NAMPA, Idaho — The College of Western Idaho celebrated the opening of its new agricultural sciences complex, marking the second major addition to the campus in less than a month as the institution continues its rapid growth.
The 40-acre facility welcomes students to new classrooms designed for hands-on agricultural learning, offering comprehensive education in the green industry.
"The intent is really [that] students come in, we teach them all facets of the green industry— so that's landscape maintenance, that's landscape design, [and] installation. We do plant science, soil science, animal science," Andrea Schumaker explained.
WATCH: Assistant Dean and CWI graduate talk about the new complex
Schumaker serves as assistant dean of agricultural sciences at the college.
The campus now features Nampa's first registered arboretum, which is landscaped and ready to serve as both a classroom environment and community asset. A CWI graduate was contracted to landscape the arboretum.
Ramiro Villafana, owner of Luxury Lawn Care, brought his family to work on the project.
"I brought over my dad, my kids over, to do a little bit of work over here. Not only me, but the future of the arboretum is going to stay in the future, not only with the students but my family as well," Villafana said.
Villafana opened his business a year before attending CWI and credits his education with expanding his knowledge.
"I didn't realize how much more I wanted to get more knowledge of what I was doing, of my profession. And yeah, it blew my mind how strong it has made me now with all this knowledge," Villafana said.
CWI's expansion continues with the new student success center approaching completion. The college could see additional growth if the city transfers ownership of the neighboring Ford Idaho Center.
The city is currently working to obtain an appraisal of the property to gauge whether or not organizations would be interested in purchasing the venue.
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