More than 500 teachers have completed the weeklong program since 1989

Agriculture feeds Oregon’s residents and keeps many of them employed. But not everyone — especially the younger generation — knows about this sector’s important contibution to the state.

To bridge this knowledge gap, OSU helped create the Summer Ag Institute in 1989 to help teachers use agriculture as a context for teaching subjects like science, math, social studies and English. The week-long program is aimed at teachers in kindergarten through 12th grade with little or no agricultural background. The teachers earn graduate-level, continuing education credits from OSU.

Teachers have a choice of two sessions: one on either side of the Cascades. The eastside experience, based in Union, includes Columbia Basin wheat ranches, timber operations, seed farms and cattle ranches. The westside experience, based in Corvallis, showcases the Willamette Valley’s cornucopia of fruit, nuts, vegetables, wineries, grass seed and Christmas trees. Participants tour orchards, berry fields, dairies and wineries. They shear sheep, test soil and build hydroponics systems for their classrooms. They each stay overnight with a farm family, lending a hand in chores and building relationships.

Surveys have shown that the Summer Ag Institute has positively impacted teachers’ perceptions and knowledge of agriculture. As one participant said, “All the tours were so eye-opening. Everything dispelled myths I had held as true for a lifetime.”

Read more about the Summer Ag Institute in Oregon’s Agricultural Progress magazine.

Sources: Greg Thompson, head of the agricultural education and general agriculture department at OSU

original post: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/bridges/osu-bridges-gap-between-agriculture-and-educators

66 students have completed the Portland training since 2011

Some urbanites are choosing farming over office jobs, but not all of them have agricultural backgrounds. To educate them, the OSU Extension Service, in partnership with Multnomah County, trains these aspiring farmers with its seven-month Beginning Urban Farmer Apprenticeship program in Portland.

Through classes, hands-on training, field trips, online learning, stints at farmers markets and apprenticeships, students learn to produce vegetables, fruits, grains and cut flowers using sustainable and organic methods. They also learn to design landscapes and create a business and marketing plan for a farm. The curriculum is based on Extension’s “Growing Farms: Successful Whole Farm Management” workshop series.

Nearly 30 of the 66 graduates so far have continued in the field of agriculture. Alumni have started small-scale operations, contracted with OSU for small horticulture projects, landed a job at an organic farm, started a nonprofit farm at a high school, interned on farms and operated a small farm for restaurant sales.

Source: Weston Miller, horticulturist with the OSU Extension Service.

original post: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/bridges/aspiring-urban-farmers-gain-practical-skills-osu-program