Progress 06/15/24 to 06/14/25
Outputs
Target Audience:In the second year of the grant, we served at least 2550 students in our NextGen programming. The majority of these students were served by the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) (580unduplicated students). Other students and participants were served at partner organizations at California State University Monterey Bay (CSUMB), Hartnell College, and the Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (ALBA). Altogether, the partner organizations provided in-depth programming to 93 individuals, and provided outreach to 1878 individuals. The students served at UCSC, CSUMB, and Hartnell were pursuing a diverse array of majors including in the fields of agriculture (13% of students), natural resource conservation (e.g., Environmental Studies, 17%), social sciences (e.g., Economics, Politics, Legal Studies, Sociology, 21%), humanities (e.g., History, Art, 17%), engineering and computer science (14%), natural sciences (e.g., Biology, Plant Sciences, 10%), physical sciences (e.g., Physics, Chemistry, 3%), and others (e.g., Math, Global Health, Education, 6%). Most of the students at CSUMB were pursuing degrees in Agriculture and Plant Sciences, Environmental Science, and Environmental Studies. Hartnell students were pursuing programs related to agriculture, biology, and health.The students served at ALBA are working to complete a Farmer Education Course that provides newly enrolled participants with on-farm education focused on organic farming practices and farm business management. In our project, we served students and participants who are representative of our institutions. All students at our institutions are eligible to participate in our programs. Changes/Problems:Our NextGen Project has proceeded largely as planned due to very strong support from the UCSC administration. Challenges reported in the Y1 report have been resolved. Most challenges experienced this year are a result of not having access to draw down funds in ASAP for two months in winter 2025 during a critical time for student recruitment and planning. We describe the details of these challenges below. No Graduate student recruitment and uncertainly of support for continuing students. We completed all of the work to recruit new NextGen PhD students as planned during Y2. We created a recruitment letter with information about the 3-year funding opportunity, and sent this recruitment message to several listservs related to agroecology, food systems, and sustainable agriculture. Individual faculty also shared emails with their personal contacts, and we made follow up phone calls to recruit top students for this program. We received several dozen inquiries, encouraged 12 applications, and made initial plans to admit 8 stellar students to the program to start in Fall 2025. Many of these students even received early communications that they would be recommended for admission into our program with a 3-year fellowship. Our PhD admission letters are usually sent out by the campus in March 2025, exactly during the time that our funding was paused, and acceptance decisions are due nationally by April 15, while the funding was still paused. Because of uncertainty about future funding for this federally-funded program, UCSC administrators would not allow the Environmental Studies Department to admit any graduate students to be funded by the NextGen grant, and none of the 8 students that we recommended for admission were admitted. Thus, we do not have any new NextGen graduate students starting in Fall 2025, and this has set back our project objectives for graduate student recruitment and training by one year. This resulted in a large amount of lost time and effort as faculty and staff spent a large amount of time in recruitment activities, campus visits, and budgetary discussions resulting in zero admits. Our current NextGen graduate students (4) continued to be supported, thanks to the UCSC administration. The PD worked to assure the campus would provide back-up funding to support these students. These discussions and work caused a large amount of lost time and effort and stress as faculty, staff, and students spent a large amount of time in budgetary discussions, rather than advancing project and research objectives. Late acceptance for students into summer programs We continued our recruitment for internships and scholarships as described above in the dissemination section, and were ultimately able to recruit high numbers of students for our ongoing programs. Because we were not able to access funds in the ASAP system for two months, our UCSC administrators cautioned us against making new internship and scholarship offers to new students. Our typical recruitment timeline results in making offers for summer programs in early March so students have sufficient time to plan and consider their options. This year, we were only able to make offers for summer programs in early May, just a few weeks before launching the programs. This late start date resulted in several challenges. First, we lost many of our top applicants who already accepted other summer positions. Second, student financial aid for summer is delayed in getting to students as May and June are the slowest months for processing financial aid awards on our campuses. Third, late admissions and late program start dates caused high levels of stress among student applicants and faculty mentors. Staff uncertainty and retention We are grateful that the UCSC administrators continued to pay all staff and student employees during the time that ASAP was unavailable for NextGen drawdowns. UCSC also continued to pay invoices for our subaward organizations (CSUMB, Hartnell, and ALBA) allowing those organizations to continue to pay their staff. However, the pause in funding created great uncertainty, inefficiency, and stress among staff, especially those whose funding is mostly or entirely provided by this grant as these individuals constantly worried about the future security of their jobs. Even though ASAP is currently available for drawdowns, many of our staff are currently looking for other jobs given the ongoing uncertainty of federal funding. Loss of any of our staff members (e.g., program coordinators, career coaches, instructors) due to funding uncertainty would be detrimental to the success of all of our programming and would set us back indefinitely. UCSC is currently under a hiring freeze, and given ongoing uncertainty for federal funding, it is unlikely that they would allow us to recruit new people to fill these positions with NextGen funds. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?I. Training Activities: Internships. Introductory internships - Students completed 118 introductory internships with the UCSC Center for Agroecology (Farm, Chadwick Garden, Coffee Shop) for 60 hours across 10 weeks. Students learned about organic production (harvesting, composting, transplanting), distribution (at our farm stand, produce pop-up, to campus food pantries), and culinary activities (cooking, menu planning, serving). Students complete journals and a final reflective paper about their experiences. Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources & Human Sciences or FANH internships - 7 FANH interns engaged in self-directed projects on controlled environment agriculture, herb cultivation, agriculture club, dry farming, soils, farm business in a rural food insecure community, weeding implements for an autonomous tractor. These activities prepare students to farm, to do research, to provide technical assistance to farmers, and to improve food security for rural communities. All students were supported by UCSC staff with monthly meetings and participated in career training. FANH students participated in a field trip to the USDA Agricultural Research Service in Salinas and to a local ranch. Students reported meetings created increased confidence. Research internships - We created three kinds of undergraduate research internships. (1) The first program teaches students how to do traditional academic research. In Y2, 11 UCSC students completed projects on dry farming, coastal prairie fire management, soils and tillage, agriculture technology impacts on farm labor, arthropods in urban gardens, controlled environment agriculture, and plant physiology. Students do individual research and learn about careers, participate in monthly workshops about research methods and ethics, poster and presentation development, and data analysis skills. At CSUMB, 50 students completed projects related to animal behavior, soils, plant disease ecology, condor nesting, and wetland ecology and engaged in workshops. (2) The second program trains on community-engaged research. Two students developed a service-learning course with a local gardening organization to improve food security for a rural, farmworker community. In this program, students learn about processes of food production from small-scale community gardens to large-scale agricultural industries and study how to make food growth more efficient in both sites. They supported 8 students in the course and 40 families at the local garden.(3) The third program supports CSUMB MS interns to do research at UCSC. These students spend 400 hours on data collection, hypothesis testing, and dissemination of results in FANH. Their research focused on how freshwater aquaculture byproducts can be used as an alternative to conventional fertilizers. On-the-job Training. Graduate Assistantships - We recruited 4 NextGen PhD students to the Environmental Studies PhD program. This program trains in agroecology, conservation biology, environmental policy, and economics, and students took courses and begin research. Student research interests range from biophysical assessments of soils in CA's Central Coast to studies of nutrients in rural water systems (with applications for agricultural extension and commerce in the form of decision support tools). Training opportunities included workshops designed to enhance communication skills, build connections with other PhD students, gaining practical experience in designing, implementing, analyzing, and presenting a research project; support to attend conferences that convene nonprofits, farmers, and ranchers; and mentorship from NextGen affiliated faculty. We supported two graduate student assistantships for students to support curriculum development for the drone training program. The students spent 16 weeks making improvements for agriculture applications, including plant pathology detection, crop yield estimation, biomass measurement, and principles of precision aerial application of agrochemicals. The graduate students are applying skills and principles in their work and are planning to use them in their careers, which will directly and indirectly benefit a range of industries, including farming, ranching, food production, non-industrial forestry, and the agricultural enterprise broadly. Center for Agroecology Student Staff - 23 student staff were employed to maintain production, research, and educational programing across the campus farm. These responsibilities are direct on-the-job training for careers in the agriculture and food systems industry, and in research and technical advising sectors. Students are mentored by agricultural production and research professionals who supervise and connect students with networks across academic, government, and private sector career pursuits. Students are responsible for day-to-day supervision of introductory interns, providing a near-peer mentoring of students who are newer to agriculture. Agroecology Peer Advisor - One student is employed to provide 1:1 advising to students pursuing the B.A. in Agroecology at UCSC. The peer advisor held 172 advising appointments with 150 undergraduates to help them create and update academic plans, decide on classes, declare their major, explore internships, and choose a senior exit. She provided advice about what careers students might pursue, helped students prepare for attending faculty office hours, and talked through academic difficulties. She conducted presentations at Fall Welcome Week and attended the Dia de la Familia Transfer Day. This work provided her with professional skills, organization, and leadership capacity. II. Professional Development Workshops and Check-in meetings. All undergraduate research interns attend workshops and check-in meetings intended to prepare them for FANH careers. At UCSC, interns attend 2-4 professional development workshops or field trips during summer, and monthly meetings during the academic year. Workshop topics include resume building, data analysis, preparing a poster or presentation, and communicating research. In one-to-one career coaching sessions, students learn about career pathways related to agriculture and receive resume-building and career readiness support. During a career development field trip to the USDA Agricultural Research Service, students learned how agricultural researchers work with producers and other stakeholders to develop solutions to the viral, fungal and bacterial diseases affecting crops. At CSUMB, 50 students received research support and graduate school/career guidance in the form of check-in meetings and professional development workshops. Students must schedule at least 1 check in meeting with the project staff to discuss research and graduate school and/or career guidance. Students in the drone pilot training program (23 during Y2) participate for 4 hours each week for a 16-week program that includes practical flight training and practice, training on software such as Drone Deploy and QGIS for mission planning and data analysis, experience developing a drone project in a group, and studying for the FAA Part 107 commercial drone pilot exam. Students in the program are introduced to job and career opportunities for drone use in agricultural contexts. Trainees at the Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (26 in Y1) received practical training in how to manage an organic farm and an organic farming business. ALBA creates opportunities for limited-resource farmers through land-based training in organic farm management. Most of these individuals launch their own organic farms, or obtain better jobs within the agricultural industry, adding to the upskilling necessary to boost agricultural production. At ALBA, trainees get hands-on learning in the farming sector that they cannot readily get elsewhere. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We have used a variety of methods to recruit our target audience - students and other participants in our NextGen programming (e.g., scholarships, internships, career development activities, other training programs). We continued use of our UCSC undergraduate listserv to send bi-weekly emails with opportunities (events, scholarships, internships, courses, employment). Student members of the list include all NextGen interns (e.g., introductory interns, FANH interns, research interns), student staff at the UCSC Center for Agroecology, students who have enrolled in agroecology and related courses at UCSC over the past two years, as well as any additional students pursuing the B.A. in Agroecology not captured by other activities. This listserv membership is currently 464 students. Students frequently comment to project personnel how much they appreciate receiving regular updates on jobs and internship opportunities and that these emails increase their awareness of the types of entry-level jobs available in FANH fields. Internships: To recruit FANH interns and research interns we used a number of methods. We created individualized fliers for students on each campus that outline the research project topics, expectations for students, and information about what students can gain from participating. At UCSC, we made announcements in several courses, emailed participants of our listservs, posted notices to relevant social media accounts, and asked current interns and scholars to disseminate information to friends. We have recruited interns at our Alternative Spring Break and at other campus-to-community events. At CSUMB, project staff promote research opportunities by presenting to classrooms, CSUMB events (Otter Admitted Day, Transfer Day), by posting information and outcomes from previous students on the Undergraduate Research Office webpage, and with directed emails to students. At Hartnell, project staff sent several email campaigns to students enrolled in relevant majors to promote the program, made digital posts to STEM Canvas shells, discussed opportunities with students in advising meetings, and posted to the Hartnell Job Board. We received 15 applications for our FANH interns and selected 11 students (7 project-based interns and 4 new student interns). We received 18 applications for the traditional research internship at UCSC, accepted 12 students, and placed 11 students for summer 2025 internships. For Hartnell intern recruitment, we received 25 applications total and were able to place 5 students for summer 2025 internships. Three students will be placed with the USDA in Hawaii and one student will be placed with Driscoll's, one of the leading global producers of berries. To recruit students for the graduate research internship, we created flyers and a CSUMB faculty member presented information to a course for first year MS students in the CSUMB Environmental Science Program. We received two applications and were able to place both students to do research with faculty members during summer 2025. To recruit students for off-campus internships at UC Cooperative Extension, we held an event with two Directors from the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) Research and Extension Centers and with one Advisor from UC Cooperative Extension from three different regions of California. They all spoke about their job roles with UC ANR, about their job locations, about prospective projects in which students could engage, and we also discussed the application process and deadline. We received six applications, selected four students to participate, and ultimately placed two students in the program for summer 2025. Students reported that the online event opened their eyes to a career path that they were unaware of prior to the meeting. Scholarships: To recruit students for undergraduate and MS scholarships, we used the same methods as described for the internships. To recruit students for our Hartnell Transfer Scholarship, we relied on outreach from Hartnell Career Services staff, from the UCSC Transfer Admissions office to all Hartnell applicants to UCSC, and the project PD and our Agroecology Peer Advisor attended Dia de la Famila transfer day on the UCSC campus in March 2024 where we interacted with over 100 Hartnell students. Graduate Assistantships: To recruit NextGen PhD students, we created a recruitment letter with information about the 3-year Fellowship opportunity, and sent this recruitment message to several listservs related to agroecology, food systems, and sustainable agriculture. Individual faculty also shared emails with their personal contacts, and we made follow up phone calls to recruit top students for this program. We received several dozen inquiries, encouraged 12 applications, and planned to admit 8 students to the program to start in Fall 2025. To recruit graduate assistants for the Drone Pilot Training Program, we used email listservs, word of mouth, faculty outreach to individual students, existing department channels for advertising paid positions with existing students, and peer recommendations. Trainees and scholarship recipients for the Drone Pilot Training Program were recruited using emails through the program webpage, emails to related student organizations, word of mouth from alumni to prospective students, online informational sessions, articles in the UCSC News, and newsletter announcements. The Agriculture and Land Based Training Association (ALBA) recruits its Farmer Trainees through word-of-mouth, promotion on campus, by hosting class visits from Hartnell and UCSC, and by attending community events. Center for Agroecology Student Staff for our Leadership Development Program are recruited through events, introductory course fieldwork sections, and internships. Students are being retained by providing quality mentorship in rewarding employment experiences, and pay. Over 300 students applied in Spring 2025 for 10 new student staff positions. We have shared our recruitment activities, programming, and student success stories related to our NextGen project, and the NextGen program generally to raise general awareness of the importance of training the next generation of leaders in the agricultural workforce. The project PD accompanied three NextGen students from across the country to the G7 Ministers of Agriculture meeting in Italy in September 2024 where we all talked about the importance of training youth in order to support the farmers, producers, and rural communities into the future. For our own NextGen project, we have shared our results with members of congress who represent Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties in Washington, DC and their staffers (on campus meetings in June 2024, December 2024, February 2025). We have made presentations to the UCSC Chancellor's Advisory Board (May 2025) and business leaders in Monterey County at a Learning Journey organized by UCSC (May 2025).Following the presentation, several business leaders approached the PD to express interesting in hiring our students into agriculture-related industries (e.g., Monterey County Farm Bureau, Grower Shipper Association, United Way). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Over the next reporting period, we will continue to build our NextGen programs. Internship programs: Introductory Internships - We will offer introductory internships (200) during the 2025-2026 academic year at the UCSC Center for Agroecology to provide students with practical skills in farming, technical assistance for farmers, distribution, sales, and food preparation. FANH internships - In late summer, we will recruit a 3rd cohort of 8-10 FANH interns who will conduct projects during the 2025-2026 academic year. Hartnell interns - Four students will conduct internships in summer 2025. Three will be placed with the USDA in Hawaii studying tropical pest genomics, agricultural engineering and tropical tree fruit and nut research, and tropical crop and commodity production. Their work will directly benefit farmers by contributing to development of pest-resistant crops and targeted pest management practices, adopting precision agriculture tools to better monitor crop health and reduce losses due to pests, and using cost-effective technologies to improve productivity. A fourth student with Driscoll's will study berry plant breeding supporting producers by contributing to the development of high-quality crop varieties. Hartnell will recruit a next cohort of interns in winter 2026. Research interns - (1) research interns in the traditional academic research program at UCSC (11) will conduct research between June 2025 - June 2026. They will research the utility of drones for agricultural applications (2 students), the role of gardens and farms in supplying food for rural communities (5), how foresters may harvest timber safely following wildfire (1), impacts of controlled environment agriculture on plant growth and yields (1), how to intercrop perennial grasses to reduce water costs for farmers (1), and benefits of agriculture technology for reducing farm labor (1). We will hold monthly professional development workshops for all scholars, and support scholars in conferences, field trips, and learning about careers. We will recruit a third cohort of students for the program in winter 2026. (2) research interns in the community-engaged research program will do research in winter and spring 2026. (3) We will recruit 15-20 research interns to do research with CSUMB faculty during summer 2025 and the 2025-2026 academic year. Graduate student interns - 2 MS research scholars will complete 400 h internships during summer and fall 2025. One student will focus on integrated aquaculture-agriculture investigating how to use aquaculture effluent instead of chemical fertilizers, thereby saving farmers on production costs. A second student will work to understand how foresters may harvest timber safely following wildfires. We will recruit faculty mentors and 2 additional students for spring/summer/fall 2026 internships. Off campus internships - Two interns will work in summer 2025 with UC Cooperative Extension. One student will work in urban gardening and agrotourism in San Diego, and the other student will work with soils and organic farming. Both students will be placed with Advisors and will learn valuable job skills in famer technical assistance. We will work with UC Cooperative Extension during fall 2025 to plan recruitment and will recruit 5 students for summer 2026. We will host a recruitment event in winter. Scholarships: Hartnell Transfer Scholars - We will onboard one Hartnell Transfer Scholar, a student in Biology, to start in fall 2025. In Y3, we will continue to troubleshoot recruitment for this program. We will make campus visits to Hartnell, participate in transfer / career days, and will work to recruit a larger number of scholars in Y3 of the grant. Other Scholarships - Activities for scholarships provided for participation in the internships described above (FANH interns, research interns, graduate research interns, off-campus interns) will be as described above. Graduate Assistantships: NextGen PhD students. We will continue to implement activities for our current cohort of 4 NextGen PhD students including cohort building, for introducing students to community-engaged research practices, and will support students in setting up research projects with agency sponsors (e.g., UC Cooperative Extension, non-profit organizations) for summer 2026. We will again recruit a cohort of 7-8 PhD students to begin in Fall 2026. Training programs Drone Pilot Trainees - We will finalize plans for the summer 2025 CIDER Drone Pilot Training program, and recruit and mentor an additional graduate student. We will again run our winter/spring training course to 20 additional scholars. ALBA Trainees - We are currently instructing a new cohort of trainees in the ALBA training program; these individuals should graduate from the program in October 2025. We will continue all relevant training programs as planned. GISTAR MS Students - The GISTAR MS program at UCSC will launch in Fall 2025 with 5 students. We will offer coursework in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing (mainly focused on agriculture applications), and cartography. We will work to align student projects with NextGen faculty to support spatial agricultural applications. On-the-Job Training Center for Agroecology Student staff - We will continue training students in organic agriculture production techniques and food distribution. We will employ 12 students with NextGen funding. We will expand student staff operating management documents and procedures. In fall, we will conduct learning outcomes assessment and evaluation and include training activities related to professional management, research and production, leadership and communications. In winter, we will implement professional development workshops, student self-assessment and evaluator assessments. In spring, we will recruit new student staff positions and conduct end-of-year assessments Peer Advisor - We look forward to having the same peer advisor student return for a third year for the 2025-2026 school year to provide more advising to Agroecology students, as well as to represent the major at events, including the department Welcome Week event each fall, Cornucopia (beginning of year club and org fair), Banana Slug Day (for admitted students each spring), the Center for Agroecology's Harvest Festival, and Día de la Familia. Career Development Activities Mentoring, career counseling, student support services - During Y3, our Agriculture Career Coordinator will continue to provide 1:1 mentoring for students, facilitate workshops and field trips, and support with resume preparation, application pre-review, and career searches. Career, Leadership Development - We will continue student mentoring and support activities to bolster career and leadership development for participants. The program provides mentoring, career coaching, and professional development opportunities to prepare students for careers related to forestry, food, farming, ranching, and producing. Through workshops and one-to-one career coaching sessions, students learn about career pathways related to agriculture and receive resume-building and career readiness support. Building Awareness of FANH Careers - We will organize 4 field trips, open to any NextGen scholar or intern, to visit farms, processing facilities, kitchens, non-profit organization offices, government agency buildings, or research laboratories to expose students to FANH careers. Our Agriculture Career Coordinator will plan two career workshops where we will invite alumni and career professionals to discuss their jobs and pathways to success. Project Evaluation We will continue evaluation with NextGen interns and scholars. The data from these initial evaluations will be compiled in time for the Y3 report. We will continue to collaborate with students to follow their research recommendations about how to best support students in our programs.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Our NextGen grant supported students with internships, scholarships, graduate assistantships, and professional or career development training. Students were supported in internships including introductory internships with the UCSC Center for Agroecology, FANH internships, and research internships with three programs at UCSC (one focused on traditional academic research, one focused on community-engaged research, and one providing CSUMB MS students with research experience at UCSC). 118 students completed introductory internships focused on production, distribution, and culinary activities at the UCSC Center for Agroecology. Students learned technical skills in farming, garden maintenance, and cooking as well as professional skills in teamwork, problem-solving, patience, and observation. Students report the internship, "gave me an immense amount of self-confidence. I began to see myself as someone who could take initiative, who could teach others, who could recognize what is needed and act accordingly". One student reported the internship, "solidified my desire to pursue a career that connects business and environmental stewardship." The FANH interns (7) engaged in projects related to dry farming, controlled environment agriculture, managing an organic farm to benefit a rural community, reducing farmer labor needs with autonomous tractor weeding implements, managing farm soils, and cultivating medicinal herbs. Students report learning how to help local farmers by testing their soil, how to improve food security for rural communities, how to do research, and gained skills in technology, lab work, scientific communication, and grant writing. Two FANH interns were accepted into research internships at UCSC. One FANH intern from Y1 will start a MS agriculture program at UC Davis. FANH intern surveys reveal that 100% feel supported, 100% gained confidence, and 100% know where to turn for career advice. One stated the program, "opened up the right doors for me to transition to graduate school and a career in agricultural extension." Undergraduate research interns (69) conducted field, lab, and community-based research focused on dry farming, soils, tillage, erosion, prairie fire management, integrated aquaculture agriculture, intercropping, agricultural technology impacts on farm labor, plant disease ecology and physiology, water, animal foraging, and condor nesting; all projects train students for on-farm research, for supporting farmer, producer, and forester decisions, and prepare students to provide technical assistance. Students gained skills in data collection, chemical analysis, statistics, lab protocols, microscopy, use lab equipment, scientific writing, and how to engage with farmers in on-farm research. Five students completed theses, 13 presented at a regional farmer conference, and 29 gave oral or poster presentations on campus. One research intern obtained an internship with UC Cooperative Extension, two graduating interns secured research jobs at California universities, one is starting law school, and one is starting a MA program in public policy. Among surveyed students, 100% report increased interest in FANH careers, 75% report interest in graduate school, and 100% report having better academic and career support. The MS research interns (2) worked with a faculty mentor to study how freshwater aquaculture byproducts can be used as alternatives to conventional fertilizers. One intern will begin a PhD program in fall 2025. Both interns reported feeling supported and confident about moving into agriculture careers. In Y2, 8 undergraduate students received full scholarships and 104 undergraduates received partial scholarships, and 5 graduate students received partial scholarships to fund their education and activities. Collectively the students received more than $324,000 in scholarships. The recipients reported the funding alleviated financial burdens and thereby, "allowed participation in agriculture events off campus", "allowed me to have the energy and focus to dedicate to my passions", and "alleviated stress so that I could focus on my studies." We awarded two kinds of graduate assistantships. We recruited 4 NextGen PhD students who began in Fall 2025. They were each awarded 2-3 quarters of assistantships. NextGen PhD students completed ~75% of their required graduate coursework, developed initial research questions with their faculty mentors, and attended regular events on FANH topics and career development. We supported 1 MS and 1 PhD student in assistantships to develop curriculum for a drone pilot training program, and to support the summer training for undergraduates. Both students have since found jobs in research labs on campus and report finding community and peer support as a result of their participation. More than 380 students and trainees received professional or career development training as part of our project. We highlight four examples below. We supported 72 students (23 with wages, all receiving career development) in the UCSC Center for Agroecology Leadership Development Program that provides students with skills in technical production and research responsibilities, team work, ability to supervise and mentor near-pears, and taking initiative to solve programmatic problems. These are all necessary competencies for successful agricultural enterprises and will benefit farmers by providing skilled technical assistance professionals and farming staff. Of the students supported, 88% feel confident about technical skills gained, 92% are interested in pursuing a FANH career, and 82% agree they are more able to contribute meaningfully to society. In Y2, 23 undergraduates received training in the UCSC Drone Pilot Training Course that offers practical flight training and practice, mission planning and data analysis, drone research projects, and instruction in FAA Part 107 commercial drone pilot license exam. These skills benefit agricultural applications, including plant pathology detection, crop yield estimation, biomass measurement, principles of precision aerial application of agrochemicals. Students report, "I will be able to use this knowledge when pursuing projects in academic and industry settings", the program "has opened the door for more opportunities", and, "The mentorship I have received has been very valuable." Of the students trained, 14 received their FAA pilot license, seven have been offered jobs related to drone flights (e.g., Amazon robotics team, UCSC research lab, environmental consulting, garden design), and one has applied to an ecology graduate program. The Agriculture and Land Based Training Association (ALBA) works to develop the organic farming skills of farmworkers to support the agriculture sector. Through hands-on, land-based learning, trainees develop organic production and business management skills to pursue the dream of farm ownership or finding better jobs. This year, 21 farmers graduated from ALBA's training program. Of those, two arestarting a undergraduate degree programs (one at UC Davis, one at CSU Fresno); 14 started 11 businesses at ALBA's Organic Farm Incubator. A new cohort of 25 aspiring farmers began ALBA's training course and have completed modules on soil health and crop planning, small farm business management, and marketing. One trainee reported, "I feel much more knowledgeable about organic farming and feel like I could use this experience to get a better job." We organized a panel discussion with two UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) Research and Extension Center Directors and one UC Cooperative Extension Advisor. Students heard about internship opportunities and careers in professional research and cooperative extension (UC Cooperative Extension is part of the USDA Cooperative Extension System). There were 11 students who attended the panel discussion; of these, five applied and three were selected for summer 2025 internships with UC ANR.
Publications
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Hekkanen, H. 2025. Dry Farming for Resiliency: Phaseolus vulgaris Physiology, Productivity, and Profitability. Undergraduate Thesis. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Steffan, N. 2025. Local and landscape drivers of spiders in urban gardens. Undergraduate Thesis. Department of Environmental Studies. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Barrett, M.. 2025. In-bed perennial grass strips for improved soil health and water use in California Production Agriculture. Undergraduate Thesis. Department of Environmental Studies. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Sutherlin-Sovern, R. 2025. Soil Stewardship in Regenerative Agriculture: Assessing No-Till Efficacy and Implementation in California Farming Systems. Undergraduate Thesis. Department of Environmental Studies. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Nu�ez, M. 2025. Can we make no-till a viable option for organic growers? Undergraduate Thesis. Department of Environmental Studies. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Frager, K. 2025. Esperanza Farms: Growing food for rural communities. Undergraduate Senior Internship Book. Department of Environmental Studies. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Saucedo Cervantes, C. 2025. Physiological and structural costs of different water-use strategies in dry farm tomatoes. Undergraduate Thesis. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. UC Santa Cruz
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Bermudez-Medrano, J. 2025. UC Agroecology Field Quarter Experience. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Juarez-Mancera, S. 2025. Autonomous weeding trial. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Steffan, N. 2025. Spiders in urban agroecosystems. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Burns, S. 2025. Developing future leaders in vertical farming. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Saucedo, C., Casrto, V. Pitterman, J. 2025. Physiological and structural costs of different water use strategies in dry farm tomatoes. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Adiraju, S., Chesney, C., Loik, M. 2025. Predicting plant health from leaf reflectance. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Sutherlin-Sovern, R., Waterhouse, H. 2025. To till or not to till? Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Nu�ez, E., Parr, D. 2025. Reconnecting agriculture and medicine. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Nandar, P. 2025. We are what we (can) eat: Exploring local foods in greater New Haven, CT. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Luevano, R. 2025. Building community through a garden space. EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Hekkanen, H., Castro, V., Pitterman, J. 2025. Rhizobia nodulation, anthocyanin concentrations, and water relations of Phaseolus vulgaris under dry land farming. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Esquivel, E., Parr, D. 2025. Student collaborative organic plant-breeding and education (SCOPE). Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Reyes, J.I. 2025. Dry bean breeding via USDA. Poster at the EcoFarm Conference, Asilomar, CA. 21 January.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Sullenszino, J. 2025. Farming the future: evaluating the efficiency of spinach (Spinacia oleracea) growth and water use in an integrated system with Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Poster at the UCSC Environmental Studies Department Undergraduate Research Symposium.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Barrett, M. 2025. In-bed perennial grass strips for improved soil and water use in California Production Agriculture. Poster at the UCSC Environmental Studies Department Undergraduate Research Symposium.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Chavez Ugalde, M. Abeglen, I, Vasey G, Holl K. 2025. Effect of fire intensity and soil properties on soils in coastal prairie prescribed burns. Poster at the UCSC Environmental Studies Department Undergraduate Research Symposium.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Adiraju, S., Chesney, C., Loik, M. 2025. Predicting chlorophyll content from leaf reflectance. Poster at the UCSC Environmental Studies Department Undergraduate Research Symposium.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Saucedo Cervantes, C. 2025. Physiological and structural costs of different water-use strategies in dry farm tomatoes. Poster at the UCSC Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, Undergraduate Research Symposium.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2025
Citation:
Hekkanen, H. 2025. Dry farming for resiliency: Phaseolus vulgaris physiology, productivity, and profitability. Poster at the UCSC Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, Undergraduate Research Symposium.
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Progress 06/15/23 to 06/14/24
Outputs
Target Audience:In the first year of the grant, at least 890 individuals were served by the program. The majority of these unduplicated students (427) were served at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and other students and participants were served at partner organizations (California State University Monterey Bay, Hartnell College, and the Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (ALBA)). Partner organizations provided programming to 163 individuals, and provided outreach to at least 300 individuals. For the students at UCSC and participants in ALBA programs, more detailed demographic information is available. At UCSC, we served 427 students. Of those served, 112 were males (26%), 273 were females (64%), and 40 were non-binary or of unknown gender (9%). Program participants at UCSC identified as Latino (125, 29%), Black or African American (33, 8%), Asian (88, 21%), Pacific Islander (3, 1%), and White (178, 42%). Finally, 122 were first generation college students (29%) and 153 were Pell Grant eligible (36%). During the 2023-2024 Academic Year, enrolled undergraduate UCSC students 33% were first generation college students and 35.6% were Pell Grant eligible. For gender, 46.2% were male, 48.3% were female, and 5.5% were other genders. For race, 26.1% of enrolled students were Latino, 4.5% were Black or African American, 29.2% were Asian, 0.7% were Alaska or Native American, 6.0% were international, 2.5% were of unknown race, and 30.8% were white. Thus, compared with the UCSC population, we served similar numbers of first generation and Pell Grant eligible students, more female and non-binary students, slightly more Latino and Black or African American students, and fewer Asian students. At ALBA, we served 26 participants in the Farmer Education & Enterprise Development Program. Of these, 15 were males (58%), and 11 were female (42%). The participants were 92% Latino, 4% Black or African American, and 4% Asian. According to the USDA Agriculture Census (for 2017), farmers in Santa Cruz and Monterey County (3108 total) were 32% female, 5% Asian, <1% Black or African American, and only 21% Latino. Thus, compared with the current regional growers, ALBA participants are more likely to be Latino, female, and Black or African American. In sum, our project has been successful in recruiting underserved students and other program participants. Changes/Problems:This NextGen Project has proceeded largely as planned. There have been a handful of challenges that we describe here. (1) Staff Recruitment Staff recruitment on our campus is a very long process taking at least six months from crafting the full job description until someone is in place. Thus, all of our staff recruitments (for the Community Education Specialist, for the Agroecology Program Coordinator, and for the Agroecology Equity Coordinator) were much slower than hoped. In addition, our first recruitment process to hire the Agroecology Equity Coordinator (between August - November) resulted in a "failed search" with no candidate that was satisfactory to all members of the hiring committee. We are likely nearing completion of the second search, and may be poised to make an offer to a top candidate for this position within the next week. A lack of a full-time staff person in the Agroecology Equity Coordinator Role has slowed the launch of some of our activities such as organizing career panels, organizing field trips, as well as development of recruitment strategies for many of the experiential learning and scholarship activities. We hope to have someone on board by mid-summer in this role and have solid plans for ramping up their work. We will pair the new staff person with an agroecology alum and former participant in the SUPERDAR program who is currently working in a different unit in the Division of Student Affairs and Success doing similar student advising. This will also help facilitate the success of the new staff person. (2) Personnel Shifts with the (H)ACER program Members of the leadership team for the Apprenticeship in Community Engaged Research ((H)ACER), a UCSC program have shifted affiliations within the University, and one person has now accepted a new job out of the region. So, we will likely need to hire an additional staff person to mentor the (H)ACER interns, to teach the classes relevant to community engaged research, etc. The PD, co-PDs and new leadership of John R. Lewis College have put in place a plan to hire a new staff person so that programming may continue. (3) Center for Agroecology Apprenticeship Program We have decided to not offer the Center for Agroecology Apprenticeship program in summer 2024. In its most recent iteration, this has been a 10-week program at the UCSC Farm that teaches gardening and farming skills. Apprentices (students and community members) learn about soil health, cultivation, plant physiology, crop production and distribution, and consider the social and political context of food systems. The program encourages peer-to-peer learning and exchange. At this time, it is unclear whether or not this program will continue. We have placed the Center for Agroecology efforts more to support students, rather than members of the general public who have more traditionally been served in this program. Scholarships for the apprenticeship are a budget line item in "Participant Support", so if the program is no longer offered, we may need to request budget changes. (4) Emergency Cost Scholarships We have not yet implemented the emergency cost scholarships, and given new rules on campus that all scholarship payments must be made through the Financial Aid office, we are no longer certain that these scholarships will work as planned. These scholarships are meant to provide immediate financial assistance for room and board, books, and class supplies. However, UCSC caps the amount of financial aid students can receive, up to the cost of attendance, and getting additional funds for "emergency costs" such as a new computer, help with rent, or other such unexpected fees is a very slow process. Thus, students need to often resolve the financial emergency before the exception for the cost of attendance can be resolved. We are working with staff in Financial Aid to better understand this process and rules, https://financialaid.ucsc.edu/cost-to-attend/undergraduate-costs.html (5) Low applications for Scholarship and internship opportunities Some of our scholarship and internship programs have received relatively low numbers of applicants. In the next year, we will boost our recruitment efforts, especially across campuses, to increase the applicants and successful placement of students. This will be facilitated by the relationships that we have built during Y1 as well as the hiring of the Agroecology Equity Coordinator. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?I. Training Activities: Internships. As part of our NextGen project, we offered several kinds of internships to students based on our proposed activities. Introductory internships - 181 students were engaged in internships with the UCSC Center for Agroecology (at the UCSC Farm, the Chadwick Garden, and the student-run Cowell Coffee Shop) for 60 hours across 10 weeks. Students learned about organic production (harvesting, composting, seedling transplanting), distribution (at our farm stand, produce pop-up, and to campus food pantries), and culinary activities (cooking, menu planning, serving at the coffee shop). Students complete journals and a final reflective paper about their experiences. Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources & Human Sciences or FANH internships - 6 FANH interns engaged in self-directed experiential learning projects at UCSC. 2 students led a vertical garden research project, 1 managed a community herb garden, 1 created a student-run agroecology club, 1 conducted research on plant physiology as part of a collaboration with UC Davis, and 1 implemented an AgTech project with a Farm NG robot that autonomously weeds crop rows. All students were supported by UCSC staff. Students also participated in monthly meetings to discuss their projects with staff and other students. Students reported the meetings created a sense of community and increased belonging and confidence. Research internships - We created three kinds of research internships for undergraduates. (1) SUPERDAR interns (or Supporting Undergraduates by Promoting Education, Research, Diversity, and Agricultural Resilience). This UCSC program was created by a previous NIFA grant, and activities are continuing for NextGen. The focus of this program is teaching students about how to do traditional academic research on sustainable agriculture, aquaculture, food systems, and food justice. The 9 new interns, funded by NextGen, will dedicate 680 h between Spring 2024 - Spring 2025. Interns are engaged in faculty- and graduate student-led projects on coastal prairie fire management, urban agroecology, soil health, integrated aquaculture-agriculture, cactus electricity generation, agrivoltaics, AgTech impacts on farm labor, physiology of dry-farmed tomatoes, and new functions for Farm NG robot tractors. Students will learn about research careers related to agroecology and will participate in self-assessments that ask them about their interest in and willingness to remain in FANH-related research. (2) (H)ACER lead interns are participants in the Apprenticeship in Community-Engaged Research. This is a program at UCSC that trains students in community-engaged research. Two students ran a 2-unit service-learning program for 22 students focused on food and economic justice in the region. One student facilitated a relationship with the Calabasas Community Garden, an immigrant led community garden serving 40+ families at a local elementary school. The lead intern facilitated three large events where UCSC students interact with local families and elementary students as well as 8 2-hour enrichment activities in the community garden with 18 other undergraduate interns and over 60+ elementary students. (3) CSUMB Research interns (6) conducted research with faculty mentors at CSUMB. Graduate student internships - 2 CSUMB MS students began research internships. The selected MS research scholars are engaged in research on integrated aquaculture and agriculture at the UCSC farm between May - Nov 2024. They are investigating the recycling of N- and P-rich aquaculture wastewater/ effluent as fertilizer and soil amendments to promote soil health and vegetable growth. MS scholars will contribute to accurate record keeping, daily fish care, plant care, water chemistry testing, plant and soil analysis data collection, data entry and organization, and manuscript writing. On-the-job Training. We provided job training for undergraduate students. Center for Agroecology Student Staff - 14 student staff were funded by NextGen at the UCSC Farm and Chadwick Garden. These student staff are employed to maintain production, research and educational programing across the working campus farm. These responsibilities are direct on-the-job training for careers in the agriculture and food systems industry, as well as in research and technical advising sectors. Students are mentored by well-respected agricultural production and research professionals who supervise and connect students with their networks across academic, government, and private sector career pursuits. Students are responsible for day-to-day supervision of introductory interns, providing a near-peer mentoring of students who are newer to agriculture. Agroecology Peer Advisor - 1 student staff is funded to provide advising to students pursuing the B.A. in Agroecology at UCSC. The peer advisor held 52 advising appointments with her fellow undergraduate students where she helped students create and update their academic plans, decide which classes to take in the upcoming quarter, officially declare their major, explore internships and other enrichment opportunities, and choose a senior exit requirement. She also provided holistic advice about what careers students might pursue following an Agroecology degree, helped students prepare for attending faculty office hours, and talk through academic difficulties they faced. She attended Día de la Familia, an on-campus event for prospective transfer students and their families, to promote the Agroecology major and provide advising information. This work provided her with professional skills, organization, and leadership capacity. II. Professional Development Workshops and Check-in meetings. All undergraduate research interns attend workshops and check-in meetings intended to prepare them for FANH careers. At UCSC, research interns attend 2-4 professional development workshops or field trips during summer, and monthly meetings during the academic year where they learn about resume building, data analysis, how to prepare a poster or presentation, how to explain their research results, and to process what they have learned from their research experiences. At CSUMB, each student receives research support and graduate school/career guidance in the form of check in meetings and professional development workshops. Students must schedule at least 1 check in meeting with the project staff to discuss research and graduate school and/or career guidance. Training Programs Students in the Drone Pilot Training Program at UCSC (16 during year 1 of the project) participate for 4 hours each week for a 16-week program that includes practical flight training and practice, an introduction to software such as Drone Deploy and QGIS for mission planning and data analysis, experience developing a drone project in a small group, and studying for the FAA Part 107 commercial drone pilot exam. Students in the program are also introduced to job and career opportunities for drone use in agricultural contexts in our region. Trainees at the Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (26 in Y1) received practical training in how to manage an organic farm and an organic farming business. ALBA creates opportunities for limited-resource farmers through land-based training in organic farm management. ALBA mainly supports immigrant and first-generation Latino farmers trapped in low-income field labor, despite having valuable farming experience and an incredible work ethic. ALBA recognizes this talent and invests in skills to advance careers and farm business ownership. 17 trainees graduated from the training program, and 11 started their own organic farm businesses at the ALBA Incubator Farm. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We have used a variety of methods to recruit and retain participants for our target audience - participants in our NextGen programs (scholarships, internships, and other training programs). We created a new UCSC undergraduate listserv (AgFoodStudents@ucsc.edu) to send bi-weekly emails with opportunities (events, scholarships, internships, new courses, on- and off- campus employment opportunities). Student members of the list include all NextGen interns (e.g., introductory interns, FANH interns, undergraduate research interns), student staff at the UCSC Farm, students who have enrolled in agroecology and food systems courses at UCSC over the past two years, as well as any additional students pursuing the B.A. in Agroecology not captured by other activities. This listserv membership is currently 390 students. Internships: To recruit students for our research internships, we created individualized fliers for students on each participating campus. At UCSC, we made announcements in several courses, emailed participants of our listservs, posted notices to our Center for Agroecology social media accounts, and asked current scholars to disseminate information to their friends. At CSUMB, project staff promote research opportunities by presenting to classrooms, CSUMB events (Otter Admitted Day, Transfer Day), and centers on campus. At Hartnell, project staff sent emails to students enrolled in relevant majors to promote the program, and discussed opportunities with students in advising meetings. To recruit students for the graduate research internship, we held a recruitment event as part of a CSUMB course required for all MS students in their Environmental Science Program. The PD and two prospective research mentors presented about the program and the specifics of the faculty mentor research programs. To recruit students for off-campus internships at UC Cooperative Extension, we held an event with two UC Cooperative Extension Advisors from two different counties. The Advisors spoke about their job roles with UC Cooperative Extension, their programs working with farmers in their counties, and what activities interns would be involved in during the summer. Scholarships: To recruit students for undergraduate and MS scholarships, we used the same methods as described for the internships. To recruit students for our Hartnell Transfer Scholarship, we relied on outreach from Hartnell Career Services staff, from the UCSC Transfer Admissions office to all Hartnell applicants to UCSC, and our Agroecology Peer Advisor attended "Dia de la Famila" transfer day on the UCSC campus in March 2024. To recruit students for our NextGen PhD Fellowship program, we created a recruitment letter with information about the 3-year Fellowship opportunity, and sent this recruitment message to several listservs (New World Agriculture and Ecology Group, Diversified Farming Systems, Agroecology Research Collective). Individual faculty also shared emails with their personal contacts, and made follow up phone calls to recruit top students for this program. We received several dozen inquiries, encouraged 12 applications, admitted 7 students for the program, and 4 decided to enroll at UCSC to start in fall 2024. Trainees and scholarship recipients for the Drone Pilot Training Program have been recruited through the UCSC CITRIS Initiative for Drone Education and Research (CIDER) webpage (https://cider.ucsc.edu/pilot-training-program/), emails across campus, and by several recent articles highlighted in the UCSC News (https://news.ucsc.edu/2024/01/cider-cohort.html, https://news.ucsc.edu/2024/05/cider-remote-pilots.html). All participants receive instruction, scholarships, and a FAA fee paid on their behalf. Center for Agroecology Student Staff are being recruited through events, introductory course fieldwork sections, and internships. Students are being retained by providing quality mentorship in rewarding employment experiences, and pay. Over 400 students applied in Spring 2024 for 12 new student staff positions. We have also shared these recruitment and retention activities related to our NextGen project to raise general awareness of the importance of training the next generation of leaders in the agricultural workforce. We have made presentations at PD meetings for other current grants (e.g., OREI, REEU), and informally with colleagues at other universities. We shared our NextGen plans and results with USDA staff (Sept 2024), with Representative Jimmy Panetta (Oct 2024), with local California representatives (e.g., John Laird) (Jan 2024), and with the California State Board of Agriculture and California Secretary of Agriculture Karen Ross (May 2024). We also presented our Leadership Development Program and peer mentoring model for Center for Agroecology Student staff with other UC campus personnel and with academic educators and government research colleagues working in the fields of organic agriculture and agroecology through a Project Director meeting in April 2024. We will continue to share NextGen processes, projects, and research findings in social media posts, in newsletters, as well as in the media. Some articles about the UCSC NextGen have already been released: ? https://news.ucsc.edu/2023/06/usda-10m-grant.html ? https://news.ucsc.edu/2023/09/usda-campus-visit.html ? https://news.ucsc.edu/2024/05/cdfa-secretary-visit.html What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Over the next reporting period, we will continue to build the foundation for our NextGen programs. We will finish recruiting all project staff, and will more fully engage in career-related activities. Internships. Introductory Internships - We will continue to offer introductory internships (200) during the 2024-2025 academic year at the UCSC Farm and student-run coffee shop. FANH internships - In early summer, we will revisit how the FANH program went during this inaugural year, and make any adjustments to the program before recruiting a new cohort of continuing and new students in late summer. These students will conduct projects and peer-mentoring activities during the 2024-2025 AY. Research interns - (1) SUPERDAR interns (9) will conduct research between June 2024 - June 2025. We will hold professional development workshops for all scholars, and support scholars in conference presentations, field trips, and learning about careers. We will recruit a second cohort in winter 2025. (2) (H)ACER interns - We will still support student leads and student interns in this program. The number of students is yet to be determined. (3) CSUMB interns - We will recruit 6-8 research interns to do research with CSUMB faculty between Sept-December 2024. Graduate student interns - 2 MS research scholars will complete 400 h internships during summer and fall 2024. We will recruit faculty mentors and 2 additional students for spring/summer/fall 2025 internships. Off campus internships - We will finalize placement of 1-2 off-campus interns with UC Cooperative Extension, and will support students with check-ins throughout the summer. We will reach out to government and non-profit agencies in fall 2024 to set up locations for summer 2025 off-campus internships. We will host a recruitment event with the internship sponsors to recruit the 2025 scholars. Scholarship Programs. NextGen PhD Fellows - 4 NextGen PhD fellows will start in fall 2024. We are creating activities for cohort building, for introducing fellows to community-engaged research practices, and will support students in setting up research projects with their faculty mentors for summer 2025. We will recruit 8 additional NextGen PhD fellows to start the program in fall 2025. Hartnell Transfer Scholars - We will onboard one Hartnell Transfer Scholar, a student in Computer Science, who will start in fall 2024. We will reach out in early June to all students from Hartnell who have been admitted and accepted to attend UCSC in the fall to see if any of these students qualify for our scholarship program. In Y2, we will supersize our efforts to recruit scholars. We will make campus visits to Hartnell, participate in transfer / career days, and will work to recruit a larger number of scholars in Y2 of the grant. Scholarships provided for participation in the internships described above (FANH interns, research interns, graduate research interns, off-campus interns) will be as described above. Training programs Drone Pilot Trainees - We will finalize plans for the summer 2024 CIDER Drone Pilot Training program, and continue to mentor the graduate student who is assisting in planning research activities for undergraduate students related to agriculture applications of drone technology. We will again run our winter/spring training course to 20 additional scholars. ALBA Trainees - We are currently instructing a new cohort of trainees in the ALBA training program; these individuals should graduate from the program in October 2024. We will continue all relevant training programs as planned. GISTAR MS Students - The GISTAR MS program in the Environmental Studies Department is a new MS program focused on GIS that will launch in Fall 2025. During the 2024-2025 AY, we will be recruiting our first cohort of MS students. Faculty engaged in the NextGen program will meet with prospective MS students, and begin to discuss MS thesis projects with FANH-related applications with students who have been accepted into the program. On-the-Job Training Center for Agroecology Student staff - We will continue training students in organic agriculture production techniques and food distribution. We will have a minimum of 10 students supported by NextGen funding in the next year. During summer we will expand student staff operating management documents and procedures. In fall, we will begin learning outcomes assessment and evaluation and launch programming with student staff and managers, including training activities related to professional management, research and production, leadership and communications. In winter, we will implement professional development workshops, student self-assessment and evaluator assessments. In spring, we will recruit new student staff positions and conduct end-of-year assessments Peer Advisor - We look forward to having the same peer advisor student return for the 2024-2025 school year to provide more advising to Agroecology students, as well as to represent the major at events, including the department Welcome Week event each fall, Cornucopia (beginning of year club and org fair), Banana Slug Day (for admitted students each spring), the Center for Agroecology's Harvest Festival, and Día de la Familia. Career Development Activities Mentoring, career counseling, student support services - During Y2, we will onboard an Agriculture Equity Coordinator in the Career Success office, as well as a limited time staff from the office of African Black and Caribbean Success to work with students on recruitment activities (workshops to provide application support, CV preparation guidance, and to demystify the hidden curriculum of academia). These two individuals will work together to bolster the work related to this grant deliverable. Career, Leadership Development - We will continue all aforementioned experiential learning and student mentoring and support activities in order to bolster career and leadership development for project participants. Building Awareness of FANH Careers - We will organize 4 field trips during the year, open to any NextGen scholar or intern, to visit farms, processing facilities, kitchens, non-profit organization offices, government agency buildings, or research laboratories to expose students to FANH-related careers. Once the Agriculture Equity Coordinator is in place, we will also plan at least two career workshops where we will invite alumni and career professionals to discuss their jobs and pathways to success. Student-centered discussion spaces - We began work as a team of co-Project Directors to envision discussion spaces for all NextGen students. We are currently in the process of creating two tools - (1) a Canvas page for "NextGen Pillars" that will guide outcomes we envision for students and map activities that students can engage in to meet each "pillar", and (2) A dashboard that will highlight, specifically for UCSC students, the array of activities related to agroecology and food that exist on our campus. During summer 2024, we hope to finalize a set of NextGen pillars, and create a map of which activities will meet which pillar for each NextGen student. Over Y2 of the grant, we will work to operationalize the NextGen Pillars to bring together students in peer-learning networks in a more consistent framework. Project Evaluation We have begun evaluations with NextGen interns and scholars. The data from these initial evaluations will be compiled in time for the Y2 report. We will also recruit a student evaluator to work to develop participatory evaluation. We will continue to collaborate with students to follow their research recommendations about how to best support students in our programs.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Many students were supported by our NextGen grant with internships, scholarships and professional or career development training. Students were supported in several kinds of internships including introductory internships with the UCSC Center for Agroecology, FANH internships, and research internships with two programs at UCSC (SUPERDAR or Supporting Undergraduates by Promoting Education, Research, Diversity, and Agricultural Resilience and (H)ACER or Apprenticeship in Community-Engaged Research) and one program at CSUMB (CSUMB Research interns). The SUPERDAR internship was created under a previous NIFA grant, and funding from NextGen is allowing this successful program to continue. The focus of the SUPERDAR internship is teaching students how to do traditional academic research with a faculty or graduate student mentor. The (H)ACER program focuses on teaching students how to do community-engaged research together with community organizations. 181 students completed introductory internships focused on production, distribution, and culinary activities at the UCSC farm and student-run coffee shop. Students report that they learned, "what it is like to work in the field of organic agriculture and analyzed whether it is something I would want as a career", that they improved their "culinary skills, as I cooked dishes I had never made before". In addition, students learned "what expectations to set for myself for future job experiences". One student summarized their experience as follows, "The work I completed felt like play and the skills I learned will serve me my whole life. This internship has been the most important part of my education". The FANH interns (6) engaged in experiential learning projects created a student led-vertical garden, managed a community herb garden, created a student-run agroecology club, conducted research on plant physiology as part of a collaboration with UC Davis, and implemented an AgTech project with a Farm NG robot that autonomously weeds crop rows. Students learned, "all kinds of lab, data processing, and communication skills". One FANH intern successfully applied to be a research intern during the next academic year. Of the students who are completing the FANH internship, all state that they are interested in continuing in a FANH-related career, and that participation in the program solidified this career choice for them. FANH interns reported that, "I feel more motivated and prepared to apply for graduate school" and that, "This program exposed me to many research opportunities for a future career. It also encouraged me to go to graduate school." 80% of FANH interns report that the experience increased their sense of belonging and confidence. The research interns (18) were involved in field, lab, and community-based research at UCSC and CSUMB. Their research focused on coastal prairie fire management, urban agroecology, soil health, integrated aquaculture-agriculture, cactus electricity generation, agrivoltaics, impacts of agricultural technology on farm labor, physiology of dry farm tomatoes, plant disease ecology, and work with local organizations on environmental justice, food security, and economic justice activities. While some student projects are ongoing, those that completed research internships reported that their work was deeply impactful in highlighting local leadership and guiding students to a nuanced understanding of deep and long histories of agriculture and food justice. One student presented research at the National Undergraduate Conference of Undergraduate Research in Long Beach. One student who graduated this spring will be working for the Bureau of Land Management. Another student will be attending CSUMB in the fall in the Environmental Science Master's program. During this first year, 42 undergraduates received partial scholarships and 2 graduate students received partial scholarships to fund their education. Collectively, the 44 students received more than $105,000 in financial support. In addition, 4 NextGen PhD fellows were selected to receive 3-year fellowship packages for graduate study at UC Santa Cruz starting in fall 2024. Of those students who received scholarships during the first year of the project, students reported that, "This scholarship allowed me to be loan free for my last year of college which helped so much!!!", that, "I was able to go from 3 shifts to 1 shift a week at my part time job which allowed me to have more time to focus on school. Thanks to this scholarship I had the capacity to apply for other more hands on agriculture scholarships to get me through the rest of my time at UCSC", and that "I was able to get some support with textbooks and materials for classes which is usually a burden." Nearly 400 students and trainees received professional or career development training as part of our project. We highlight here three examples below. During year 1, 16 undergraduate students received training through the UCSC Drone Pilot Training Program. In this course, students receive practical flight training and practice, an introduction to software for mission planning and data analysis, complete a drone project in a small group, and also study and take the FAA Part 107 commercial drone pilot license exam. Of the 16 students who participated, 15 have received their FAA pilot license. The Agriculture and Land Based Training Association (ALBA) works to develop the organic farming skills of immigrant farmworkers to support a more equitable and environmentally sustainable agriculture sector. Through hands-on, land-based learning, trainees develop organic production and business management skills to pursue the dream of farm ownership or finding better jobs. This year, 17 farmers graduated from ALBA's training program. Of those, 11 launched a farm in ALBA's Organic Farm Incubator. Most have already successfully harvested a cycle of crops on ½ acre and are now advancing to 1 acre of land. A new cohort of 26 aspiring farmers began ALBA's training course and has since completed modules on soil health and crop planning, small farm business management, and marketing. We organized a panel discussion with two UC Cooperative Extension Advisors at UCSC so that students could learn about extension careers (UC Cooperative Extension is part of the USDA Cooperative Extension System). Four students attended the panel discussion; of these, one applied for and was selected for a summer internship program to work with UC Cooperative Extension.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2024
Citation:
Mallon, A., Kortenkamp, S., Bergsma, G. (2024, April 9). Lichen Density Effects on the Abundance and Diversity of Native Plants in the Understory of Oak Woodlands [Poster presentation]. NCUR 2024, Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, Long Beach, CA, United States.
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