Welcome Home 2015-2016 Fellows

On June 24 we welcomed our second class of Fellows back from Ghana.  The 2015-2016 Fellows started 19 new 4-H/Future Farmer type clubs, hosted the first ever 4-H Ghana public speaking contest, trained more than 80 agriculture teachers on experiential learning and trained more than 900 4-H advisors on club creation and management.

Meet our Recruiter

Kelsey Knight joined the AgriCorps team as this year’s recruiter. Kelsey spent the last year as a Fellow in the rural community of Korm, Ghana. She helped her students cultivate their multi-acre school farm, build the 4-H club’s revenue and was given the honor of Dedematse Manye Queen Mother of Youth Development.

Recruitment season for our fourth AgriCorps class is in full swing!  Between the first of September and the middle of November, Kelsey will visit 21 universities and three conferences. The journey started at the University of Kentucky, and will include Texas A&M, Michigan State, Cornell, Tuskegee and many places in between.  Included in this year’s schedule are five universities that will be visited for the first time.  Follow the AgriCorps Recruitment Journey on social media by searching the hashtag #JoinAgriCorps to see selfies, updates, and announcements on where AgriCorps will be traveling.

Become a Fellow

AgriCorps is looking for an elite corps of Fellows to serve in the 2017-18 class.  Fellows must have an agricultural background and have previous experience with 4-H or FFA.  If you or someone you know would make a great fellow, contact Kelsey Knight at kelsey.knight@agricorps.org or apply here. Applications are due December 1, 2016.

New Fellow Update

AgriCorps’ just placed twelve fellows, with degrees in agriculture from ten different universities, in Ghana and Liberia.  The Fellows will serve as agriculture teachers, 4-H/Future Farmer advisors, and agricultural “extension agents” in their communities and schools.

AgriCorps Training Institute

After ten days of training on experiential learning, pedagogy and leadership development at the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation in Ardmore, Oklahoma, the Fellows were off to Ghana and Liberia for cross-cultural and agricultural enhancement training.

For three weeks, fellows immersed themselves in Ghanaian and Liberian culture through a home-stay experience, language training, cultural observances, health and safety protocol, and introductions to the local education systems.  The Fellows even led a one day 4-H Camp for students from five different schools.  Scientists from the Crops Research Institute of Ghana led a three day, extensive hands-on training in local agriculture crops and techniques.  Fellows also attended trainings at the Kumasi Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, the Cocoa Research Institute, Savannah Agricultural Research Institute, and LBS Veterinary School.  The knowledge and connections made at these institutions will allow fellows to identify problems and bring local solutions to improve agriculture in their communities.

Shop on Amazon and Support AgriCorps!

Do you shop on Amazon?  Well, now you can support AgriCorps and make your purchases at the same time through Amazon Smile.  Just go to www.smile.amazon.com and select AgriCorps, Inc. as your designated non-profit. Once you’ve selected us a percentage of everything you buy through your Amazon account goes to AgriCorps—it doesn’t get much easier. Happy shopping and thanks for your support!

Crowdfunding Campaign

Have you wanted to support the AgriCorps’ mission of bringing agricultural education to developing countries?  Your chance is coming up through the second annual crowdfunding campaign beginning on November 15. Our goal is to raise $40,000 to fund one AgriCorps Fellow.  In addition to your financial support, we need you to share our social media posts to your network to expand our footprint. Can’t wait until the crowdfunding campaign?  Make your online contribution here.

Interested in working for AgriCorps?

AgriCorps is hiring for our Director of Programs in Africa. The position is based in Ghana with frequent travel to Liberia. If you are interested you can check out the job posting on our website.