing and farming is part of that,” Schulz said. “We feel like if this is another skill that we can teach them to go out in the world, then we want to be able to do that.”

Additionally, the greenhouse will be utilized by students in the culinary arts program to gain a better understanding of how plants grow. Meanwhile, the environmental systems class at Richarte High School will utilize it for a unit on farming and vegetables.

Once this new facility is complete, all three of GISD’s high schools will be equipped with a greenhouse. A greenhouse is also planned for High School No. 4, which is scheduled to be completed May 2028.

Quote of note

“Greenhouses [and farming] allows for you to be self-sufficient and use the land,” Schulz said. “Regardless of how big of a patch of land we have, it's teaching lifelong skills to our kids. Even if it's not the focus of the class, and it may just be a byproduct, if they can take that with them and be able to provide for themselves in the most cost-efficient way, there's not much better goal in school than that.”