Field of Greens A football stadium-turned-farm helps save a college and community
B Y LAURA BEIL
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hen Chandler TaylorHenry started thinking about college, Paul Quinn College in Dallas wasn’t at the top of his list. Then, during a summer camp, Taylor-Henry, who planned to study agriculture and business and one day own a ranch, heard about the working farm on the campus of the historically black college. “My face just lit up,” he recalls. A decade ago, Taylor-Henry, now a sophomore, might not have found Paul Quinn so appealing. In 2007, the school, founded in 1872, was struggling financially and on the brink of closing. The new school president, Michael Sorrell, immediately scrapped the football program to save money. Two years later, at the urging of an environmentalist, the school established an organic farm and named it We Over Me. The campus had no agriculture program, and no one there had any experience in farming. When Sorrell presented the idea to the school’s board of directors, they asked who would run it. “And I said, ‘I’ll be right
back,’” he recalls. He raced to his assistant’s desk and called on a staff member who had a degree in economics. “You’re going to run the farm,” he told her. She pointed out her lack of experience, but he didn’t care and directed her toward Google.
“The ultimate goal is to create an urban food-distribution network.”
–Michael Sorrell, president, Paul Quinn College
In the 10 years since, there have been trials and setbacks, but as a symbol for what is possible through dedication and grit, the farm renewed school spirit. And more than that, it brings fresh produce into a former food desert. Last summer, Paul Quinn began offering weekly a farmers market for its neighbors. James Hunter tends 100 yards of greens, peppers, tomatoes and other produce as the school’s professional farm director. There’s a greenhouse and
six bee hives for pollination and honey sales. A portion of the produce goes to the local food bank, while other crops are purchased by some of Dallas’ most notable chefs. And the field still has a connection to football — the farm’s biggest customer is Legends Hospitality, which supplies food to AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys. School administrators want the farm to continue as a focal point for sustainable produce in the area. Hunter would like to add solar power, collect rainwater and compost leftovers from the school cafeteria. “The ultimate goal is to create an urban food-distribution network,” Sorrell says. “We want to grow the food; we want to create a mobile distribution unit that allows us to sell it by going to the places where people need it.” Sorrell says he also wants to create a restaurant experience on campus. Until that happens, TaylorHenry is happy being a parttime farmhand on campus. “I have loved educating my peers about sustainability,” he says. “It’s a great experience.”
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