Meeting & Agendas

Austin Community College is developing an agricultural entrepreneurship program at its Elgin Campus. The Continuing Education (non-credit) one year certificate program is designed to provide hands-on training for students interested in sustainable agricultural production and developing appropriate entrepreneurial skills to make the pursuit economically viable. At some point in the future the program could possibly convert into a full credit associate degree program.

ACC invites individuals that are knowledgeable in the industry to serve on a committee and act in an advisory capacity. The advisory committee members will be asked to recommend additional members and meet frequently to provide input during the development of the program. The committee will need a chair and co-chair and work on setting the meeting agendas. The committee will become self-governing and once the program is operational, will meet two to three times a year.

ACC proposes initially offering a 310 hour non-credit certificate program, Agricultural Sustainability, beginning in Fall 2013. Additional certificates in Sustainable Vegetable Production and Entrepreneurship in Sustainable Agriculture will be added. Courses required for the Agricultural Sustainability program have been created and include: • Introduction to Sustainable Agriculture • Fundamentals of Soil Science • Organic Crop Production Spring and Fall • Biological Pest Management Special Topics: • Farming Construction • Horticulture • Food Systems: Farm to Table • Integrated Decision Making/Management Skills The first three courses will be offered in Fall 2013. The first year will offer a horticultural based curriculum with specialized topics added in the future.

Those in attendance recommended: Adding additional topics (e.g., animal husbandry, perennial production) to the curriculum. Revise Food Systems: Farm to Table title and description to reflect new systems that will be used in micro farming. Adding hours to Fundamentals of Soil Science and include the study of compost. Reach out to agricultural extension agencies, associations, and local organizations.

The advisory committee will move forward in developing the first certificate curriculum plan. Note: when total hours in certificate reaches 360, then certificate requires ACC Board of Trustees and Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) approval. The degree plans will be distributed to the committee members. At the next meeting the committee will work on reviewing the THECB Workforce Education Course Manual (WECM) course descriptions and aligning them with the proposed curriculum. The next meeting date: Wednesday, April 24, 2013