• Extension Technician

    North Carolina Agriculture & Technical State Unive (Greensboro, NC)


    Description:

    The Extension Technician – Horticulture provides technical, hands-on support for demonstration and educational programs involving the North Carolina A&T State University Cooperative Extension Farm Units, especially the Horticulture and Natural Resources Unit. The Program Assistant is responsible to the Extension Specialist for Horticulture under the leadership of the Agricultural and Natural Resources ( ANR ) Program Leader. Duties include crop establishment and maintenance; harvesting/post-harvest handling of crops; greenhouse and high tunnel management; record keeping , data collection and entry; and communication with clientele, members of producer groups and non-government organizations, co-workers, and other organization staff.

    Primary Function of Organizational Unit:

     

    Nationally recognized for its leadership and excellence in STEM education and research, N.C. A&T is classified as “R2-High Research Activity” in the Carnegie Classifications and is poised to achieve “R1-Very High Research Activity” status. It also holds Carnegie’s earned credential in Community Engagement and the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities ( APLU ) Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation. With an annual economic impact of $2.4 billion, N.C. A&T plays a vital role as a higher-education economic driver in North Carolina’s Piedmont Triad region and across a state that is ranked No. 1 in the nation for the second straight year as “best for business” by the CNBC financial network.

     

    The Cooperative Extension Program at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University is an educational outreach organization within the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences. Cooperative Extension at A&T provides researched-based educational information, programming and technical assistance to limited-resource audiences that address a diverse range of issues in four programmatic areas – Agriculture and Natural Resources, Family and Consumer Sciences, Community and Rural Development, and 4-H Youth Development. Together with its partners – North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, state and county governments, a dynamic and resourceful system is formed. In addition to campus operations, The Cooperative Extension Program has professionally staffed offices in almost half of the 100 counties in North Carolina and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

     

    The Agriculture and Natural Resources programs of NCA &T Cooperative Extension help farmers diversify their traditional farms and begin new enterprises, offering new and innovative ways to grow food. The primary audiences are those farmers who are just beginning, those who are underserved, and those with small-scale acreage. Agricultural and Natural Resources staff conduct field days, tours, meetings and conferences, to deliver the latest information on farming practices and technologies, agricultural business management, natural resource conversation, food safety and gardening. They also develop and deliver programs in community-based and local food systems.

     

    Internal job number: 008975

    Requirements:

    High school diploma or equivalency and demonstrated possession of the competencies necessary to perform the work; or an equivalent combination of training and experience. Requires North Carolina Pesticide License and North Carolina Commercial Driver’s License.

    Preferred:

    High School Diploma or equivalency and one year of related plant production experience; or equivalent combination of training and experience.

     

    2 years’ experience working (hands-on) in horticulture with a focus on vegetable production and at least 1 years’ (hands-on) experience with high tunnel, greenhouse and/or organic production systems are preferred over office experience.

     

    Some college preferred.

    Knowledge of agroforestry and food safety

    Experience collecting and inputting data (i.e. crop yields).

     

    Experience in preparing for field days, tours and other on-farm educational events.

     

    Knowledge of how to successfully grow and harvest plants in the field and how to manage plants in a greenhouse and high tunnel. Understanding of organic production.

     

    Ability to use and maintain basic horticulture farm equipment (tractors and implements as well as hand tools) as well as basic computer software for recordkeeping.

     

    Must be able to lift at least 50 lb and work in inclement weather.

     

    Job Closing Date: 12/31/2024