Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** the barry university craft scholars…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** the barry university craft scholars program (cultivating resilience through agriculture and food training) is a strategic workforce development initiative designed to recruit and train high-achieving undergraduates for careers in the critical food and agriculture sectors. By building a robust talent pipeline, this program directly benefits farms, ranchers, and the agricultural industry, ensuring a steady supply of skilled professionals ready to address the nation's food security and production challenges. Aligned with the USDA nextgen program, craft scholars connects students with industry demands by partnering with university of florida's institute of food and agricultural sciences (UF/ifas) and urban greenworks (UGW), a miami-based nonprofit farm focused on food-system solutions to community health. UGW will deliver a 15-week experiential learning module where students work on a farm and learn firsthand about environmental and health-related impacts of the food system. To support student success and career readiness, the program provides thirty (30) undergraduate and five (5) graduate scholarships, a seminar series, field trips, twenty (20) paid summer research internships, and five (5) additional internships at local farms or agribusiness sites in florida. Recognizing the cultural dynamics of our students, experiences increase in duration and intensity gradually to address family hesitancy about studying away from home. This partnership fosters mutual growth: barry university will gain critical insight into USDA and agricultural career opportunities, while UF/ifas will refine strategies to recruit and mentor studentsresulting in a job-ready workforce prepared to help tackle the economic and security challenges facing america's food systems.