Curtis Selected to Receive Sustainable Agriculture Grant from NCR-SARE

Photo of Kip Curtis

Curtis Selected to Receive Sustainable Agriculture Grant from NCR-SARE

Kip Curtis, associate professor of Environmental History/Mansfield campus and faculty fellow in the Office of Outreach and Engagement, has been selected to receive a $89,976 grant from the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (NCR-SARE) for the project, "Growing the Growers: Leadership Training and the Development of Key Personnel for Engaged Production in the Mansfield Microfarm Project."

"The project will be supporting the development of a comprehensive training program to assist low-opportunity growers entering an urban agricultural cooperative by providing business, agricultural, and marketing education designed to enhance environmentally sustainable production and increase successful outcomes," said Curtis.

This grant was awarded as part of NCR-SARE's Professional Development Program, which emphasizes training agricultural educators in extension, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, private, and not-for-profit sectors, using farmers as educators and addressing emerging issues in the farm community. NCR-SARE administers each of its grant programs, each with specific priorities, audiences, and timelines. The focus for each of the NCR-SARE grant programs is on research and education.

Funding considerations are made based on how well the applicant articulates the nature of the research and education components of their sustainable agriculture grant proposals.

NCR-SARE's Administrative Council (AC) members decide which projects will receive SARE funds. A collection of farm and non-farm citizens, the AC includes a diverse mix of agricultural stakeholders in the region. Council members hail from regional farms and ranches, the Cooperative Extension Service, universities, federal agencies, and nonprofit organizations.