Mobile Dairy Farm visits MPS

By Jacob Sturm
[email protected]

Students at Mustang Creek Elementary School were given a unique learning opportunity
through an outdoor activity on Aug. 28.

Pre-K through 4 th grade students, at various times of the day, gathered around a mobile dairy
farm outside of Creek Elementary courtesy of Sulfur Springs-based Southwest Dairy Farmers
and learned about the dairy cows on many farms in the country.

Suzie Reece, the Mobile Dairy Classroom Instructor, showcased one of her cows in a trailer and
talked about dairy farm practices and the value of dairy foods in a well-balanced diet.
She spoke to her hopes for the younger kids who got to experience the cows at the mobile
dairy farm.

“(I hope for) the younger kids to just make that connection between cows (and) producing
milk,” Reece said. “Don’t just show up at the grocery store for them to buy. We need to teach
our kids that farmers are farming to feed us. The grocery store shelves would be empty if we
didn’t have all kinds of farming happening… Just giving them that connection from farms and
food.”

The experience is also valuable to the school district.

Kirk Wilson, the Director of Communications at Mustang Public Schools, also shared the
thoughts of the district on the event.

“We are thrilled to provide our students with enriching experiences like today's visit from the
mobile dairy farm at Creek Elementary,” Wilson said. “Opportunities like these not only
enhance their understanding of the world around them but also reinforce our commitment to
ensuring that every moment in their education matters. It's experiences like these that make
our district a place where students can truly thrive.”

Kortney Gosnell, a teacher at Mustang Creek Elementary, said she had been working to get the
mobile dairy farm to the school for the past year. She said she had planned it to be in January,
but mutually agreed to change the date with Reece as temperatures became a problem at the
time.

Gosnell also said teachers had joined the Adopt A Cow Program over the past few years in their
classrooms which helps the students already have a familiarity with dairy farms.

“Bringing Suzie out from The Southwest Dairy Farmers, allowed students to see firsthand the
ins and outs of a dairy farm,” Gosnell said. “And when you can bring a live cow or any animal to
your school, you know it will be a great day.”

She also reiterated the importance of the experience for her students.

“It is so important,” Gosnell said. “It is important for children to understand where their food,
drinks, and resources come from and the work it takes to produce it. It allows the students to
better connect what they have learned from experiences like this one, to what they are fueling
their bodies with.”