Subawardee

UW-River Falls

Project Lead

Project Description

UWRF’s Plant and Earth Science Department will create a “Center of excellence in undergraduate education for sustainable agriculture”. Educational programming in this new Center will be designed to align with the workforce goals of the NSF Engine, especially with respect to the industry partnerships, ensuring bachelor’s degree students in fields related to sustainable agriculture are having hands-on experiences that prepare them for careers in the field. Given UWRF’s proximity to a major metropolitan area, as well its identity as a campus which traditionally attracts students from rural areas, the Center will become a hub to attract and train under-capitalized workers and increase the diversity of the region’s agricultural workforce. The Center will be designed to focus on the integration of innovation, entrepreneurship and technology, including AI, within the sustainable agriculture curriculum. The subaward will be used to explore models of excellence around the region and country, develop a curriculum for an industry-informed sustainable agriculture program that capitalizes on UWRF’s existing food production assets, including our laboratory farm, greenhouse, dairy plant and meat plant to develop tomorrow’s leaders in the sustainable food production enterprise.

Award Amount

$50,000