Company Name: The Michigan State University Student Organic Farm (SOF)
Position Type: Full-time
Description
The Michigan State University Student Organic Farm (SOF) is seeking a full time Production Manager for its 10 acre certified organic year-round teaching farm. The candidate must be positive, hard working, energetic and enjoy working collaboratively with students, instructors and faculty. Additionally, the candidate must have previous organic farm management experience. MSU SOF produce markets include a 48 week vegetable CSA program (60 shares), Summer CSA program (40 shares), 6 month on-campus farm stand and contracts to MSU dining halls. The main production focus is on vegetables, fruits and flowers and on year round production using passive solar greenhouses. The farm is a dynamic working and teaching farm that includes educational opportunities for MSU undergraduate students and students in our 9 month Organic Farming Certificate Program as well as outreach programming to urban and rural growers. The SOF Production Manager will be responsible for the overall production of crops for all markets. Additionally, this person will work closely with the farmer training program instructors and students to help facilitate hands-on learning through farming.
Job Description and Duties
The Production Manager manages all aspects of the MSU Student Organic Farm (SOF) crop production in coordination with farmer training program instructors and students to support the educational mission of the farm. The Production Manager must balance the needs of supplying the SOF market commitments (48-week CSA, 6 month farm market, dining hall contracts) with facilitating student interactions with the farm in a manner that empowers them as learners and develops their understanding of farming, their farming skills, and teaches farmers in training how to make management decisions.
Production Manager working with OFCP instructors and students will:
•Develop and finalize a yearly crop plan including transplant seeding, field seeding and transplanting schedules
•Create and place seed orders
•Plan, oversee, and execute in coordination with OFCP practicum instructors, OFCP 2nd year students, and OFCP students: transplant production, planting, field and soil management, hoophouse production, irrigation, weed, pest, and disease management, maintenance of field edges, crop harvest, post harvest handling, crop rotation and use of cover crops
•Produce high quality produce while affording high quality educational opportunities for students
•Maintain organic certification including record keeping for all crops and inputs
•Maintain farm infrastructure and landscape as appropriate for a public teaching farm with frequent visitors.
•Care for all farm animals (currently includes 50 laying hens and 2 cats)
•Operate the production aspects of the CSA program, farm stand, and wholesale accounts in coordination with the teaching program
•Work to enhance and expand market opportunities for the farm as appropriate
•Hire, train, and manage a crew of undergraduate employees
•Direct volunteers on farm
•Be extremely self-motivated and detail oriented
•Maintain overall vision of the farm and all its needs while attending to detailed needs of fields, tunnels, crops, and people
•Engage in training of new farmers by teaching and demonstrating farming skills and practices
•Must work at all times to enthusiastically advance the SOF mission
Detailed Job Responsibilities:
1)Management of farm employees, volunteers and students
a.Work side by side with crew and OFCP students to lead them in farm work helping them focus on speed, efficiency, efficacy, understanding and appropriate use of tools
b.Maximize contact time with crew and students during scheduled crew hours
c.Maintain positive farm crew morale and high work standard
d.Establish and maintain good crew communication and ownership/engagement with the farm
e.Recruit, hire and train farm crew employees
f.Conduct end of semester reviews and feedback for crew members, give merit based raises
g.Create and maintain mechanisms for students to give the Production Manager and the farm feedback
h.Maintain farm safety and food safety education and protocols
2)Creation of comprehensive yearly crop plan for use by farm including seeding and planting schedules
3)Creation and execution of the weekly work list and farm priorities
a.Weekly farm walk of all fields and tunnels
b.Crop establishment and maintenance for fields and tunnels (planting, pest and weed management, watering, harvesting, clean up)
c.Infrastructure maintenance, and development
d.Compost production and application
4)Create, articulate, and execute medium and long term projects/priorities
5)Coordinate and oversee care of all SOF animals
6)Maintain and model high standards of crop production, harvesting, storage, handling and marketing
7)Give occasional farm tours and occasionally assist with basic outreach efforts
8)Maintain good overall farm appearance appropriate for a public teaching facility
9)Maintain farm infrastructure and equipment
10)Participate in weekly farm leadership team meetings
11)Participate in daily planning check-ins and checkouts during the summer
12)Manage farm budget including labor and input costs
13)Maximize farm productivity and sales within the context and constraints of maintaining the highest quality educational experience possible for our students
14)Work collaboratively with instructors and students to further develop and improve the farm’s production systems
Qualifications
Preferred candidate must:
•Have organic farming experience at both mechanized/field production scale as well as hand/garden scale and experience with appropriate tools
•Commitment to and enjoyment of working with students
•Work well in a collaborative and team environment
•Have a positive, enthusiastic, and supportive attitude
•Have good communications skills especially verbal and listening
•Have 1 to 3 years of organic farming experience with progressively more management experience
•Ideally, have 5 or more years organic farming experience including 3 years of management experience
•Have building, maintenance, and general handyperson skills
•Be self motivated and hard working
•Have the ability to handle gracefully a dynamic work environment
Compensation
$40,000 per year plus excellent benefits.
To Apply
Visit MSU HR website at http://www.jobs.msu.edu
Search for posting # 3446
In addition to the formal application which must be filled out through the MSU HR website, applicants are encouraged to contact Jeremy Moghtader using the apply function of this website.
Applications accepted through September 30th or until position is filled.
Start date ideally November 1, 2009. Negotiable.
MSU is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer
