#455 No Desk, Just Dirt at Feather To Fork: York Institute’s Outdoor Classroom

Join host Jason Harmon and co-host Don King from the Feather to Fork event at The Sawbriar near Jamestown, Tennessee. John Bush, Director of Schools at Alvin C. York Agricultural Institute, shares his 28-year journey in education and why York is the most fulfilling chapter. Students don’t just learn—they work. From raising pheasants to operating backhoes, every CTE student spends three hours exploring hands-on booths: fly casting, drone flying, skeet, and more.

Student Gabriela helped catch pheasants and set up vendors at 6:30 a.m. The pheasants are raised from day-old chicks by York Institute students on the school’s 400-acre working farm. What began as a simple pitch—“Let us supply Sawbriar’s hunt birds”—quickly grew into Feather to Fork, Tennessee’s ultimate outdoor-ag celebration.

Founded in 1926 by World War I hero Sgt. Alvin C. York, the school became a state-operated special district in 1937. Today, it stands alone: the only comprehensive high school run directly by the Tennessee Department of Education and home to the largest high school campus in America by acreage.

York students earn associate’s degrees on campus—no extra cost, no transportation hurdles—graduating college two weeks before high school. They dominate in sports, lead in FFA, and process free-range Thanksgiving turkeys ($60—email to reserve - Visit www.yaidragons.com).

TWRA is here with casting demos and fisheries in action. This is Tennessee education at its best: hands-on, high-achieving, and rooted in legacy. Listen now on Tennessee WildCast. To purchase a license for great hunting and fishing adventures in Tennessee, visit gooutdoorstennessee.com.