Progress 09/01/19 to 02/28/21
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences of Quivira Coalition's New Agrarian Program expansion are young people interested in pursuing ranching and/or farming careers on large-landscape operations characteristic of the western United States, and regenerative ranchers and farmers who are interested in passing down their knowledge to future generations. Beginning farmers entering NAP apprenticeships usually come from urban or suburban backgrounds and have limited, if any, ranching or farming experience. They also have in common a commitment to learning the skills necessary for a career in regenerative agriculture. The mentors in our program are ranchers or farmers who use regenerative practices, and who value passing on their skills and knowledge to the next generation. We specifically recruit mentors who are located in the Intermountain West (New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, western South Dakota, Montana, and northern California). During recruitment for the 2020 season, we had 65 individuals apply for apprenticeships, from 20 states. Of the 65 applicants, approximately 50 percent were female. We did not collect data on any other demographics. During recruitment for the 2021 season, we had 101 individuals apply for apprenticeships. Approximately 50% of applicants identified as female, 20% identified as people of color, and 86% reported that they did not come from a ranching or farming family or community. We brought on ten new mentors to the program for the 2020 season: Sol Ranch, in Wagon Mound, NM; XK Bar Ranch, in Crawford, CO; Charter Ranch, in Shepherd, MT; Chauvet Cattle Company, in Big Sandy, MT; Indreland Ranch, in Big Timber, MT; Milton Ranch, in Roundup, MT; Moe Ranch, in Two Dot, MT; Schultz Ranch, in Grass Range, MT; Seacross Ranch, in Lodge Grass, MT; and C&R Ranch, in Paskenta, CA. In 2021 we brought on eight new mentors: C4 Farms, in Tierra Amarilla, NM; A Land of Grass Ranch, in Conrad, MT; Boot Ranch, in Douglas, WY; Barney Creek Livestock, in Paradise, MT; Cooper Creek Ranch, in Helmville, MT; Diamond D Angus, in Valier, MT; Two Dot Land & Livestock, in Two Dot, MT; and Sather Farm and Ranch, in Larslan, MT. Changes/Problems:Due to the covid-19 pandemic, Quivira Coalition shifted most in-person events to virtual formats. Additionally, the pandemic reduced the ability of staff to meet in person with prospective mentors. As a result, much of this work ended up going more slowly than originally anticipated. Online formats have also required additional time to support new mentors in the training and onboarding process. As a result, Quivira Coalition requested and was granted a six-month, no-cost extension to continue recruiting and training new mentors for the 2021 season and to finish putting together the mentor training handbook. While this shift has created some new challenges, the online formats have also allowed us to reach prospective mentors and apprentices, who may not have been able to attend in-person events. ? What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training and professional development for experienced ranchers and farmers, and for the beginner rancher and farmer apprentices they mentored, were two of the project's main areas of focus. For experienced ranchers and farmers, professional development centered on improving teaching and mentoring skills. For apprentices, intensive, hands-on, on-the-ground training focused on the acquisition of a comprehensive set of skills necessary to pursue a career in agriculture. All training and professional development activities are listed above in the Accomplishments section of this report. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?During the grant period, twelve articles were published in agricultural news sources, helping to reach broad communities of interest. Six articles were published in OnPasture, and one each in Farm 406 magazine, the Western Ag Reporter, Tri-State Livestock News, the Western Landowners' Alliance newsletter, Hay and Forage Grower, and the Montana Farmers Union newspaper. Additionally, NAP's Northern Plains coordinator was interviewed on the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) podcast. These articles and interviews helped promote NAP's mentor training resources and apprenticeship opportunities. Mentor training and Ranch 101 opportunities were also advertised through partner organizations and Quivira's social media channels, including the New Agrarian News mailing list, which includes 4,800 subscribers. Ranch 101 trainings and information about the apprenticeship program were also shared directly with more than 80 universities and colleges. NAP staff attended and represented the program at seven conferences: the Ag Apprenticeship Learning Network Field School, the Society for Range Management Conference, the EcoFarm conference, the New Mexico Organic Farm Conference, the AgriSummit conference, the Ag Apprenticeship Learning Network FIELD School (in partnership with the Carolina Farm Stewardship conference), and Sweetgrass County Ag Days. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The primary goals of Quivira Coalition's New Agrarian Program (NAP) are to increase the quantity and quality of agrarian apprenticeships offered on large-scale ranching and farming operations throughout the rangelands of the Interior West (New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Montana, and northern California), and to provide beginning farmers with the knowledge, skills, and tools to successfully pursue careers in regenerative ranching or farming. According to a USDA survey, the average age of US ranchers and farmers in 2017 was 57.5. As this population continues to age, it is critical that a new generation of ranchers and farmers are trained to take over. Due to the amount of land, capital, and experience required, there is a particularly steep curve for young people entering into careers in ranching or other large-scale operations in the arid West. Through this project, Quivira Coalition developed tools, curriculum, and training to support both mentors and beginning ranchers and farmers who are participating in agricultural apprenticeships on large-landscape operations in the West. Experienced ranchers and farmers have honed their business and agricultural skills, but in order to successfully pass on knowledge to beginners, they must also become skilled mentors and teachers. NAP tools, curriculum, and training developed through this project will help ensure that more young people consider apprenticeship as a pathway into agriculture, as well as ensuring that the support and mentorship they receive is of the highest quality. Ultimately, this will help beginning ranchers and farmers achieve higher success, enabling them to stay in agriculture over the long term. During the grant, Quivira Coalition developed a mentor training course and curriculum, to help increase the number of mentors in the New Agrarian Program and improve their mentoring skills. Both the course and curriculum were based on feedback and interviews with current and former NAP mentors. Quivira Coalition now offers a series of training calls for NAP mentors and other interested participants on topics including recruiting an apprentice, evaluating written applications, effective interviews, setting expectations, balancing work and education, mentoring to create a self-starter apprentice, and giving and receiving feedback. Over the winter of 2019-2020, more than 45 individuals attended these calls. In the summer of 2020, Quivira Coalition offered four in-depth "Mentor 101" training calls, to help prospective mentors decide if mentoring was right for them, and to learn about next steps for becoming a NAP mentor. Additionally, during the grant period, Quivira offered ten mentor training calls on more advanced topics, to help prepare mentors for hiring and working with an apprentice in the upcoming season. These call topics correspond with the Mentor Training Handbook that Quivira published in February 2021. Through this process, ten new mentors were provided with one-on-one assistance to prepare them to offer apprenticeships. In February, 2021, Quivira completed and published a Mentor Training Handbook. Based on the topics covered during our Mentor Training Call Series, this handbook serves as a reference guide for new mentors. It is free and publicly available on Quivira's website for both NAP mentors and the general public. The chapters included in the mentor handbook include: Mentor Skills and Attributes; Writing your Mentor Site Description; Evaluating Applications; Effective Interviews; Setting Expectations; Balancing Work & Education; Mentoring for a Self-Initiating Apprentice; and the Gift of Feedback. Quivira brought on ten new mentors to the program for the 2020 season: Sol Ranch, in Wagon Mound, NM; XK Bar Ranch, in Crawford, CO; Charter Ranch, in Shepherd, MT; Chauvet Cattle Company, in Big Sandy, MT; Indreland Ranch, in Big Timber, MT; Milton Ranch, in Roundup, MT; Moe Ranch, in Two Dot, MT; Schultz Ranch, in Grass Range, MT; Seacross Ranch, in Lodge Grass, MT; and C&R Ranch, in Paskenta, CA. In 2021 Quivira brought on eight new mentors: C4 Farms, in Tierra Amarilla, NM; A Land of Grass Ranch, in Conrad, MT; Boot Ranch, in Douglas, WY; Barney Creek Livestock, in Paradise, MT; Cooper Creek Ranch, in Helmville, MT; Diamond D Angus, in Valier, MT; Two Dot Land & Livestock, in Two Dot, MT; and Sather Farm and Ranch, in Larslan, MT During the grant period, Quivira Coalition created an apprentice recruitment strategy, to target candidates interested in pursuing careers on livestock or other large-landscape operations in the west. The recruitment strategy was based in part on interviews and feedback from current and former NAP apprentices. Word of mouth, agriculture-related job boards, and college or university programs with farms or farming programs were identified as potential applicant bases. During recruitment for the 2020 season, 65 individuals applied for apprenticeships, from 20 states. Of the 65 applicants, approximately 50 percent were female. No other demographic data was collected. During recruitment for the 2021 season, 101 individuals applied for apprenticeships. Approximately 50% of applicants identified as female, 20% identified as people of color, and 86% reported that they did not come from a ranching or farming family or community. Quivira Coalition also developed a curriculum for a Ranch 101 training course, as well as a set of Dashboard Cards to be used as quick reference guides for beginning ranchers. Training modules were created to cover the following topics: goal setting, intro to regenerative agriculture, animal days per acre, fencing, animal health monitoring, managing rangelands, low stress animal handling, and what to expect in an apprenticeship. Because of the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020, five shortened versions of Ranch 101 were hosted virtually in the grant period. In total, 135 beginning agrarians attended these calls. The Ranch Dashboard Cards cover the following topics: vehicle checks, trailer checks, electric fence troubleshooting, animal health checks, calving checks, and animal days per acre. These cards were provided to 2020 apprentices, and will be distributed at all future Ranch 101, apprentice orientation, or other in-person events that serve beginning ranchers and farmers. Quivira Coalition also created and published an apprentice guidebook for the 2020 apprentice orientations. The guidebook, which helps ensure that apprentices are set up for a successful apprenticeship, covers the following topics: program history, staff roles and contact info, creativity in agriculture, conflict resolution, a gear list, a skills checklist, giving and receiving feedback, a sample logbook, and suggested reading.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/19 to 08/31/20
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences of Quivira Coalition's New Agrarian Program expansion are young people interested in pursuing ranching and/or farming careers on large-landscape operations characteristic of the western United States, and regenerative ranchers and farmers who are interested in passing down their knowledge to future generations. Beginning farmers entering NAP apprenticeships usually come from urban or suburban backgrounds and have limited, if any, ranching or farming experience. They also have in common a commitment to learning the skills necessary for a career in regenerative agriculture. The mentors in our program are ranchers or farmers who use regenerative practices, and who value passing on their skills and knowledge to the next generation. We specifically recruit mentors who are located in the Intermountain West (New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, western South Dakota, Montana, and northern California). During recruitment for the 2020 season, we had 65 individuals apply for apprenticeships, from 20 states. Of the 65 applicants, approximately 50 percent were female. We did not collect data on any other demographics. Applications for the 2021 season are currently open through December 15, 2020. We brought on ten new mentors to the program for the 2020 season: Sol Ranch, in Wagon Mound, NM; XK Bar Ranch, in Crawford, CO; Charter Ranch, in Shepherd, MT; Chauvet Cattle Company, in Big Sandy, MT; Indreland Ranch, in Big Timber, MT; Milton Ranch, in Roundup, MT; Moe Ranch, in Two Dot, MT; Schultz Ranch, in Grass Range, MT; Seacross Ranch, in Lodge Grass, MT; and C&R Ranch, in Paskenta, CA. Nine additional new mentors are currently being trained for the 2021 season: C4 Farms, in Tierra Amarilla, NM; Noble Ranch, in Yuma, CO; Boot Ranch, in Douglas, WY; Diamond 4 Ranch in Lander, WY; Barney Creek Livestock, in Paradise, MT; Cooper Creek Ranch, in Helmville, MT; Diamond D Angus, in Valier, MT; J Bar L Ranch, in Melville, MT; and Sather Farm and Ranch, in Larslan, MT. Changes/Problems:Due to the covid-19 pandemic, Quivira Coalition shifted most in-person events to virtual formats. Additionally, the pandemic reduced the ability of staff to meet in person with prospective mentors. As a result, much of this work ended up going more slowly than originally anticipated. Online formats have also required additional time to support new mentors in the training and onboarding process. As a result, Quivira Coalition requested and was granted a six-month, no-cost extension to continue recruiting and training new mentors for the 2021 season and to finish putting together the mentor training handbook. While this shift has created some new challenges, the online formats have also allowed us to reach prospective mentors and apprentices, who may not have been able to attend in-person events. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training and professional development for experienced ranchers and farmers, and for the beginner rancher and farmer apprentices they mentored, were two of the project's main areas of focus. For experienced ranchers and farmers, professional development centered on improving teaching and mentoring skills. For apprentices, intensive, hands-on, on-the-ground training focused on the acquisition of a comprehensive set of skills necessary to pursue a career in agriculture. All training and professional development activities are listed above in the Accomplishments section of this report. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?In the current reporting period, twelve articles were published in agricultural news sources, helping to reach broad communities of interest. Six articles were published in OnPasture, and one each in Farm 406 magazine, the Western Ag Reporter, Tri-State Livestock News, the Western Landowners' Alliance newsletter, Hay and Forage Grower, and the Montana Farmers Union newspaper. Additionally, NAP's Northern Plains coordinator was interviewed on the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) podcast. These articles and interviews helped promote NAP's mentor training resources and apprenticeship opportunities. Mentor training and Ranch 101 opportunities were also advertised through partner organizations and Quivira's social media channels, including the New Agrarian News mailing list, which includes 4,800 subscribers. Ranch 101 trainings and information about the apprenticeship program were also shared directly with more than 80 universities and colleges. NAP staff attended and represented the program at six conferences: the Ag Apprenticeship Learning Network Field School, the Society for Range Management Conference, the EcoFarm conference, the New Mexico Organic Farm Conference, the AgriSummit conference, and Sweetgrass County Ag Days. Quivira Coalition also publishes New Agrarians Voices, a blog that shares reflections from apprentices at the start and end points of their apprenticeships. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?In the next reporting period, Quivira Coalition plans to assist prospective apprentices with apprenticeship program applications. In addition to providing one-on-one support, we will host three additional virtual Ranch 101 workshops to provide an overview of the apprenticeship program, help applicants decide which sites to apply to, and answer any questions they may have about apprenticeship or entering careers in agriculture. We also plan to support new mentors joining the program in 2021, by offering a series of eight mentor training calls and pairing them up with an experienced New Agrarian Program mentor. We plan to put together a mentor guidebook, to accompany the mentor training curriculum covered in the series of eight mentor training calls. This guidebook will be made available to all mentors participating in the program in 2021, and will be available online for free download, as well.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The primary goals of Quivira Coalition's New Agrarian Program (NAP) are to increase the quantity and quality of agrarian apprenticeships offered on large-scale ranching and farming operations throughout the rangelands of the Interior West (New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Montana, and northern California), and to provide beginning farmers with the knowledge, skills, and tools to successfully pursue careers in regenerative ranching or farming. According to a USDA survey, the average age of US ranchers and farmers in 2017 was 57.5. As this population continues to age, it is critical that a new generation of ranchers and farmers are trained to take over. Due to the amount of land, capital, and experience required, there is a particularly steep curve for young people entering into careers in ranching or other large-scale operations in the arid West. Through this project, Quivira Coalition developed tools, curriculum, and training to support both mentors and beginning ranchers and farmers who are participating in agricultural apprenticeships on large-landscape operations in the West. Experienced ranchers and farmers have honed their business and agricultural skills, but in order to successfully pass on knowledge to beginners, they must also become skilled mentors and teachers. NAP tools, curriculum, and training developed through this project will help ensure that more young people consider apprenticeship as a pathway into agriculture, as well ensuring that the support and mentorship they receive is of the highest quality. Ultimately, this will help beginning ranchers and farmers achieve higher success, enabling them to stay in agriculture over the long term. Goal 1: Increase the number of new agrarian mentors and improve their mentoring skills by providing in-person education, training, and direct support. Objectives: 1) Develop mentor training course and curriculum. 2) Recruit 15-20 new mentors for 2021 apprenticeship season. 3) Conduct three in-person mentor trainings with at least ten potential mentors at each training. In the current reporting period, Quivira Coalition developed a mentor training course and curriculum, to help increase the number of mentors in the New Agrarian Program and improve their mentoring skills. Both the course and curriculum were based on feedback and interviews with current and former NAP mentors. Quivira Coalition now offers a series of training calls for NAP mentors and other interested participants on topics including recruiting an apprentice, evaluating written applications, effective interviews, setting expectations, balancing work and education, mentoring to create a self-starter apprentice, and giving and receiving feedback. Over the winter of 2019-2020, more than 45 individuals attended these calls. In the summer of 2020, Quivira Coalition offered four in-depth "Mentor 101" training calls, to help prospective mentors decide if mentoring was right for them, and to learn about next steps for becoming a NAP mentor. In 2020, ten new mentors were brought into the program, in New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, and California. In 2021, we expect nine additional mentors to come on, in New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana. As the program grows, so does the community of support between mentors, also contributing to their success as educators. Goal 2: Increase the number of and diversity of new agrarian apprentices and increase their capacity and skills by providing in-person training, networks, skilled mentorship, and technical support. Objectives: 1) Create apprentice recruitment strategy to target apprentice candidates interested in pursuing careers in large scale livestock operations. 2) Develop pre-apprenticeship Ranch 101 training course and curriculum. 3) Conduct three pre-apprenticeship Ranch 101 trainings with partners with at least 10 apprentices at each training. In the current reporting period, Quivira Coalition created an apprentice recruitment strategy, to target candidates interested in pursuing careers on livestock or other large-landscape operations in the west. The recruitment strategy was based in part on interviews and feedback from current and former NAP apprentices. Word of mouth, agriculture-related job boards, and college or university programs with farms or farming programs were identified as potential applicant bases. Quivira Coalition also developed a curriculum for a Ranch 101 training course, as well as a set of Dashboard Cards to be used as quick reference guides for beginning ranchers. Training modules were created to cover the following topics: goal setting, intro to regenerative agriculture, animal days per acre, fencing, animal health monitoring, managing rangelands, low stress animal handling, and what to expect in an apprenticeship. Because of the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020, three shortened versions of Ranch 101 were hosted virtually in the current reporting period. The Ranch Dashboard Cards cover the following topics: vehicle checks, trailer checks, electric fence troubleshooting, animal health checks, calving checks, and animal days per acre. These cards were provided to 2020 apprentices, and will be distributed at all future Ranch 101, apprentice orientation, or other in-person events that serve beginning ranchers and farmers. Quivira Coalition also created and published an apprentice guidebook for the 2020 apprentice orientations. The guidebook, which helps ensure that apprentices are set up for a successful apprenticeship, covers the following topics: program history, staff roles and contact info, creativity in agriculture, conflict resolution, a gear list, a skills checklist, giving and receiving feedback, a sample logbook, and suggested reading.
Publications
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