Progress 09/15/23 to 09/14/24
Outputs
Target Audience:Urban Growers Collective's Grower Apprenticeship program is open to all beginning farmers, and encourages Socially Disadvantaged and Limited Resourced beginning farmers to apply and participate in the program. Demographics and Population served: Based on our 2023 Growing Season data, the largest portion of Growers Apprenticeship Program participants (44%) identified their gender as male and most participants identified their race as Black or African American (33%), Hispanic or Latino (22%) or White (22%). Participants shared that they represent the following areas: Kenwood, Humboldt Park, Bridgeport, North Center, Riverside, Austin, Albany Park, Hyde Park and Garfield Park. Most respondents (89%) had not operated a farm before participating in the program and program participants included a range of income levels with the largest portion of participants having incomes above $40,000 per year. UGC is collecting additional demographic and population data for the 2024 growing season and expects to share survey results in the following reporting period UGC deployed email communications releasing the Growers Apprenticeship application to our mailing list November 20, 2023, and shared Growers Apprenticeship Program information session details on December 8, 2023. Applicants were prompted once more to apply January 4, 2023, as the application window was closing the following day. Program acceptance was determined by UGC staff over the months of January and February, and after being invited to attend the program, participants attended their first workshop and orientation on Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Between March and December, 74 workshops were held for Growers Apprenticeship Program participants. Skills gained include bed building, compost creation, drip irrigation, crop planning, food safety, pest management, and seeding and transplanting. Over the course of the growing season, Growers Apprenticeship Program participants attended in-person hands on farm skill building workshops, met with Technical Assistance providers to gain a more in-depth understanding of recently acquired concepts, and communicated with fellow participants and instructors through Google Classroom. UGC uses participant attendance data to contextualize the self-reported skill knowledge gains at the end of the season. Among these categories the highest % participation are Cooperative Business Development and GAP Food Safety topics. Although this may be promising considering feedback from the 2023 season, successful Farm Production skills are an essential first step before operations are at a scale to think about future business development and management of food safety in harvest processing. Without farm production, a farm business can not exist. Beyond individual skills development, this may also delay cohorts in building communities of practice and visioning future cooperative business ventures after program completion. To address this in 2025, UGC is updating its program structure to emphasize the importance of Farm Foundational skills while also leveraging UGC's strengths as an organization that operates farm production. The 2025 Grower Apprenticeship program updates will require participants to demonstrate foundational understanding and application of Farm Skills, either through workshop attendance and/or logged hours of farm work and volunteering. Changes/Problems:In 2025, the Grower Apprenticeship program will place a stronger emphasis on individual skill mastery, rather than moving through the program as a cohort. This shift from the last iteration of the program from 2022-2024 seeks to continue keeping Apprentices accountable to developing Farm Foundational skills necessary to operate a successful farm business, while also providing flexibility for participants to advance based on how their individual skills and goals develop. By focusing on each Grower Apprentice's skill development as an individual instead of a cohort, UGC intends to honor the intensive commitment that commercial urban agriculture requires without dismissing the efforts of growers at all scales in building community food sovereignty. ? What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Beyond the training of beginning farmers through the Grower Apprenticeship program, this project has supported UGC's Growing staff development. As UGC staff develop their skills, they support workshop preparation and facilitation for the Grower Apprenticeship program. UGC has several Grower staff positions on our Farm team to support accessible and meaningful career advancement for both seasonal and full-time Farm team members: Grower In Training: for growers with at least 1 growing season (spring, summer and fall) of on-farm work including volunteering and apprenticeship programs Lead/ Experienced Urban Growers- for growers with 4-6 growing seasons of experience The distinction between two positions provides accessible and defined entry points for their careers within urban agriculture- staff that start as Growers In Trainings now have benchmarks for career trajectory within Urban Growers Collective. As an organization, UGC is also able to use the number of staff at each grower experience level to appropriately allocate Director of Farms' and other Senior staff's mentorship and support throughout the season supporting smoother day to day operations and allowing for educational programming through the Grower Apprenticeship program. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?UGC informs and influences the work of other partners within the Chicago region who are working within the food system, and especially with partners who work directly with producers. Partners include not only other food system stakeholders (growers, aggregators, distributors/markets, food waste) but also stakeholders in allied fields like health care, workforce and economic development, academia/research, energy, transportation, education and more. These collaborations ensure that our own programming and operations take into account broader perspectives, and can leverage additional resources beyond UGC's expertise to achieve program's long term outcomes. Partner highlights include: National: US Dept. of Agriculture-Forestry Service ; US Dept. of Energy; National Science Foundation; HEAL Food Alliance; Equitable Food Oriented Development, Growing Justice Fund, CDC Foundation. Regional: USDA-Illinois Farm Service Agency; Illinois Dept. of Agriculture; Midwest Farmers of Color; Illinois State Board of Education - Committee for Agricultural Education Locally: City of Chicago: Mayor's Office; Office of Equity and Racial Justice; Dept. of Planning and Development; Dept. of Public Health; Dept. of Cultural Affairs and Special Events; Food Equity Council Academia: University of Illinois Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory, Tuskegee University Community based organizations, including: Community Food Navigator, Growing Home, Grow Greater Englewood, ChiFresh Kitchens, Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corporation; Greater Chicago Food Depository; SouthEast Environmental Task Force What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Goal 1: To continue supporting the development of Socially Disadvantaged and Limited Resource Beginning Farmers in Chicago, IL , UGC is beginning planning and laying out a program calendar for the Grower Apprenticeship Program. This includes analysis and review of 2024 season surveys, scheduling Farm Foundational Skill and Farm Business Skill workshops, and planning UGC's South Chicago farm operations to support hands-on learning opportunities. UGC expects outreach, application submissions, and decisions for the 2025 Grower Apprenticeship Program to be completed by March 2025. From March-November 2025, UGC will continue to implement the Grower Apprenticeship Program. Goal 2: To continue identifying and documenting challenges of Socially Disadvantaged/Limited Resource Beginning Farmers in Chicago, IL UGC will be updating evaluation practices to also include opportunities for participants to reflect on how their farm business plans and goals shift throughout the program. UGC acknowledges that not every Grower Apprenticeship will complete all years of the program, due to how Apprentices' individual capacity to participate in the program and their aspirations may change as they build their understanding of community food systems. Reflections on participants' individual goals will help to further nuance data by allowing UGC to determine how personal capacity and aspirations contribute to outcomes for goal 1. These reflections will also be incorporated into funding requests to sustain the Grower Apprenticeship program and meet emergent needs of SD/LR beginning farmers
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Goal 1: Objective 1a: Implement hands-on farm technical skills curriculum including topics such as seeding and transplanting, basic crop growing techniques and maintenance, and harvesting and post-harvest handling. # of workshops = 74 sessions, totaling 111 hours of work # of applied learning sessions = 9 sessions, totaling 13.5 hours of work # of technical assistance sessions = 15 sessions, totaling 22.5 hours of work These workshops were completed at the South Chicago Farm, with 18 participants enrolled in the program. Below provides date and topic: 3/13/246-7:30Program Welcome & Orientation 3/16/249:30-11:00aFarm Tour & Crop Plan Prep 3/23/249:30-11:00aBed Building 3/27/246-7:30Technical Assistance - Bed Building 3/30/249:30-11:00aGroup Work / Applied Learning 4/6/249:30-11:00aGreenhouse Seeding 4/10/246-7:30Technical Assistance 4/13/249:30-11:00aDrip Irrigation 4/17/246-7:30Technical Assistance 4/20/249:30-11:00a Seeding & Transplanting (Spring Crops) 4/24/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 4/27/249:30-11:00aTechnical Assistance - Direct Seeding/Transplanting 5/4/249:30-11:00aGroup Farm Work 5/8/246-7:30GAP 5/11/249:30-11:00aGAP + Harvest 5/15/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 5/18/249:30-11:00aSeeding & Transplanting (Summer Crops) 5/22/246-7:30Technical Assistance 5/29/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 6/1/249:30-11:00aSeeding & Transplanting (Summer Crops) 6/8/249:30-11:00aTechnical Assistance 6/12/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 6/15/249:30-11:00aSeasonal Harvest 6/19/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 6/22/249:30-11:00aCompost 6/26/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 6/29/249:30-11:00aTechnical Assistance 7/13/249:30-11:00aPest Management 7/17/246-7:30Technical Assistance 7/20/249:30-11:00aTomato Trellis 7/24/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 7/27/249:30-11:00aSeasonal Harvest 7/31/246-7:30Technical Assistance 8/3/249:30-11:00aGroup Work / Applied Learning 8/10/249:30-11:00aPest Management 8/14/246-7:30Technical Assistance 8/17/249:30-11:00aGroup Work / Applied Learning 8/21/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 8/24/249:30-11:00a Seasonal Harvest 8/28/246-7:30Technical Assistance 9/7/249:30-11:00aFall Crop Planning 9/11/246-7:30Technical Assistance 9/14/249:30-11:00aGroup Work / Applied Learning 9/18/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 9/21/249:30-11:00aSeasonal Harvest Workshop 9/25/246-7:30Technical Assistance 9/28/249:30-11:00Group Work / Applied Learning 10/5/249:30-11:00aVermicompost 10/9/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 10/12/249:30-11:00aTechnical Assistance 10/16/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 10/19/249:30-11:00a Seasonal Harvest Workshop 10/23/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 10/30/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 11/2/249:30-11:00a Winterize Drip Irrigation 11/6/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 11/9/249:30-11:00aTechnical Assistance 11/16/249:30-11:00aBulb Planting 11/20/246-7:30Group Work / Applied Learning 11/23/249:30-11:00aProgram Wrap Objective 1b: Implement cooperative business and farm business curriculum, including topics such as farm business management, including record keeping, financing, and cooperative business development.? # of Coop/Solidarity Economy workshops = 9, totaling 13.5 hours of work. These workshops were completed virtually, with 18 participants enrolled in the Grower Apprenticeship Program. All Solidarity Economy and Cooperative Business Development workshops were led by Camille Kerr from Upside Down Consulting and Maru Bautista from the Solidarity Resource. Topics and dates listed below: 3/20/246-7:30Introduction 4/3/246-7:30Building out your co-op development work plan 5/1/246-7:30Power and Privilege 6/5/246-7:30Financial Planning and Market Research 7/10/246-7:30Trust Building and Values 8/7/246-7:30Operational Capacity Training 9/4/246-7:30Conflict Resolution and Membership Eligibility 10/2/246-7:30Decision Making 11/13/246-7:30Designing your Democratic Structure Goal 2: Objective 2a: Implement and analyze Grower Apprenticeship Participant surveys on self-reported knowledge gains and program feedback during and after each program year. 2024 Grower Apprenticeship season surveys have been deployed and expect to be analyzed by January 2025. A summary of the findings from UGC's 2023 Grower Apprenticeship program season are provided below: Additional Learning Outcomes from Grower Apprenticeship Participants Farm Foundation Techniques: Most participants gained a better understanding of farm foundation techniques. Participants were invited to reflect on the knowledge that they gained on farm foundation techniques including: seeding, bed prep, planting, irrigation, transplanting, direct seeding, composting, pest management, harvest practices/techniques, post harvest handling, record keeping, and food safety. Areas with fewer participants reporting relative to other areas (bulb planting, overwintering crops, season extension, winterization,) occurred in the late fall and winter growing season, where UGC saw participation and attendance generally decrease in the program which is typical as emerging growers adjust to longer growing seasons than expected. Cooperative Business Practices: Less than half (44%) of the participants reported that they gained a better understanding of cooperative business practices andprinciples. This area of knowledge gain was lower than other areas in the program. About half (56%) reported that their interest in cooperative business practices increased through their participation on the program. To address this in 2024, UGC clarified expectations for attendance and program schedule at participant onboarding and also dedicated several days of program each month for participants to apply their learning through group work. UGC's External Evaluation Consultant provided an analysis of participant attendance for workshops and engagements between April 1, and September 25, 2024: Most (78%) reported in 2023 that they planned to participate in the 2024 Growers Apprenticeship program, though only 67% reported that the expectations for the program were clear, and only 44% reported that the structure supported learning. In 2025, UGC staff will set clear expectations for what will be expected of participants (e.g. time required, attendance, on-site time expected/required). UGC will also set clear expectations for how the UGC team and who on the UGC team will provide direct instruction, support/guidance and communication to the apprentices throughout the program (e.g. access to experts on farming/growing, communication to manage expectations and flow of apprentice involvement). UGC will also revisit the curriculum and schedule to ensure that there is a plan and approach for providing direct instruction and then opportunities for applied learning on all topics, as some topics were less understood by participants. Objective 2b: Build Urban Growers Collective's capacity via partnerships and additional funding sources to improve the implementation of Grower Apprenticeship program. October 2024 BFRDP Project Director Conference in Charlotte, NC - UGC's Director of Operations and Director of Farms attended the conference to learn more about other BFRDP funded programs. The conference affirmed several best practices already incorporated into the Grower Apprenticeship Program including supplementing hands-on work with online community buildingand identifying additional resources for Grower Apprentices to continue their work beyond the program.
Publications
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Progress 09/15/22 to 09/14/23
Outputs
Target Audience:Urban Growers Collective's Grower Apprenticeship program targets beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers in the greater Chicago, IL area. Target audience' communities are predominantly Black, Indigenous and People of Color and have been historically disinvested resulting in disproportionately higher rates of unemployment, income instability, food insecurity, and violence. UGC operates in these BIPOC communities to address both the systemic causes and symptoms of inequity through the platform of agricultural education. Changes/Problems:While no major problems have risen, some aspects of the project have changed. The billing schedule originally proposed may need to be adjusted and a formal no cost extension may be requested in order to complete and draw down funds based on new funding secured from non-Federal Sources. Regional changes in resources available to beginning farmers are also being incorporated into how UGC implements our Grower Apprenticeship program. The USDA's opening of the Cook County Urban Agriculture Farm State Agency office is a substantial achievement in organizing efforts among our partners and supporters. The new office will make it more accessible for beginning farmers to access financial and technical assistance from Illinois FSA, his will integrate UGC's technical assistance and training of beginner farmers with resources available through the FSA office, training modules and workshops to strengthen this connection will become a part of the Grower Apprenticeship curriculum. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Apprentices received a series of workshops on food and farm techniques necessary to operate a farming business. Topics in 2023 included: Worker cooperative introductions, transplanting and crop planning, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) training, Cooperative Business Development management and relational skills, Irrigation systems, Direct Seeding, Hand Irrigation, Harvest and Processing, Seasonal (Spring, Summer, Fall) specific Crop cultivation, harvest and processing best practices, post-harvest practices and safety, composting and vermicomposting. ? How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?UGC shares the results of our work back to constituents and communities of interest by using their feedback and input as a guide for future curriculum development. Evaluation surveys given to apprenticeship participants are then used to update curriculum yearly to better meet new challenges that beginner farmers face. This includes updates to cooperative business development training and where in the program beginner farmers begin developing business plans. UGC is also a convener and participant in the local urban agriculture space and through these networks continue to share our work. Through our collaboration with various regional entities including, the Community Food Navigator, the Chicago Food Equity Council, the Chicago Food Policy Action Council, and the new USDA Farm Service Administration Urban Agriculture office UGC's lessons learned are both disseminated through the urban ag space in our region and are available for public feedback and comment to further be integrated into our processes. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?As UGC moves out of the growing season and into the winter season we begin refining program systems and curricula. Beginning in September edits will be made to the application materials and process for the next cohort of beginner growers. Some of these changes will be better understanding participants' demographic backgrounds to better understand the communities of beginner farmers we are educating. The next reporting season will also allow UGC to take Y23 evaluation surveys from 2 cohorts of beginner growers to not only operationalize opportunities for current cohort curricula but to make changes to lessons and workshop plans for a new 2024 cohort.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Goal 1: During this project period the first cohort of 8 Grower Apprentices completed their first year of the program, with 7 returning in 2023. The participant who did not continue with the program moved out of the Chicago land area, and after successfully offboarding is now using skills gained to homestead outside the US. In 2023, a new cohort of 15 Grower Apprentices were admitted to the program for a total of 22 beginning farmers engaged in the curriculum. UGC provided approximately 2 workshops per month on farm skills while also developing farm business skills from February through November. Although the two cohorts are in different stages of the program, they work together and collaborate to further their knowledge and build a community of practice as beginner farmers. This includes shared workshop time as a larger group, hands-on work at UGC's South Chicago Farm in their allotted fields. Goal 2: UGC is currently analyzing and identifying areas of additional need among Socially Disadvantaged/Limited Resourced and Beginning Farmers in the greater Chicago area. One initial area is identifying land for scaling farmers' future operations, and learning larger scale growing techniques that incorporate mechanized agriculture. Currently, Apprentices are applying techniques and growing on an approximately half- acre section of UGC's South Chicago Farm. As apprentices deepen financial planning, more land will be needed to scale operations to meet financial goals. UGC is currently working with the Conservation Fund's Working Farms Fund develop pathways for SD/LR Beginning farmer land acquisition. The Working Farms Fund acquires land facing threat to conversion and creates pathways for land ownership through lease-to-own contracts and conservation easements. In the long run this will not only protect farmland from being lost to non-farming uses, but also provide long-term opportunities for beginning farmers' sustaining their farm operations through secure land tenure.
Publications
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