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Non Technical Summary
Non-Technical SummaryBergen Community College (BCC) recognizes the changing skill demands of local agriculture and food industries, the effect of the pandemic on farming practices, and the need to offer consumers and employers food source and supply options promoting and supporting sustainable farming in northern New Jersey, The NEXTGEN project will build the College's capacity to prepare students for future USDA and regional workforce needs within diverse industries supporting food, agriculture, natural resources, and human (FANH) sciences and career clusters.The project supports student scholarship, student mentorships (peer, faculty and employer), experiential learning and outreach and engagement activities driven by local Food Products and Processing (FPP) Systems supporting sustainable Farm to Table, food production and safety practices; Environmental Service Systems (ESS) supporting instruments and technology in waste management and sustainable farming; and Plant Systems (PS) developing learning labs for hydroponics, and create community farming opportunities recognizing cultural practices; and Agri-Business systems (ABS) supporting the study of business principles, including management, marketing and finance, and their application to enterprises engaged in Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. Through increased community awareness of sustainable farming practices, the project also hopes to address food insecurities by supporting opportunities for residents to source their own grown food products, and BCC to provide nutritious, student campus grown, harvested and prepared options for its food pantry to help address the hunger needs of peers.The project will increase awareness and interest in FANH and career pathways at USDA targeting high school students, enrolled BCC students, and underserved students, including Hispanic, other minority and disabled individuals. It will also identify and address programmatic gaps in providing education and skills training in key FANH system areas leading to work experience, employment, certification and degree opportunities. The project will provide FANH occupation exploration, educational advancement and career pathway opportunities in regional food and agricultural for more than 600 students over the five- year grant period. It will also develop pre-employment training and support services to increase paid employment and/or career pathway opportunities in FANH related occupations for individuals who are disabled, including neurodiverse youth and adults.
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Research Effort Categories
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Goals / Objectives
The major goal of the NextGen project is to increase awareness and interest in FANH and career pathways at USDA targeting high school students, enrolled BCC students, and underserved students, including minorities and students with neurodiversity. It will also identify and address programmatic gaps in providing education and skills training in key FANH system areas leading to work experience, employment, certification and degree opportunities.By incorporating experiential and service-learning activities in both new and existing curricula, the project will promote a broader understanding of the interrelatedness of disciplines and experiences, such as those found in food, agriculture, culinary arts and business management, for example. The goal is also to develop work experiences(internships) not only with USDA, but also on farms and in food-system organizations to provide students transferrable skills for future employment in USDA related occupations.NEXTGEN project's innovative approaches are designed toIncrease secondary school student awareness of FANH occupations and career pathway opportunities using sustainable farming methods and practices, including hydroponics and aquaculture, for instructional and work experience opportunities.Create work experience and employment opportunities in hydroponics in partnership with such as Greens Do Good, an innovative local hydroponic farmer employing and supporting neurodiverse individuals.Create a new program concentration (Transferable Two-year Plant based culinary arts degree) within BCC's Hospitality and Restaurant Management Department supporting Sustainable "Farm to Plate" Food Systems coursework, certification, degree and career pathway opportunitiesAlign BCC FANH and STEM courses and degrees with 4-year college agricultural and foodscience degree requirements for seamless transfers, including a partnership with Rutgers University,leading to advanced degree opportunities in higher skill demand fields.Promote applications of vertical farming to support local food supplies for culinary and food serve establishments as well as community households focusing on Farm to Plate practices in sustainable farmingIncrease educational and employment opportunities for underserved students in occupations supporting sustainable "Farm to Table" food production, agroecology practices and in USDA.Develop educational and field practicum opportunities for masters and post-doctoral students to teach FANH sciences to high school and community college students, to assist in collaborative efforts the address teacher shortages in food science and agriculture disciplines.The NEXTGEN project will build upon BCC's current FANH coursework in Culinary Arts,Horticulture, Environmental Sciences and STEM programs using a program model and key partnerships supporting early career exploration, high school dual enrollment programs,current BCC students and the alignment of curriculum to develop and strengthen existing transfer agreements with 4-year colleges leading advanced degree FANH career pathways opportunities. The project will also expand pre-employment support services, job placement, internships, mentoring, research experiences, certification and on-going peer support across targeted populations and each individual's success goals.Goals and Objectives Goal 1: Enhance BCC's capacity to develop and support new or enhanced curriculum leading to FANH industry recognized certificates, 2-year degrees programs and 4-year transfer agreements aligned to FANH industry and occupational skills requirements. (SSP and OEP activities)Objectives1.1: Establish a FANH curriculum review committee engaging BCC and partner college faculty to assess related coursework supporting alignment of curriculum with 4-year college bachelor and more advanced FANH related degree programs.1.2: Create 2 new 2-year A.S. degree program supporting a FANH advanced degree program.1.3: Create 2-4 FANH certification or stackable credential CTE programs1.4: Develop faculty and staff professional development opportunities to support the instruction of new FANH coursework and experiential learning practices.Goal 2: Enhance and expand opportunities for high school students to pursue educational advancement employment and career pathways in FANH and USDA workforce demand occupations (SSP, ELP and OEP activities)Objectives 2.1: Engage administrators, counselors and teachers at 6-10 high schools within Bergen and Passaic counties serving large percentages of low-income and minority students, to engage 8th -10th grade students in FANH career exploration, educational, and experiential learning activities supporting FANH sciences and industry employment needs.2.2. Enroll 300 11th-and 12thgrade students in BCC high school partnership dual enrollment programs and experiential learning opportunities leading to completion of coursework, certification and degree programs pursuing FANH-related employment and career pathways.2.3: Award scholarships for 250 students eligible for and pursuing dual enrollment pathways in FANH related coursework in their 11th and 12th grades.2.4: Place and retain 50 current BCC first- and second-year students enrolled in STEM, HRM, Horticulture, and enhanced courses, experiential learning, and paid work experience opportunities in FANH related occupations.Goal 3: Develop pre-employment training and support services to place and retain special needs and neurodiverse individuals in paid employment and/or career pathways supporting FANH and UDSA related occupations. (SSP, ELP and OEP activities) 3:1: Engage FANH employers to create sustainable employment and career advancement opportunities for 20 disabled and neurodiverse individuals.The project will establish a hydroponic/aquaculture farm on campus to support broadened opportunities for student and community use. By partnering with Greens-do-Good, the project will engage a vertical farmer that is expanding hydroponic facilities that will broaden education, experiential learning, employment opportunities accessible to secondary and post-secondary educational institutions as well as food system employers in the region.The College currently operates and supports a"Rocket®900" Aerobic In-Vessel and Vermi Composting system engaging a broad cross-section of BCC students, faculty, and staff from many different academic departments, as well as students (and teachers) from Applied Tech High School, which is located on our Paramus campus, to collaborate in developing the project's education campaign. The NEXTGEN Project will expand this initiative linking to hydroponic lab and Farm to Table activities and increased engagement of students in sustainable farming and environmental practices.Sustainability: Partnership with Rutgers will create an MOU for a new articulation agreement for futrue BCC students to transfer to the University to pursue FANH science bachelors, masters, and doctoral degree pathways as well as serve as a model for other BCC 4-year college articulation agreements. The teacher training scholarship program will create ongoing opportunities for teacher development. The NEXTGEN Project's collaboration with Greens-Do-Good will develop ongoing opportunities to support employment for neurodiverse students in food science and agriculture, as well as support future training for commercial and community hydroponic farm operations. Partnerships with Bergen County Technical Schools will create model dual enrollment degree program pathways for other high schools.Other longer-term benefits of the NEXTGEN Project activities will the use of hydroponic lab facilities in developing opportunities for community access to new farming techniques that can address food insecurity and supply chain issues that may cause erratic food shortages in some of the region urban areas.
Project Methods
MethodsBergen Community College (BCC) recognizes the changing skill demands of local agriculture and food industries, the effect of the pandemic on farming practices, and the need to offer consumers and employers food source and supply options promoting and supporting sustainable farming in northern New Jersey, The NEXTGEN project will build the College's capacity to prepare students for future USDA and regional workforce needs within diverse industries supporting food, agriculture, natural resources, and human (FANH) sciences and USDA career clusters.The project will address all three NEXTGEN project types i.e. student scholarship (SSP), experiential learning (ELP) and outreach and engagement (OEP) activities driven by local Food Products and Processing (FPP) Systems supporting sustainable Farm to Table, food production practices; Environmental Service Systems (ESS) supporting instruments and technology in waste management and sustainable farming; Plant Systems (PS) developing learning labs for hydroponics, and create community farming opportunities recognizing cultural practices; and Agri-Business systems (ABS) supporting the study of business principles, including management, marketing and finance, and their application to enterprises engaged in Agriculture, Food and Natural ResourcesSupporting National AFNR Career Cluster Content Standards,the project will develop and enhance well-planned curriculum in the form of new stackable certificates and transferable degree programs to support Agri-Science education in these systems and their career cluster pathways. Additionally, it will increase public awareness and knowledge and use of practices supporting community farming and sustainable farm to table methods and approaches.By incorporating experiential and service-learning activities in both new and existing curricula, the project will use a multi-disciplinary approach to engage students in broader range of FANH experiences The goal is also to develop work experiences(internships) not only with USDA, but also on farms and in food-system organizations to provide students transferrable skills for future employment in USDA related occupations.?Cooperative Linkages/PartnershipsBergen County Technical Schools - Paramus Campus Culinary ArtsAs a BCC dual enrollment school, Paramus High School is one of 24 high schools within Bergen and adjacent Passaic counties that currently participate in the College's dual enrollment program. The Paramus partnership will be coordinated by Ms. Andrea Sheridan, Assistant Superintendent, Bergen County Technical School who, as a member of the NEXTGEN Advisory Council and Curriculum Review Committee and working closely with the Project Director, will be responsible for facilitating all project activities with Params high school administration, counselors and teachers. Additionally, Ms. Sheridan will coordinate outreach to ach to 9th and 10th grades at Params and other Bergen County Technical Schools to promote FANH education, experiential learning and career exploration opportunities for students.Rutgers University School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS)Many community college students, including Bergen students, are enrolled in Rutgers agricultural and food systems programs. The NEXTGEN Project will work closely with Dr. Xenia Morin, Undergraduate Program Director, Agriculture and Food Systems, Department of Plant Biology and Sr. Associate Dean for Learning. A trained plant biochemist, Dr. Morin currently teaches courses such as Careers in Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources Introduction to Agriculture and Food Systems; Sustainability: Tackling Food Waste; Feeding America's Cities. The current research interests she brings to the NEXTGEN Project include: envisioning the future of sustainable agriculture, food systems, and climate change; education including digital badging; indoor cultivation and sustainability; food systems, horticulture and nutrition; food waste and the food-energy-water nexus; and research and training to support mentoring of under-represented groups in higher education as well as agricultureAs a member of the NextGen project's Advisory Council and its curriculum review committee, Dr. Morin will be responsible for assisting in the alignment of BCC coursework to meet requirements for SEBS degree programs relating to FANH disciplines, creating pipeline for USDA internships, leadership and employment. Dr. Morin will also coordinate the development of BCC coursework taught by Rutgers master and post-doctoral students resulting in transferable credits to SEBS programs as well as creating opportunities to advance FANH teacher education at the high school and community college level. Specifically, she will work with BCC and NextGen project partners to focus on ways to best facilitate students transferring to School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), especially the Agriculture and Food Systems major. In addition to curriculum mapping and advising on course development and advice for students interested in transferring, Dr. Morin will work with BCC to develop an MOU to facilitate such transfers.Additionally, Dr. Morin will participate in developing a workshop for high school students and high school teachers based on the University's new documentary film "Fields of Devotion", which shows how farmers and researchers can tackle challenges brought about by climate change. As associate producer of this film, Dr. Morin can develop a meaningful workshop experience that will connect with students and teachers and help them to see the value of STEM education in solving future problems in agriculture and food systems. The film will roll out in 2023.Greens-Do-GoodGreens Do Good is a 501c3 non-profit organization currently operating as a 3,000 square foot vertical farm located in Hackensack, NJ, growing a variety of lettuces, microgreens, and herbs sold retail, wholesale and direct to consumer. The mission of GDG is solely focused on training and employment for individuals with autism. Since its inception in 2019, GDG has built a robust customer base of country clubs, restaurants and local markets and has grown its workforce development training program for teens ages 16-21 from 4 students to over 50 autistic students from 12 public and private school districts from three counties.BCC partners with other agencies, organizations, employers and individuals supporting its current programs who will participate in the NEXTGEN Project activities.HACU National internship Program: As an HSI, and HACU member, BCC works closely with the organization's National Internship Program to identify work experience opportunities for students in a wide range of industries and occupations. The NEXGEN Project will coordinate opportunities for participants to take advantage of more than 70 internships in FANH-related occupations for diverse USDA and Service agencies.Rodrigo Duarte, local NJ farmer and neighborhood butcher and grocer: Mr. Duarte is a local farmer well-recognized for growing Black Iberian pigs from Portugal, and is the only U.S. producer of pata negra or jamon ibérico, the ham made from these pigs. He operates on farms totaling more than 240 acres in NJ and Pa and owns Caseiro é Bom store in the Ironbound section of Newark, a neighborhood with Newark known for its roots as a Portuguese community but also has a large growing population of Hispanics. The program will tie course-related fieldwork and research activities to farm visits, involving meat and dairy production.