Position Purpose The Beginning Farmer-Rancher Development Program is an integral program of the Food Security efforts of The Kohala Center. Its primary function is to help revitalize island food production through assisting new farmers or ranchers to acquire the information, skills and experiences necessary to manage small production operations in ways that are environmentally responsible and economically sustainable. The Program Coordinator assists the Director of the Beginning Farmer-Rancher Development Program in developing, implementing, and managing all aspects of the training program, with particular focus on internship and educational resource development. In addition, the Program Coordinator will work with the program team to develop The Kohala Center’s educational and production farm.
Essential Job Functions Under the general supervision of The Kohala Center Director of the Beginning Farmer-Rancher Development Program (BFRDP), the Program Coordinator provides content expertise and management for an educational farm designed to train beginning farmers and ranchers in sustainable agricultural practices and production operations. •Serves as a resident expert on sustainable production farming in Hawaii’s climates and remains current on issues and advances in this field in order to instruct program participants and advise senior staff. •Assists the BFRDP Director to establish and maintain a training site that is a functioning and eventually economically viable production farm with diversified operations that illustrate and teach the development and management of orchards, vegetable crops, and animal husbandry associated with a successful small-scale farm. •Assists with the recruitment of program participants and provides on-going support to participants during all aspects of the training program. •Takes the primary role in designing and implementing an internship and educational program for high school students. •Assists with the reporting, record keeping, and communications for the training programs. •Carefully manages the risk of having students in settings with farm machinery. •Assists in careful record keeping for teaching farm site operations and projects. •Represents The Kohala Center, as an expert in sustainable food production and farmer training in highly divergent forums and groups engaged in all aspects of the agriculture and food production industry.
Position Requirements Required Knowledge Skills and Abilities •Exceptional interpersonal, verbal, and written communications skills required. •Good judgment and the ability to effectively manage inexperienced students in farm and community settings are essential. •Proven ability to interact positively with a wide variety of people in groups and in one-on-one personal communication. •Strong knowledge of sustainable food production and the building of soil fertility. •Knowledge of farm planning, farm production economics, and sound marketing strategies. •Working knowledge of farm equipment maintenance and repair. •Strong organizational, project management and time management skills. •Ability to work positively in a fast-paced, demanding, and collaborative organization. Experience •Four years of experience as an agricultural production instructor at a functioning educational farm. •Other educational or farm production experience can substitute for two years of ag production instructional experience. Education •BA required.
Working Conditions •This position requires mobility as well as evening and weekend hours. •This position requires the ability to perform heavy physical work and operate heavy equipment •Work is performed in a variety of settings in the community •Out of area travel is required from time to time – generally to neighboring islands, with potential out-of-state travel. •Initial performance reviews will take place after 30, 60, and 90 days of employment. After this initial period of review, performance reviews will be conducted once a year. •The Kohala Center employee benefits package is competitive and includes health, dental, vision, prescription drug, and complementary health care insurance coverage, accrued vacation leave totaling two weeks for each of the first three years of employment and increasing to three weeks per year after that, access to direct deposit 401K retirement plan and supplemental disability plan.
Get Involved. Join Conservation Connections.
