| In January, a Shadow Creek High student Rahul Vijayan hosted a panel discussion to accelerate use of hydroponic farming in schools. He also landed grant funds to to establish a growing system for the school. Vijayan is passionate about nutrition and new sustainable farming methods. Vijayan and his science teacher, Shannon Oliver, have developed a curriculum for hydroponic farming that will be used next year at Shadow Creek. Hydroponics is the process of growing plants in a water-based nutrient solution instead of soil, according to the USDA. It doesn't stop there. The student also inspired Adriana Sanchez Cantu, an advanced academic specialist at Bel Nafegar Sanchez Elementary School in Rosharon, to apply and receive a $1,000 grant for a "Drones, Hydroponics and Holograms" initiative. The hydroponics kits will allow students to learn science and empathy because they're taking care of a living organism, said Cantu. Her older elementary students will research hydroponics and use NASA information about Mars to create a garden that could be sustained on that planet. Younger students will be responsible for documenting observations in scientific journals while the plants grow. Two weeks ago, Vijayan was one of 34 students in the nation to receive the 2023 Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators and the President's Environmental Youth Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the White House Council on Environmental Quality. His nonprofit, Farm-to-Tray (FTT) Hydroponics Farming in Schools, began in January 2022 when Earth Force provided him funds for a hydroponic gardening system, according to a press release. Support also came from Moonflower Farms in south Houston and The Jane Goodall Institute's Roots and Shoots program. After securing backing from Alvin ISD trustees and Shadow Creek High's principal, Craig Rhodes, Vijayan launched the system in August 2022. It has been a research tool for the school's AP Environmental Science curriculum and yielded five harvests. P.S. I'm searching for other innovative middle and high school students in the area, whether they be band students, athletes or volunteers. If you have a student in mind, nominate them for Pearland Student of the Year by the end of the week! Have any tips, questions or concerns? Contact me at pooja.bhakta@chron.com. | 
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