WAUSAU – Northcentral Technical College and eight additional colleges in the Community College Alliance for Agriculture Advancement, or C2A3, will receive nearly $530,000 over the next four years as part of a cooperative agreement issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service.
The main objective of the agreement is to ensure quality education and training of field practitioners. These partners will enhance and accelerate training and adoption of technologies and best practices for improved agricultural productivity and natural resources stewardship.
“NTC plans to hold at least one field day per year to demonstrate to our community the work we are performing through this grant to achieve successful crops utilizing the latest conservation practices in the agricultural industry,” said Greg Cisewski, dean of NTC’s School of Agricultural Sciences, Utilities, and Transportation, in a news release. “NTC is also exploring opportunities to potentially replicate in-person field day activities in an online environment so more community members can gain information at a time that’s convenient for them.”
A key component of this agreement is hands-on learning in the field, using college land resources to model best practices. Faculty and students will work with NRCS field office staff to implement a conservation plan, install practices on the ground, collect data and help inform current and future producers. NTC will use funds to implement a conservation plan with the Wisconsin NRCS, support research plots, teach students to collect and report samples, and host field days.
