Students from the Agricultural Studies Department at the California State University, Stanislaus (Stan State), will hold their Stan Fresh produce markets beginning this semester after a successful pilot run in the spring, which sold most of its produce in the first hour. These markets, which feature produce planted and grown from the sustainable garden located on campus, will be held twice a month in September, October and November.
    “We just want to make sure that we use Stan Fresh as the model of what the typical agribusiness is like,” said Dr. Oluwarotimi Odeh, Agriculture Studies Department Chair. “Stan Fresh is really just an educational lab to enhance student learning.”
    The Stan Fresh program was born when Dr. Odeh noticed that the department was not making good use of the sustainable garden, not only in terms of production, but also in lending students the opportunities necessary to apply what they are learning in the classroom. Produce that is grown from the garden is used as tool to help student-learning outcome by challenging them to grow, market and sell.
    “Having the students get the hands-on experience is really what we are interested in,” said Dr. Odeh. “We are helping the students use it as a learning process. If a student wants to eventually go on and establish their own grocery store or farmers market, this would be a good learning opportunity for him or her because they’ll see every aspect of it.”
    The Agricultural Studies Department reorganized its structure so that students can take courses that both directly apply to the business of agriculture as well as the production, all of which revolve around the Stan Fresh program.
    “Stan Fresh is something that has heavily influenced what I want to do with my degree,” says Gabriela Ortiz (senior, Agricultural Studies). “With Stan Fresh, a student is able to see every step. Partaking in Stan Fresh helped me decide that I want to be on the sales side of agriculture.”
    The Stan Fresh program will begin selling produce in its first of six markets on Sept. 17, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the quad.