Siskiyou News Investigative Report
FORT JONES—While Pasture Raised Kids Farm School told families that November chicken deaths were handled internally with “no further action required,” Siskiyou County Agricultural Commissioner Jim Smith confirmed to Siskiyou News that the incident potentially involved the H5N1 avian influenza virus, raising questions about why public health authorities were never notified of a suspected reportable disease outbreak at a children’s educational facility.
The disclosure comes amid a chaotic closure of the Fort Jones microschool that has left families scrambling for thousands in disputed tuition, revealed undisclosed conflicts of interest between the nonprofit and for-profit businesses run by founder Niki Harris and her husband Richie Harris, and exposed a regulatory vacuum where private schools operate without health, safety, or financial oversight.
“HOPE THEY CONTACTED PUBLIC HEALTH”
The crisis began not with founder Niki Harris’s December “medical emergency,” but weeks earlier with a biological hazard that went unreported to the very authorities tasked with preventing zoonotic disease outbreaks.
In late November 2025, approximately 30 chickens—part of the school’s agricultural education program—died in their enclosure at the Eastside Road property shared with California Heritage Farms, a for-profit pork operation run by Harris’s husband, Richie Harris. Sources indicate the birds had been locked in the coop to prevent disease spread to the commercial pig operation.
Chores for the students had been discontinued due to lack of supervision but a report of: “sneaking food and water to chickens isolated in the greenhouse–as feeding the chickens had previously been a chore.
“They were making sure they were being cared, for but was under the impression that it was prohibited.”
Pasture Raised Kids handled the mortality internally, removing the birds from the curriculum rather than reporting the deaths to authorities. In a January 29 voicemail to Siskiyou News, Commissioner Smith initially characterized the incident as an “unfortunate communication problem” with “no concerns” for animal abuse.
However, later that same day, after learning the deaths occurred over a three-week period and involved birds that had been isolated. A chicken expert visiting in October and other reports of chickens die off and wield illnesses on Eastside Side Rd. and a message was immediately sent to County Ag Commissioner Smith.
Smiths texted reply: “Bad News. Could be h5n1 virus… hope they contacted public health.”
California Food and Agricultural Code requires immediate reporting of mass poultry mortality to agricultural authorities, while the zoonotic nature of H5N1 creates parallel notification obligations to public health officials when children may be exposed. Neither authority was notified at the time of the incident.
The Agriculture Commissioner’s office was only alerted after Siskiyou News initiated inquiries on January 29, 2026—two months after the mortality event.
OPERATIONAL COLLAPSE
Between December 1 and December 14, 2025, all program staff were either terminated, resigned, or in the process of resignation following the chicken incident and deteriorating working conditions, according to multiple sources. The mass departure occurred days after the school collected winter semester tuition on December 1. Six days later, founder Niki Harris announced a “family emergency” closure on December 7.
In a formal response to Siskiyou News questions, Harris stated the “decision to pause Farm School was not taken lightly” and was “made to address immediate medical needs,” citing a hematology crisis requiring February treatment. However, the Pasture Raised Kids Board of Directors has reportedly characterized the closure to others as “organizational restructuring”—a discrepancy families noted in a January 21 letter to the Board demanding transparency.
THE GOVERNANCE WEB
Perhaps most troubling is the contradiction between Pasture Raised Kids’ official filings and its founder’s admissions. Harris confirmed to Siskiyou News that “one Board member is a co-owner of California Heritage Farms,” identifying her husband Richie as holding governance authority while operating a for-profit vendor sharing the nonprofit’s property.
However, IRS Form 990 filings provided by Harris do not list Richard Harris as a director or officer. Under IRS regulations, failure to disclose related-party transactions and complete board composition constitutes material misrepresentation, while California Corporations Code §5233 prohibits self-dealing by nonprofit directors and §5227 restricts interested parties from comprising more than 49% of the board.
The admission confirms the “interlocking directorship” alleged by parents in their January 21 letter: Niki Harris serves as Siskiyou Economic Development Program Manager (2013–present) and advisor to the Siskiyou SBDC while running the nonprofit that contracts with her husband’s for-profit business on shared property. Public records list her as owner of Heritage Farms (2011–present) and co-founder of Simply Fork’d (2017–present). The family enterprises have reportedly benefited from USDA-funded food hub programs and county economic development initiatives she helped administer, creating potential conflicts between her public economic development role and private business interests.
ONGOING SOLICITATION VS. CLAIMED “PAUSE”
Despite Harris’s assertion that Pasture Raised Kids “has not accepted new donations since the pause in programming and will not be accepting funding or enrollment,” the organization’s website remained active as of late January 2026, listing enrollment for the 2025-26 school year and soliciting donations—including specific requests for “bee boxes for children.” Harris stated the website is “currently being updated to reflect the organization’s current status.”
The nonprofit also continues as the fiscal sponsor for Cedar Grove Folk School in Dunsmuir, meaning all tax-deductible donations to that program—serving a 96.3% low-income student population—flow through Pasture Raised Kids despite its operational suspension and disputed financial status, placing that community’s alternative education infrastructure at risk of collapse alongside its parent organization.
REGULATORY VACUUM
Pasture Raised Kids operated under IRS tax code 611110 (Elementary and Secondary Schools), yet as a private school in California, faced no oversight from the Siskiyou County Office of Education regarding curriculum, financial management, or sudden closure procedures. While public schools must meet strict reporting and accounting standards, private schools operate without county supervision regarding tuition handling or emergency closure protocols.
The California Attorney General’s Charitable Trusts Section maintains jurisdiction over the 501(c)(3), but enforcement typically triggers only after formal complaints are filed.
UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
In their January 21 letter, families demanded the Board provide minutes from August 2025 to present, complete IRS Form 990s, and clarification on when directors knew of financial distress and animal deaths. As of publication, the Board had not responded to the families’ letter.
Agricultural Commissioner Jim Smith “Bad news” needs reviewing, any incident suspected of H5N1 avian influenza. However, no formal report was filed with his office or Siskiyou County Public Health at the time of the deaths, potentially violating California Food and Agricultural Code reporting requirements for mass poultry mortality and triggering parallel obligations under Health and Safety Code provisions regarding zoonotic disease exposure in institutional settings with children present.
Five weeks after Harris announced a medical crisis requiring February hematology treatment, Pasture Raised Kids continues to operate as a legal entity—just without students, teachers, or transparency, while continuing to serve as the financial conduit for Cedar Grove Folk School’s operations.
Siskiyou News will continue to investigate as official responses are received.
