School Farm

Stronach View Farm Campus is located approximately 2km from the main Scottsdale High School site on North Scottsdale Road. The farm was purchased by the school in 1929, and has operated continually ever since.

Currently, the 66 acre property is the main educational site for Agriculture based courses at Scottsdale High School. Students can experience hands-on food and fibre production opportunities in Year 7 and 8. Year 9/10 students can elect to study Agriculture where they carry out a learning program at the school farm. The Agriculture Academy was established in 2020 and provides students with a pathway to exploring agriculture in depth through extended educational opportunities of a practical and theoretical nature. Year 11/12 students can study TASC Agriculture Enterprise Level 2 and/or Agricultural Systems Level 3. Scottsdale High School partners with TasTAFE to delivery Certificate II in Agriculture, where the farm is used as the main training facility.

The farm is a highly fertile block of land, which currently runs an Angus stud and commercial beef herd of approximately 30 breeders. The herd is around half stud breeders which are used to breed replacement heifers and around six bulls are turned off each year. The remainder of the herd is commercial Angus, which are cross bred for market beef.

The farm has a range of animals, including poultry, pigs, sheep and alpacas. An orchard and garden area are used by students to grow produce.

The facilities at the school farm are continually being improved and it has a state of the art cattle yard and weigh system installed in 2019. The students are actively involved with the operation and management of the farm at all year levels.

Scottsdale High School also has a pine plantation located in East Minstone Road, which is planted with Radiata Pine and harvested periodically.

The students are actively involved with the operation and management of the farm at all year levels.

Cattle Handling

The Cattle Handling Show Team based at Scottsdale High School has a long tradition and spans back over 20 years. Scottsdale High Show Team made its debut in 1999, and has trained and showed cattle ever since. Initially the team would show cattle from local breeders, now the majority of the cattle team is made up of the School’s stud cattle, bred and raised on the farm. Students from Year 7 – 12 can join the team, where it exhibits cattle at Launceston, Agfest, Sheffield, Deloraine, Scottsdale and Westbury Shows each year. Scottsdale High School also breeds and raises cattle for the prestigious ‘Hoof and Hook’ competition at Sheffield Show. Scottsdale has been highly successful in the competition for over ten years, claiming many carcass champions on the hook.

 

History of the Farm