Progress 09/15/20 to 09/14/22
Outputs
Target Audience:The Entrepreneurial Center for Horticulture (ECH) at Dakota College at Bottineau (DCB) proposes a project to provide outreach, education and technical assistance to North Dakota Native Americans and veterans beginning farmers and connect them with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) resources thereby positively affecting their success rate in establishing a successful farm business. Outreach booklets and workshops will provide information and resources available to Native Americans and veterans through USDA programs, introduce production and marketing techniques and opportunities, and connect potential farmers with continuing educational resources. This customized training and outreach will influence a nontraditional, niche audience and will complement and expand the ECH's role as a provider of technical assistance to small and beginning farmers in North Dakota. The project aligns with national efforts to increase awareness and participation by veterans and Native Americans in USDA programs. The project also increases the chances of success for veterans and Native Americans in beginning and owning agricultural ventures in North Dakota through education on production and marketing of specialty crops and follow up technical assistance after the workshops. Changes/Problems:The original Project Director, Holly Mawby, passed away in 2021. This project was very dear to her and it was difficult for Dakota College at Bottineau to pick up where she had left off. An extension was requested and granted. The recorded webinars that she had developed were never found. It required a "start over" that took time. Most of the project funds had been used while Holly was the project director. It requrired more funding that was difficult for Dakota College at Bottineau to manage. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?BGRD Grant Accomplishments Initial Outreach Workshop (9/21/2020) - Created a focus Group to develop ideas for the native American and veteran needs in agriculture. (12 participants) Created a presentation of basic outreach materials for beginning farmers who are native American and veterans. First outreach workshop was held at New Town, North Dakota Participants included members of the Three Affiliated Tribes (Mandan-Hidatsa-Arikara), New Town Veteran Service employees, and Instructor from Nueta, Hidatsa, Sahnish NHS (Fort Berthold) Community College. (Introduction of project and identified project collaborators) Second Outreach Workshop (2/8/2021) - Held workshop to assist native American veterans in developing a business plan and presented a short PowerPoint on connecting with local, state and federal USDA and VA agencies. (6 participants) Discussions were led by DCB and a representative of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians. All six participants began new agriculture operations as a result of the workshop. Five modules were utilized in follow-up meetings for this location. The six participants complete the training modules after this workshop. Workshop objectives To harness TEK, or Traditional Ecological Knowledge by incorporating use of modern NRCS practices and techniques for soil conservation and land management Build relationships with Veterans using one on one consultations, and providing tailored technical assistance achieve Veterans unique goals and objectives Understand the history and culture of Native American Agri-Business Build a better foundation of knowledge of Tribal Values associated with Indian Agriculture. Met Objective 1. by identifying opportunities and challenges the new entrepreneurs were experiencing. This was our working group that had many one on one follow-up sessions in which DCB provided technical support to each participant. Third Outreach Workshop - (3/22/2021) Met with Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians (11 participants) Leadership for this activity included DCB personnel, Director of Ag. Department and Technical support from TMBMCI. Information on: Introduction of NRCS programs and sign up presented by NRCS representative Discussion with growers on what they would like grow and include traditions. Discussion on NRCS Practices and technical assistance from DCB Food Sovereignty discussion with handout "Food Sovereignty Ideas". Food Sovereignty Organization at TMBCI Fourth Outreach Workshop (3/1/2021 to 5/30/2021) - Created a mentor/mentee plan to have experienced individuals work directly with native Americans and veterans. Workshop assigned a mentor to each mentee. Total of eight mentor/mentee partnerships were formed. There were four mentor/mentee Zoom sessions. Mentor/Mentee were encouraged to weekly on progress. This included veteran native Americans from the Spirit Lake Nation. (6 participants) Topics covered included: Starting your own business Developing a business plan Financing Marketing Fifth Outreach workshop - (6/13 2022 and 6/14/2022) Attended and presented at the Strengthening Government to Government Conference sponsored by the North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission. Over 225 individuals participated from 5 native American tribes (Turtle Mountain Reservation, Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, Spirit Lake Reservation, Standing Rock Reservation, Sisseton-Wahpeton Reservation). DCB conducted a workshop on "Successful participation by native Americans and native American veterans in state and federal agriculture programs". Illustrated steps for starting a new business using the toolkit developed by this grant activities. Sixth Outreach workshop - (7/15/2022) - On campus DCB workshop for beginning/young Native American farmers. Raising vegetables in the open field and the high tunnels Different types of irrigation that we use (drip tape, emitters in the orchard, tree bags, sprinklers etc.) and water issues that we may have. NRCS Practices Wash and pack facility and food safety How to market produce Working with the USDA Seventh Outreach workshop - (7/15/2022) - DCB field day for native Americans and veterans. (12 participants) Activities included: Good agricultural practices NRCS practices Overview of toolkit publication created by DCB for this grant project Committee final review of the toolkit "The Dirt on Starting a Farm". This group of reviewers included five tribal members, Director of the Veterans Administration, NRCS employee, minority owned business owner, DCB personnel and an attorney for the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians. Printing of the toolkit and dissemination. 500 copies of the toolkit booklet printed. Dissemination of Materials Three copies each to 66 veteran services officers in North Dakota Three copies each to 29 American Legion locations Three copies each to nine North Dakota Community Action locations. Three copies each to 54 USDA offices in North Dakota Ten copies each to Natural Resources/Agriculture departments on five tribal locations in North Dakota The toolkit and other resources are available on https://www.ndsmallfarms.com/starting-a-farm-enterprise.html On September 1, 2022 an additional 200 toolkit booklets due to high demand and popularity. Other Activities Helped the Native American Coalition., Tony Parisien, Coalition Project Director in developing of 5 modules to start a new business at Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation. Four virtual sessions were created to cover all 5 modules for the TM AMVET group. Dakota College at Bottineau supported the project and sessions by aiding in the sessions. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results of meetings, webinars and conferences along with input for the stakeholders has been deseminated through the toolkit titled "The Dirt on Starting a Farm". This toolkit is made available to the five tribes in North Dakota, USDA state offices and to our state legilature. It is also available on NDSMALLFARMS.COM. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
BGRD Grant Accomplishments Initial Outreach Workshop (9/21/2020) - Created a focus Group to develop ideas for the native American and veteran needs in agriculture. (12 participants) Created a presentation of basic outreach materials for beginning farmers who are native American and veterans. First outreach workshop was held at New Town, North Dakota Participants included members of the Three Affiliated Tribes (Mandan-Hidatsa-Arikara), New Town Veteran Service employees, and Instructor from Nueta, Hidatsa, Sahnish NHS (Fort Berthold) Community College. (Introduction of project and identified project collaborators) Second Outreach Workshop (2/8/2021) - Held workshop to assist native American veterans in developing a business plan and presented a short PowerPoint on connecting with local, state and federal USDA and VA agencies. (6 participants) Discussions were led by DCB and a representative of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians. All six participants began new agriculture operations as a result of the workshop. Five modules were utilized in follow-up meetings for this location. The six participants complete the training modules after this workshop. Workshop objectives To harness TEK, or Traditional Ecological Knowledge by incorporating use of modern NRCS practices and techniques for soil conservation and land management Build relationships with Veterans using one on one consultations, and providing tailored technical assistance achieve Veterans unique goals and objectives Understand the history and culture of Native American Agri-Business Build a better foundation of knowledge of Tribal Values associated with Indian Agriculture. Met Objective 1. by identifying opportunities and challenges the new entrepreneurs were experiencing. This was our working group that had many one on one follow-up sessions in which DCB provided technical support to each participant. Third Outreach Workshop - (3/22/2021) Met with Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians (11 participants) Leadership for this activity included DCB personnel, Director of Ag. Department and Technical support from TMBMCI. Information on: Introduction of NRCS programs and sign up presented by NRCS representative Discussion with growers on what they would like grow and include traditions. Discussion on NRCS Practices and technical assistance from DCB Food Sovereignty discussion with handout "Food Sovereignty Ideas". Food Sovereignty Organization at TMBCI Fourth Outreach Workshop (3/1/2021 to 5/30/2021) - Created a mentor/mentee plan to have experienced individuals work directly with native Americans and veterans. Workshop assigned a mentor to each mentee. Total of eight mentor/mentee partnerships were formed. There were four mentor/mentee Zoom sessions. Mentor/Mentee were encouraged to weekly on progress. This included veteran native Americans from the Spirit Lake Nation. (6 participants) Topics covered included: Starting your own business Developing a business plan Financing Marketing Fifth Outreach workshop - (6/13 2022 and 6/14/2022) Attended and presented at the Strengthening Government to Government Conference sponsored by the North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission. Over 225 individuals participated from 5 native American tribes (Turtle Mountain Reservation, Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, Spirit Lake Reservation, Standing Rock Reservation, Sisseton-Wahpeton Reservation). DCB conducted a workshop on "Successful participation by native Americans and native American veterans in state and federal agriculture programs". Illustrated steps for starting a new business using the toolkit developed by this grant activities. Sixth Outreach workshop - (7/15/2022) - On campus DCB workshop for beginning/young Native American farmers. Raising vegetables in the open field and the high tunnels Different types of irrigation that we use (drip tape, emitters in the orchard, tree bags, sprinklers etc.) and water issues that we may have. NRCS Practices Wash and pack facility and food safety How to market produce Working with the USDA Seventh Outreach workshop - (7/15/2022) - DCB field day for native Americans and veterans. (12 participants) Activities included: Good agricultural practices NRCS practices Overview of toolkit publication created by DCB for this grant project Committee final review of the toolkit "The Dirt on Starting a Farm". This group of reviewers included five tribal members, Director of the Veterans Administration, NRCS employee, minority owned business owner, DCB personnel and an attorney for the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians. Printing of the toolkit and dissemination. 500 copies of the toolkit booklet printed. Dissemination of Materials Three copies each to 66 veteran services officers in North Dakota Three copies each to 29 American Legion locations Three copies each to nine North Dakota Community Action locations. Three copies each to 54 USDA offices in North Dakota Ten copies each to Natural Resources/Agriculture departments on five tribal locations in North Dakota The toolkit and other resources are available on https://www.ndsmallfarms.com/starting-a-farm-enterprise.html On September 1, 2022 an additional 200 toolkit booklets due to high demand and popularity. Other Activities Helped the Native American Coalition., Tony Parisien, Coalition Project Director in developing of 5 modules to start a new business at Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation. Four virtual sessions were created to cover all 5 modules for the TM AMVET group. Dakota College at Bottineau supported the project and sessions by aiding in the sessions.
Publications
- Type:
Books
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2022
Citation:
Dakota College at Bottineau gratefully acknowledges the native peoples on whose ancestral lands we sit. We praise the Anishinaabe and Assiniboine peoples, as well as the other
sovereign nations of the northern plains whose lands encompass North Dakota today: the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, the Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Nation, the Spirit Lake Nation, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate.
Dakota college is proud that native men and women have chosen to attend our college and enrich it with their knowledge and achievements.
In the spirit of collaboration, we reach out to our college and the regional community with programs and activities that
demonstrate our commitment to the first peoples of the northern plains.
https://www.dakotacollege.edu/about/land-acknowledgement
This publication provides the most basic stepping stones to your future farm
We would want to recognize that we do not have room to provide all-encompassing information to Native American or Veteran farmers who wish to begin farming. To simplify the presentation of information throughout the document QR codes are provided with scannable links to websites with more details. Using a smartphone, photograph the code to be redirected to the listed websites.
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Progress 09/15/20 to 09/14/21
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience are beginning farmers with Native American and Veteran backgrounds. There has minimal contacts with these target groups. Changes/Problems:The original Project Director, Holly Mawby, passed away in April 2021. This left the project at a standstill until a new project director was selected. During the transition, it became clear the grant's projected dates of completion for each objective needed to be extended another year. An extension request was submitted and approved in August of 2021 to allow the program's timeline to be reset. Beginning in September 2021, the new activity schedule will begin for this program. Through a systems-based approach, as project director, Quinn Renfandt will fulfill the stated objectives over the next twelve months. Although an unforeseen delay has pushed the completion of this program out another year beyond the intended dissemination period, participants will have an equal opportunity to utilize this program to aide their various needs. Therefore, the output of this grant has not changed and will be achieved as originally planned. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Due to challenges experienced by the original project director, this program has not actively provided any training or professional development opportunities yet. After assessing the level of participation stakeholders are willing to provide, opportunities for training and professional development will be identified on a case-by-case basis. This has been chosen by the project director as the most effective way to reach those interested in farming and ranching within the qualifying demographic subsets outlined by the USDA. The results of these activities will be included in the final report. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Over the next 12 months, the intended plan for the fulfillment of the program objectives has been broken down into step-by-step agenda. The project director will continue outlining key stakeholders throughout the multitude of organizations affiliated with Veterans and Socially Disadvantaged Groups interested in farming. The output of this program will be a comprehensive resource base including progressively structure workshop to educate interested persons on the programs available to them. Participants will have important information disseminated to them throughout the duration of the program. Together with interactive learning sessions and resource assistance, the program's impact will be a continuous plan of action for future stakeholders to utilize and build upon as their roles evolve.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
There have not yet been any notable accomplishments achieved due to the unexpected loss of the original Project Director and subsequent transition to the newly assignment project director, Quinn Renfandt.
Publications
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