Cossatot community college of the university of arkansas, an hispanic-serving institution, will design a 2-year associate's degree program - industrial agriculture - that will be developed in…

Cossatot community college of the university of arkansas, an hispanic-serving institution, will design a 2-year associate's degree program - industrial agriculture - that will be developed in collaboration with industry leaders and infused with DEI best practices. Objectives include: 1) modify current course/certification offerings to create a new degree/certification pathway designed to test and acquire industry recognized credentials; 2) address known bias and/or systemic barriers in agriculture workforce training to increase placement of hispanic students in senior-level career tracks; 3) create and codify collaborative activities , including experiential learning opportunities, with up to three relevant industry partners; and 4) create pathways of immediate credentialing upon course completion. Activities include: 1) survey of area employers to determine most pressing needs and skills for unfilled industrial agriculture positions; 2) curricula audit of current agriculture offerings to determine realignment or refinement of coursework; 3) infusion of DEI best practices to increase academic and professional success of hispanic students; 4) exploration and codification of potential experiential learning opportunities for future degree pathway; and 5) institutionalization of program, including submission of a FY23 USDA afri AWT implementation grant. No participants will be recruited within the 12-month design period. The intended impact of IT is design project is developing pathways (AWT priority) for first generation hispanic students to gain applicable skills in emerging agriculture disciplines - bovine insemination, unmanned aerial piloting, and geospatial data collection and mapping - to create a new generation of agricultural leaders in arkansas that more fully reflect the makeup of its labor force.